Balancing WIP and Throughput with Machine Utilization in a Manufacturing Facility

Lean manufacturing is a philosophy with a series of techniques for any manufacturing company to get to the top of production performance and to stay there. But for many still, the teething pains of change and a steep climb are too much to bear and sustain. There are a number of weak points in a company that makes it difficult if not impossible to achieve the promised gains for the efforts they put in. To implement lean requires careful understanding and application of the concepts of throughput, cycle time, work-in-process, and machine utilization. This paper discusses some of the basic lean concepts related to the throughput, cycle time, and WIP that companies should follow when going through the transition to a lean production system.