Author: leanexpert

Introducing Lean Expert, our 100% online Lean school! 😉 How about improving your overall efficiency, knowledge and productivity?

Lean Expert, which works to demystify Lean, and teach it in a fun way. In fact, it’s a school that offers its certified training 100% online, and it’s super easy to work with! They’re accessible from your living room. No more evening or weekend classes. Transfer your new knowledge to the workplace. Here, in three main points, is what the Lean Expert Academy is all about!

1. HOW DOES IT WORK?

First of all, the Lean Expert Academy is a 100% online training platform. So everything goes through the platform: tools, training, contacts, etc. A bit like in karate, the belts describe the level of perfection in continuous improvement, from white belt to black belt. It’s also worth noting that a continuous improvement project is included throughout the course, which combines training and the application of a DMAIC project. No more Power Points to read!

We’re proud to be the official Canadian distributors!

Here’s a concise summary of the objectives of each belt:

White belt (2 to 3 hours) :

• History of Lean
  -Key principles of Lean
  -Waste
  -Gemba Walk
  -5S
  -Problem solving
  -Added value

Yellow belt (approx. 15 hours) :
Knowledge :

-Indicators and dashboards
-DMAIC approach
-Six Sigma
-Spaghetti flows and layout
-Takt time and cycle time
-Value chain management (VSM)
-Lot size and WIP
-Bottleneck
-Kaizen

Skills :

• Know how to select and implement Lean tools – Green Belt level;
• Unite and lead a team around a Lean project;
• Carry out a simple* improvement project in the field in DMAIC format (*as defined by the standard).

Green Belt (between 15 and 26 hours, depending on with certification or E-learning) :
Knowledge :

-Communication structure
-Customer order
-ERP queue and Kanban product mix
-SMED and EPEI (lot size calculations)
-FIFO TPM MADC

Skills :

• Know how to select and implement Lean tools – Green belt level;
• Unite and lead a team around a Lean project;
• Carry out a simple* improvement project in the field in DMAIC format (*as defined in standard NFX 06 091);
• Implement a progress plan in your company.

Black Belt (between 15 and 26 hours, depending on with certification or E-learning) :
Knowledge :

-Cycle efficiency
-Line/workstation capacity
-Equipment performance (TRG)
-Team and autonomous unit
-Kaizen Breakthrough and Kaizen Blitz
-Flow management (Heijunka)
-Milkman system, Kitting and 5S
-Quality (Andon, Poka Yoke, Jidoka)
-Strategies (Hoshin)
-Obeya room and project management

Skills :

• Understand Lean (Operational Excellence) philosophy and performance improvement tools;
• Know how to select and implement Lean tools – Black Belt level;
• Carry out 4 to 5 complex continuous improvement projects in DMAIC format;
• Produce a summary report on the projects carried out and the deployment of the Lean approach;
• Implement a progress plan in your company and verify the sustainability of actions (gains in excess of $100,000).

OFFICE
If you want to improve your office skills, we’ve got the solution too!

We have an “Office” belt: Green Belt (approx. 26 hours) :
Knowledge :

-Lean Office waste
-VSM processes (Yamazumi)
-Just-in-time
-Kanban
-Standard
-Visual management
-Agile management
-Scrum, sprint and AIC

Skills :

• Know how to select and implement Lean tools – Green belt level;
• Unite and lead a team around a Lean project;
• Carry out a simple* on-site improvement project in DMAIC format (*as defined in standard NFX 06 091);
• Implement a progress plan in your company.

SUPPLY CHAIN
If you’d like to learn more about supply chain management, we’ve got the solution too!

We have two supply chain belts: MRP (4 to 6 hours) :
-Logistics
-Industrial and commercial planning
-ERP and forecasting
-Safety stock
-Master production plan
-Product mix and changeover
-Net requirement calculations
-Order management

DDMRP (2 to 4 hours) :

• Strategic stock positioning (buffering);
• Define buffer profiles and levels;
• Understand dynamic buffer management;
• Generate replenishment orders based on actual demand;
• Execute and manage replenishment order priorities.

Learn how to transfer your Lean Management knowledge to your workplace!

Be a builder, and a continuous learner!
One of our Lean experts, Mr. Marois, on a Lean project!

