Lean Manufacturing Workshop

Final year engineering students at the University of Tasmania attended a workshop on lean manufacturing as part of a manufacturing conference held at Wrest Point Casino on 30th September, 2009. The manufacturing conference and workshop was organised by the Tasmanian Manufacturing Industry Council and the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and the Arts. The manufacturing workshop was presented by Gary Kerr who provided an effective interactive session on lean manufacturing processes. Although engineering students did have exposure to manufacturing throughout the course of their degree, the workshop gave further insight into the parameters influencing lean manufacturing processes. The session provided an excellent basis for analysing manufacturing processes using value stream mapping to identify areas for improving manufacturing efficiency by reducing waste and improving flow processes. The examples used were based on real life case studies arising from the manufacturing industry which was found to be particularly useful as it allowed students to develop a connection between the theory and real world manufacturing examples. An engineering problem was presented at the conclusion of the session and students were given the opportunity to work in teams to solve a lean manufacturing problem using value stream mapping. This not only provided a challenge to the students, however, it also gave them the opportunity to apply the techniques presented. In conclusion, the workshop had proven to be very effective as it provided exposure to real world examples with opportunity to use value stream mapping as a tool to improve flow processes and manufacturing efficiency.