Member Price – £850.00 + VAT
Non-Member Price – £920.00 + VAT

Duration – 2 Days

Course Objectives

•  Build a shared understanding of lean principles across the team
• Introduce practical methods to identify and reduce waste
• Provide tools to improve process flow, standardisation, and visual management
• Strengthen the teams problem-solving and continuous improvement capability
• Support leaders in sustaining change within day to day operations

Course Content

Introduction to Lean Principles and Manufacturing Terminology
Introduction to the origins and purposes of lean manufacturing, including key principles such as value, flow, pull, and continuous improvement. Common lean terms are explained using manufacturing-specific language and examples to ensure a consistent understanding across the team.

Understanding Value-Adding vs Non-Value-Adding Activity
Exploration of what constitutes value from a customer and manufacturing perspective. Participants learn how to distinguish between value-adding, non-value-adding, and necessary but non-value-adding activities within machining, fabrication, assembly, inspection, and material handling processes.

The 8 Wastes in a Manufacturing Environment
Details review of the 8 Wastes (Defects, Overproduction, Waiting, Non-utilised Talent, Transportation, Inventory, Motion, and Over-processing), with practical examples of how these wastes typically appear on the shop floor, in production planning, and across materials and information flow at Serrations. #

Process Flow, Standardisation, and Visual Management
Introduction to the principles of process flow and why poor flow drives inefficiency, delays, and excess work-in-progress. Overview of standardisation work and visual management techniques commonly used in manufacturing to improve consistency, highlight problems quickly, and support safer , more controlled operations.

Applied Lean Exercises sing Real Manufacturing Examples
Practical exercises based on real processes, products, or scenarios from within the business. Participants work through examples to identify waste, map simple process flows, and consider practical improvements that can be applied directly back in the workplace.

Current Manufacturing Challenges and Improvement Opportunities
Facilitated discussion focused on current operational challenges such as bottlenecks, rework, planning issues, material flow, or communication gaps. The session encourages shared learning and begins to identify priority improvement opportunities aligned to lean principles.

Applying Lean Tools
Practical focus on applying lean thinking to real environments. Participants explore how lean tools support better control of quality, delivery, safety, and cost in day-to-day operations.

Identifying Waste, Bottlenecks, and Flow Constraints
Practical identification of waste and inefficiencies within material, product, and information flow. Participants will learn hot to recognise common constraints such as batching, poor layout, unbalanced workloads, excessive handling, and unclear priorities that restrict flow and drive delays.

Hands-on Lean Simulations: Plug Assembly Line
A practical, interactive assembly simulation used to demonstrate lean principles in action. Participants complete an initial assembly round to establish baseline performance, highlighting issues such as overproduction, waiting, defects, poor layout, and lack of standard work.

Lean concepts are then introduced and applied and applied, including improved flow, simple standardisation, visual controls, and workload balance followed by repeat assembly rounds to clearly demonstrate measurable improvements in productivity, quality and flow.

The exercise make improvements visible and reinforces how small, practical changes can deliver significant operational benefits.

Introduction to Practical Problem-Solving Techniques
Introduction to simple, structured problem solving approaches suitable for manufacturing environments. Participants learn hot to define problems clearly, identify root causes, and agree practical countermeasures that can be implemented quickly on the shop floor.

Visual Management and Standard Work in Practice
Hands-on exploration of visual management and standardised work, focusing on how these tools support consistency, faster decision-making, and early problem identification. Discussion centres on practical examples relevant to Serrations’ operations rather than theoretical models.

Leadership Discussion – Embedding and Sustaining Lean Improvements
Facilitated  discussion with supervisors and team leaders on how to lean behaviours are sustained beyond initial improvements. Focus on daily routines, team communication, visual controls, and leadership behaviours that reinforce continuous improvement as part of normal operations.