ERP Enabled Lean Six Sigma: A Holistic Approach for Competitive Manufacturing

The uncertainty of demand, lead times and other shop floor data in manufacturing systems, presence of manufacturing wastes and lack of systematic approach for solving customer specific problems are the main concerns of competitive manufacturing. Uncertainty caused by variation in demand and lead times together with lack of accurate data on bill of materials and inventory status leads to inefficient materials planning, master production schedule and capacity planning. Manufacturing efficiency is adversely affected by the presence of manufacturing wastes. Lastly process variability adversely affects competitive manufacturing. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma are the three different strategies to address the above mentioned concerns for competitive manufacturing. ERP focuses on data and schedule accuracy and ensures repeatable and predictable processes. Lean manufacturing focuses on identification and elimination/ minimizing of all kinds of manufacturing wastes. Six sigma is a process improvement initiative used to eliminate defects from processes and focuses on reducing process variability. These three strategies are mostly being used by organizations as stand alone initiatives. The paper provides a brief description of ERP, lean manufacturing and six sigma strategies. Benefits of using these strategies in synergy have been discussed. The past and present perspectives of lean manufacturing together with a holistic approach combining ERP, lean and six sigma strategies has been presented. Research gaps and areas of future research have been identified.

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