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The old equation of part cost plus profit equals selling price is no longer accurate. Rather, a fixed or decreasing price less part cost yields profit. If manufacturers want to increase profits under this equation, controlling cost is key.

Increasingly, discrete manufacturers with blanket annual volumes are turning to lean-enabled concepts in an attempt to reduce waste (thus costs) to improve profitability. Some, however, have missed an important point: Lean manufacturing is not limited to waste reduction within pure manufacturing processes. It should also include all supporting activities, such as supporting ERP software. The entire organization should focus on eliminating inefficiencies wherever they occur, while continually improving quality.

The Japanese call waste Muda, which is defined as the opposite of value. Training employees to recognize and eliminate Muda can lead to reduced costs and, thus, improved profits.

There are eight types of Muda, motions that contain no value: motion, waiting, conveyance, correction, over-processing, overproduction, inventory and knowledge. (See sidebar) The goal is to eliminate activities that do not add value.
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Feature - Lean-Enabled ERP

Taking the concepts of the Toyota System and enhancing them with todays information systems technology has been the key to allow some manufacturers to unlock the door that leads to a short-cut in process improvement projects. They are rethinking the good ideas of lean manufacturing and are using todays factory floor information tools to quickly and easily improve factory floor performance, customer responsiveness and their bottom line.

Process improvement through a leaner approach and finite scheduling for the factory floor can be demonstrated in a number of ways:

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by John Hanson

RFID is the abbreviation for Radio Frequency Identification. RFID is a method used to store and retrieve data using RFID transponders or tags. RFID tags have antennas that allow them to accept and respond to queries from the RFID transceiver. There are passive and active RFID tags. The difference between the two is that passive tags do not need an internal power source, but active tags do. RFID technology is already used in many technologies today. The future of RFID technology seems

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