EdX

Lean Production (edX)

Lean Production (edX)

Learn how to apply key elements of lean manufacturing, such as 5S and Kaizen, to organizational processes to improve quality and productivity. Learn about lean management, a customer-centric methodology that improves processes by eliminating waste and focusing on value-added tasks. This course will introduce the main tenets of the Toyota Production System, which includes Just-in-Time manufacturing, quality management tools, and the critical concept of Kaizen, the Japanese practice of continuous improvement.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see EdX's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

You will also learn about key organisation and managerial approaches that are used in Lean.
You will learn how to analyse process flows in order to establish process capacity and identify the process bottleneck. You will then calculate resource utilisation and cycle time to evaluate the impact of set up times, batching, defects and reworks on key process performance measures, including inventory, flow rate and flow time.

We will also discuss the impact of key concepts of Lean, including Heijunka, Kanban, Jidoka, Andon, Poka Yoke, and 5S, which help achieve increased productivity and quality.
Upon successful completion of this series, learners will earn the Technical University of Munich Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt Certification, confirming mastery of the fundamentals of Lean Six Sigma to a Yellow Belt level, based on the American Society of Quality's Body of Knowledge for the Certified Six Sigma Yellow Belt.
This course is part of the Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt: Quantitative Tools for Quality and Productivity Professional Certificate and Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certification Professional Certificate.

What you'll learn:

  • The history and background of Lean production and the complementing elements of quantity and quality control.
  • How to measure production performance and how defects and waste degrade performance.
  • To improve process performance through application of lean principles, including setup time reduction, batch optimization, and defect elimination.
  • Elements of Lean production including Heijunka, Kanban, Jidoka, Poka Yoke, and Quality Circles.
  • 5S methodology for establishing and sustaining a productive work environment.

Course Syllabus

Week 1: Introduction: Identification of Waste
Understand the basic differences between craft production and mass production. Review the history of Lean Production, focusing on Japan's Toyota Production System as an alternative to mass production. Discuss how waste impacts productivity and describe Taiichi Ohno’s famous 7 Wastes.

Week 2: Understanding Flow: Capacity Analysis
Cover the basics of process analysis, including understanding how to calculate process capacity and resource utilization, as well as the important concepts of cycle time and takt time. Understand the relationship between inventory, a waste, is directly related to the flow time in a system through Little’s Law. Understand how variability in a system causes queuing or waiting. even if there is enough capacity on average.

Week 3: Continuous Flow: Setup Time Reduction
Calculate the impact of setups on capacity when the product variety is increased and understand how batching can improve this, but at the expense of increased inventory. Review the Single Minute Exchange of Die (SMED), and learn why reducing setups and changeovers are critical to Lean manufacturing. Discuss the concept of Total Productive Maintenance and calculate the metric Overall Equipment Efficiency.

Week 4: Improving Flow: Workplace Organisation and Visualization
Introduction to the concepts of Workplace Visualization and Organization and 5S for improving and maintaining continuous flow in Lean Production.

Week 5: Maintaining Flow: Establishing Pull Systems and Scheduling
Define the key principle from the Toyota Production System, Just-In-Time (JIT)and the significance that JIT has for Lean Production in reducing waste and meeting customer demand. Review the relevant components of production planning and how these affect Production Scheduling, the heart of Lean Production. Understand, with the help of reduced setup time, how Mixed-Model Scheduling achieves a match between production and customer and how Pull systems can be realized using Kanbans.

Week 6: Quality and Continuous Improvement
Calculate the impact defects have on our flow rate. Understand how Poka Yokecan help fool-proof our processes and learn how to structure and run a Kaizen Blitzto bring about rapid improvement opportunities for problem-solving and process improvements. Consider the central role of Continuous Improvement in Lean Production by comparing the set of management principles, The Toyota Way 2001, and Jeffrey Liker’s 14 Management Principles.

