James L. Heskett

Keep up with all the latest conversations, interviews, and episodes right here on Supply Chain Now as we look back on everything that’s happened this week! On Monday, we released 3 new episodes! On Digital Transformers on Supply Chain Now, hosts Kevin L. Jackson and Scott Luton welcome Dr. Evaristus Mainsah, with IBM, to the show to discuss IBM think #2021, post-pandemic digital transformation, using AI to make your workforce even more effective, and exactly what drives innovation. On This Week in Business History, guest host Kelly Barner, Owner of Buyers Meeting Point and Host of Dial P for Procurement remembers key innovations, inventions, and firsts that took place between June 7th and 13th, including the questionable career of Samuel Slater, the tricky first passing of the Panama Canal, and how the Post Office stopped the shipment of children through their national parcel service. On Supply Chain Now en Spanish, host Enrique Alvarez interviews Sofia Rivas Herrera learning about her journey from curious child to industrial engineer to supply chain leader and much more. On Tuesday, we released 2 new episodes! On our Logistics with Purpose series, produced in partnership with Vector Global Logistics, as Pat Plonski, Executive Director of…

Lean manufacturing is all about reducing waste and increasing efficiency. Manufacturers have been implementing lean practices for decades and have stood the test of time. Now, with technological advancements, lean methodologies can be more transformative than ever before. “Integrating automation into lean manufacturing is a powerful strategy. Unlike traditional automation, which often aims to increase production capacity without considering real needs, lean automation focuses on the smart and selective application of technologies to meet specific continuous improvement goals and eliminate inefficiencies,” the Kaizen Institute said. “Digital transformation provides an unprecedented opportunity for implementing lean,” it continued. “When applied within lean, tools like the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), and data analytics can revolutionize how organizations detect and eliminate waste.” What is Lean Manufacturing? In “The Machine That Changed The World,” published in 1990, lean production is hailed as “Toyota’s secret weapon in the global car wars.” The Toyota Production System was developed following World War II from “a series of simple innovations … to provide both continuity in process flow and a wide variety in product offerings,” according to the Lean Enterprise Institute. In “Lean Thinking,” a 1996 follow-up to “The Machine That Changed The World,” authors James…