LEAN AUTOMATION: WHAT IS IT? WHAT'S THE ADVANTAGE?

摘要

The concept of lean manufacturing is widely known, as are the benefits it offers in terms of enhanced efficiency, continuous improvements in product quality and the elimination of waste. But what is lean automation? In essence, it is the development of automation systems that mirror many of the benefits of lean manufacturing. For example, lean automation makes the design and implementation of automation systems more efficient, it facilitates continuous improvements in the performance and capabilities of those systems, and it provides scalability that eliminates wasted design effort by allowing the same basic design of automation system to be used for a whole range of machines.