Time is money-so, so much money--Quick-response manufacturing shows how less time leads to greater profits

摘要

It makes sense that Rajan Suri spent years studying control theory. Control theorists take a systems view, analyzing how components work in concert to produce an efficient, optimized whole. In control theory the whole is not only greater than the sum of its parts, it's everything. Years ago during a project with MIT, Suri spent time with an Italian manufacturer looking to optimize its automation control systems. Then he took a step back. Analyzing how all the parts in a plant worked together, Suri noticed that a conveyor was running as fast as it could. It was a massive (albeit not very obvious) bottleneck that wasn't getting attention. It's not as if removing that bottleneck would have solved everything-far from it. But it was a piece of the puzzle that shouldn't have been ignored; in fact, if you miss any piece, you don't get a complete picture of the problem, so how can you uncover the best solution?