2. WHO TRUSTS US?

Over 500 companies have worked with us on hundreds, if not thousands, of projects. With over 15 years’ experience in the field of Lean, we can proudly say that we have become a benchmark in continuous improvement in Quebec. At the Lean Expert Academy, we’ve been supporting a number of customers for two years now through these enriching training courses. The Lean Expert Academy, associated with 7-Shapes, is now recognized around the globe for its simplicity, ease of approach and exhilarating interactivity. See for yourself what one of our customers has to say:

Feedback from a prestigious 2,500-employee company in an interview this morning.

-‘With your training, we give training we wouldn’t have given because we don’t have enough staff to train’.
-‘We standardize the internal language with your online training. At last, we understand each other.
Training can be completed anywhere, at any pace, with real-time traceability’. We often lost track of who had done what’.
-We’re saving a lot of money and we’re going to train a lot more people with this. We’ll improve our internal continuous improvement culture.
-‘Definitely, your package of unlimited training per year is a great package.
-‘The average score of our employees who have completed your fun training courses is 4.5 out of 5.

To adopt it is to move forward!

3. WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OUR ACADEMY AND THE OTHERS? IN OTHER WORDS, WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT?

WHAT SETS US APART IS ACTIVE, NOT PASSIVE, TRAINING! 👇

4. SEE OUR LEAN EXPERT ACADEMY COMMERCIAL! The Lean Expert Academy in 30 seconds!

5. AT WHAT PRICE?

Certifications are among the best prices on the market, as well as being the most accessible. In fact, everything can be done from home, including the certification exams! Here’s a summary of the subjects for each of the belts, with prices with or without support.

*Accompaniment means that a Lean expert will accompany you and guide you through your journey with additional information, support and more!

6. WHERE TO START?

With our Lean Expert demo! Completely free of charge, it will enable you to see what the Academy has to offer. You’ll be able to take part in a few activities to see the interactivity and training potential. You won’t be disappointed!

You can find the link to the demo here 👇

https://school.7-shapes.com/main.html

WE’RE THERE, at the forefront of your growth. See you soon!

