INVENTORY KANBAN
WHAT IS KANBAN?
Pronounced “kahn-bahn”, this Japanese word means “card” or “visual sign”
This predictive planning & manufacturing method was originally created by Toyota to streamline processes in their automotive factories. Line workers at Toyota would use visual “cards” or kanban to signal steps in the manufacturing process, making work flow visual & enabling employees across levels of responsibility to understand & react to deadlines, anticipate future concerns & limit inefficiencies like overly frequent task-switching
While much of kanban today is done through digital systems, it is still a best practice in many manufacturing centers to maintain a visual workflow board as part of their Lean Manufacturing program