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Word intermedio: herramientas de formato y productividad (edX) EdX
Universitat Politècnica de València,UPValenciaX

Word intermedio: herramientas de formato y productividad (edX)

Este curso en línea te permitira aumentar tu rendimiento y productividad usando Microsoft Word, una de las la herramienta de procesamiento de texto mas usadas. Este curso online da un repaso por los distintos menús de la herramienta Word, revisando a fondo sus distintas opciones e incidiendo en las funcionalidades de la herramienta que no son intuitivas, de forma que el usuario pueda conseguir dar formatos complejos a sus documentos y aumentar su rendimiento y productividad al trabajar con ellos.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Educación de calidad para todos: equidad, inclusión y atención a la diversidad (edX) EdX
Universidad Autonoma de Madrid,UAMx

Educación de calidad para todos: equidad, inclusión y atención a la diversidad (edX)

Aprenderás cómo debería ser un sistema educativo que promueva la calidad sin renunciar a la excelencia ni a la equidad y cómo llevarlo a la práctica. ¡Si te interesa la educación escolar como espacio para contribuir a una sociedad más justa e inclusiva, este curso es para ti! Sobre todo si crees que es necesario revertir los procesos de segregación, marginación y fracaso escolar que afectan a tantos alumnos y alumnas.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Intro to Managing Healthcare Supply Chain Operations (Coursera) Coursera
Northeastern University

Intro to Managing Healthcare Supply Chain Operations (Coursera)

This course is best suited for individuals currently in the healthcare sector, as a provider, payer, or administrator. Individuals pursuing a career change to the healthcare sector may also be interested in this course. In this course, you will have an opportunity to explore concepts and topics related to the design and management of operations and supply chains in the healthcare sector.

Sep 21st 2026
4 Weeks
Engineering Practices for Building Quality Software (Coursera) Coursera
University of Minnesota

Engineering Practices for Building Quality Software (Coursera)

Agile embraces change which means that team should be able to effectively make changes to the system as team learns about users and market. To be good at effectively making changes to the system, teams need to have engineering rigor and excellence else embracing change becomes very painful and expensive. In this course, you will learn about engineering practices and processes that agile and traditional teams use to make sure the team is prepared for change. In additional, you will also learn about practices, techniques and processes that can help team build high quality software. You will also learn how to calculate a variety of quantitative metrics related to software quality.

Sep 14th 2026
4 Weeks
Manufacturing Systems II (edX) EdX
MIT,MITx

Manufacturing Systems II (edX)

Learn how to analyze manufacturing systems to optimize performance and control costs and better understand the flow of material and information. Manufacturing systems are complex systems that require analytical analysis. Managers and practitioners use a wide variety of methods to analyze and optimize the performance of manufacturing systems and control costs.

Mar 6th 2024
5-12 Weeks
Leveraging Virtual Assistants for Personal Productivity (Coursera) Coursera
Coursera Instructor Network

Leveraging Virtual Assistants for Personal Productivity (Coursera)

In a fast-paced world, managing personal productivity is crucial. This course introduces beginners to the world of virtual assistants and chatbots and how they can be harnessed to enhance personal productivity. Learn how to use these AI-driven tools effectively to streamline tasks, manage time, and boost overall efficiency.

Sep 14th 2026
1 Week
Work Smarter, Not Harder: Time Management for Personal & Professional Productivity (Coursera) Coursera
University of California, Irvine

Work Smarter, Not Harder: Time Management for Personal & Professional Productivity (Coursera)

You will be able to gain and apply your knowledge and understanding of personal and professional awareness, organization and commitment, and use the tools, methods and techniques that you have learned in goal setting, prioritization, scheduling, and delegation to overcome time management challenges and enhance productivity.

Sep 14th 2026
4 Weeks
Cloud Computing for Enterprises (edX) EdX
University System of Maryland - USM,USMx,University of Maryland Global Campus - UMGC,UMGC

Cloud Computing for Enterprises (edX)

Understand cloud computing technologies and how they can increase business productivity and effectiveness. Organizations are increasingly moving their critical information and assets to the cloud. Understand the technology, best practices, and economics of cloud computing, and the rewards and risks of this rush to the cloud.

Mar 21st 2024
5-12 Weeks
Time Management for Beginners (edX) EdX
State Bank of India - SBI

Time Management for Beginners (edX)

Today, people find it hard to get time. There is so much to do and so little time on hand. Interestingly, we all have the same time, and we all have 24-hour days. It depends on how you use that time. We cannot store time, nor can we borrow it, we can only use it effectively. This course is designed to make the learner understand why time is important and how we can manage it to enjoy the benefits in our personal and professional life.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Agile Innovation and Problem Solving Skills (edX) EdX
University of Maryland, College Park,University System of Maryland - USM,USMx,UMD

Agile Innovation and Problem Solving Skills (edX)

Learn how to deliver greater value through Agile solution targeting and theory of constraints that unleash your team's innovative potential. Innovative products and services change lives, and having the right innovative process creates an competitive advantage. Ultimately, innovation is about one thing: problem solving.

Self Paced
Self-Paced