EVERYTHING about augmented reality😉 Following one of our newsletters, in part about augmented reality, we’ve had lots of questions, comments, appreciation and excitement. So we decided to get our hands dirty today to give you more details on the subject! 1. Augmented reality in a nutshell (definition) This futuristic-looking technology is just around the corner. It consists in superimposing virtual and reality together, in an AR (augmented reality) headset or a telescope. We have a telescope in which we see the reality around us, adding a virtual superimposition. 2. What do our customers think? How do they feel about it? Scierie St-Michel’s experience! Scierie St-Michel is committed to using technology to improve its performance and productivity. Augmented reality has thus become an essential tool for the company. The company has set up training courses for its employees to help them better understand and use these technologies. Inventory and operations management are essential to the business, and the St-Michel sawmill has implemented IT tools to facilitate this. Data collection and analysis are also essential to good management. The St-Michel sawmill has therefore implemented tools to ensure equipment maintenance and incident prevention. Risk management is also an essential part of the business. Human resources management is also an important element for the St-Michel sawmill, which ensures that its employees are trained in new technologies and their requirements, so augmented reality has facilitated the training of new employees. Quality management is also an important aspect of ensuring customer satisfaction. The St-Michel sawmill is committed to offering quality service and using advanced technologies to improve its performance and productivity. Rémy Champoux, Production Manager 3. Case study: augmented reality (Q&A) What’s your biggest irritant at your company? Well, our biggest irritant was our high employee turnover rate and our inability to release our trainers for new employees. We found that this led to lost productivity and increased our costs due to the need to train new employees on a regular basis. This was a major challenge for our company. What action did you take to solve your problem? We first tried to hire more trainers to reduce the workload of our existing trainers and free up time to train new employees. However, this didn’t work, as we found that manual training was still time-consuming and required a lot of effort on the part of our trainers. Finally, we realized that a digital solution could help solve our problem, so we decided to digitize our in-house training. This enabled our new employees to follow the training at their own pace, freeing up our trainers for other important tasks. It has also significantly reduced our employee turnover rate. So augmented reality has been a great solution for us. 4. *If you missed our newsletter on this subject, here’s the part on AR (augmented reality)! Augmented reality: a booming tool! What is augmented reality? This futuristic-looking technology is just around the corner. It consists in superimposing virtual and reality together, in an AR (augmented reality) headset or a telescope. We have a telescope through which we see the reality around us, adding a virtual superimposition. What’s the difference between virtual and augmented reality? Virtual reality doesn’t include reality. It’s only virtual (so we don’t see what’s around us), whereas with augmented reality, we see both! Both types of technology have their advantages and disadvantages. However, in a factory, AR allows you to have the headset on while walking around the factory, since reality is also present. How convenient! Is augmented reality affordable? How many months does the return on investment represent after the purchase of a headset and a license? Augmented reality is much more accessible and affordable than you might think. A Microsoft Hololens, for example, is an augmented reality headset that costs a few thousand dollars. That’s a far cry from the astronomical sums we were hearing about ten years ago! Then you add a license, a Microsoft account, and additional options to suit your needs. ROI (return on investment) depends on a number of factors: How long you use the headset (is it used 2 hours a week or 35 hours?); The actions you perform with your helmet (added value, non-added value). Indeed, the performance of the headset will be an important factor in determining ROI. We have augmented reality projects that have achieved an ROI of 18 months. Impressive! How can augmented reality boost your company’s productivity, while making up for the shortage of manpower? In fact, augmented reality can be used everywhere: in particular, it will help you with your weak points. Augmented reality is very versatile. Are you experiencing any of the following difficulties within your company? : -Taking inventory; -Change of setup between two different types of production; -Maintenance (preventive, corrective, predictive); -Training; -Integration of new employees; -Remote plant visit; -Remote repair (telling you what to do in the event of a problem); -Data tracking; -Etc. Augmented reality can do it all! Often, the main causes of these problems are : -Difficulty transferring/sharing knowledge; -Ineffective communication; -Lack of manpower; -High turnover; -Lack of availability. Augmented reality is the answer to all these difficulties. Without further commitment, augmented reality makes it possible to : 1. Reduce travel time and communication inefficiencies; 2. Make remote instructions easier to understand; 3. Reduce the company’s ecological footprint; 4. Protect corporate memory through better knowledge management; 5. Improve the profitability of remote worker assistance projects; 6. Increase synergy between team members at all levels. Train without a trainer, generate automatic daily reports without adding any extra tasks for your employees, manage stock and inventory remotely…and much more. WOW! Do you have doubts or questions? Want to implement augmented reality in your business? Book an appointment with one of our experts! WE’RE THERE, on the front lines of your growth. See you soon!

27.06.2023

Following a large-scale project, one of our project managers spoke to us about it.

We asked Eliot to talk about the project and explain the challenges and expected results. Here’s his response: “I was assigned to a contract at a sawmill in Lachute. The sawmill management contacted Lean with a view to improving their work practices, in particular preventive maintenance and work order organization. They also wanted to improve leadership and knowledge transfer. The first challenge was to build a CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System) customized to the customer’s needs and implement it in the garage and the filing room. With this software, it is now possible to carry out analyses of equipment lifecycles, and the planning of non-production work is greatly facilitated. As the foremen had a busy schedule and didn’t want to impose the use of the software, the difficulty was to get the sawmill’s employees involved in the process. To this end, the CMMS was designed in response to their requests for simple, effective software. The filesetters are delighted to be able to keep track of the time their saws are in use, and the mechanics see their orders made easier. The next challenge is, with the help of an equipment criticality analysis, to set up a lubrication and preventive maintenance program. At present, the sawmill is in reactive mode, resulting in breakages and lost production time. In addition to saving production time, the program will aim to reduce maintenance costs over the long term, thereby maximizing equipment life.”

Here’s a photo of a user of Lean Expert’s in-house CMMS. A customer so happy with the result makes our team proud!

2. What do our customers think? How do they feel about it? “We’re happy with the result. The CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System) helps us on a daily basis. It has become our tool for quantifying and explaining preventive and corrective maintenance. We’d like to thank Lean Expert for making such a fine tool.”

Do as they do, and contact us to take on your large-scale projects with recognized experts!