I Am Humbled
21 December 2005
While I like to turn a buck as much as the next guy, when it comes to manufacturing I am often unable to refrain from allowing my emotions to cloud my…
I Don't Speak Japanese
20 December 2005
There is no question that there is a lot American manufacturing can learn from Toyota, Honda, Canon and a few other Japanese companies. The lessons f…
The Importance of Giving Back
18 December 2005
It is probably no coincidence that this time of the year brings thoughts of charity and giving back to the world. As the result of some family medica…
Grinch Smalley
18 December 2005
Art Smalley just walked into my house and told me I don't know what Christmas is all about. Can you imagine the nerve of this guy? I got 3,000 b…
The Chance of a Lifetime
16 December 2005
In Following The Equator, Mark Twain wrote, "I find that, as a rule, when a thing is a wonder to us, it is not because of what we see in it. We…
The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
16 December 2005
First the good news: There is a Chrysler (DCX for sticklers) engine plant in Toledo that is doing some extraordinary things - extraordinary for the U…
MRP On The Rocks
14 December 2005
Mark Edmondson from Lean Affiliates and Mark Graban have been hammering away at the latest whiz bang variation of MRP, calling it another "siren…
You Have To Play By The Rules
13 December 2005
After seeing some of the recent posts on NWLean, and stumbling across a lean manufacturing forum for manufacturing engineers, it occurred to me that I…