The Standardized Work Field Guide

This field guide can be used directly on the gemba (work area) for implementing and documenting standardized work. It promotes the "future state" of standardized work along with crucial step-by-step techniques and explanations not found in other publications. The authors furnish many real examples of work problems that cause Lean practitioners difficulty with documentation, along with accurate solutions to those problems. The many illustrations and graphics focus on practice rather than theory. Readers learn that standardized work is not simply a tool for documentation but a method for reducing variation and providing continuous improvement through kaizen.

Table of Contents:
How to Use This Field Guide. Layout Sketch: Where It All Begins. Questions for Layout Sketch Review. Standardized Work Chart: Building on an Idea. Questions for Standardized Work Chart Review. Work Combination Table: Where Time and (Work) Space Collide. Questions for Work Combination Table Review. Where Do We Go from Here? Questions for Miscellaneous Tools Review.

About the Author :
Timothy D. Martin worked in manufacturing engineering for more than 32 years in the electrical and electronics industries. He has been a Lean practitioner for more than 20 years and has a broad range of continuous improvement experience, including extensive hands-on Lean implementation. Since 2010, Tim has been working to implement Lean transformation in the healthcare industry. He earned a BSEET from Purdue University and a MSM from Indiana Wesleyan University. He also is co-author of New Horizons in Standardized Work: Techniques for Manufacturing and Business Process Improvement , with Jeffrey T. Bell. Jeffrey T. Bell has over 25 years in the aviation manufacturing and automotive electronics manufacturing sectors where he designed numerous manufacturing systems using standardized work as a basis. He earned a BSIE from Kettering University and a MSE in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University. Scott A. Martin is a freelance artist/illustrator and business manager living in Birmingham, Alabama. His most recent works include book illustrations and website designs in digital media, although he also is experienced with other forms of traditional art, including pencil, ink, oil, and acrylics. He also is an amateur sand sculptor, pumpkin carver and print maker. Scott studied communications at the University of Alabama.

Review :
"The real power of Lean occurs when a specialized technique that is typically practiced by a highly technical person, such as an industrial engineer, is taught, understood, and used by an everyday person. I love what Tim and Jeff have created! They have brought standardized work into the realm of understanding of anyone. I do not think that I have seen anyone take a dry subject like this and make it so fun, engaging, and interactive. The Standardized Work Field Guide kept my inner five-year-old child entertained and wanting to turn each page. It is clearly written and explained in language that mere mortals can understand. The drawings help make the material interesting and fun. The fun and interactive nature of the book helped to embed the learnings more deeply. The exercises and the examples are practical and represent real-life situations. I learned a number of tips about standard work that I had not understood before. This is now my go-to book on standardized work." —Joseph Swartz, administrative director, business transformation, Franciscan Alliance, Inc. "This guide is intended to be a workbook that walks you through the development of your standardized work. I encourage you to take it to the gemba and use its templates and tables to document your processes as they exist today. It is through its lessons, exercises, and repetitive use that you will gain experience and confidence to develop your documentation and reduce variation to create a better product. I hope you enjoy the book and the lessons as much as I did." —Brian W. Hudson, senior advisor, Lean Six Sigma Purdue Healthcare Advisors