27 Mar 2007

AFSO21 Reading list

Creating Continuous Flow, Mike Rother and Rick Harris Personal Review: The workbook is simple and easy-to-read, but it is only a very top-level look based on a manufacturing environment. Overview (www.lean.org): The Creating Continuous Flow workbook helps managers, engineers, and production associates implement continuous flow production, a key

27 Mar 2007

AFSO21 Reading list

Making Materials Flow, Rick Harris, Chris Harris and Earl Wilson Personal Review: Easy-to-follow workbook but totally production focused. The concepts can be applied to anything, but the reader will have to think hard to make the transition. Overview (www.lean.org): The Making Materials Flow workbook from the Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI) shows

27 Mar 2007

AFSO21 Reading list

Creating Level Pull, Art Smalley Personal Review: This is a straightforward workbook from Lean Enterprise Institute. The workbook is centered on a case study and provides easy-to-understand graphics. The big con is that it focuses on high volume production examples. Nevertheless, it provides clear concepts that the reader can work to relate to

27 Mar 2007

Women’s History Month fun run a family affair

About 40 people ran in a 5K fun-run March 17 at RAF Mildenhall commemorating this year's Women's History Month theme of "Generations of Women Moving History Forward." Though most of Saturday's runners were women, several men and children also participated. The winners were separated into three categories: men, women, and children. The women's

26 Mar 2007

AFSO21 Reading list

The Gold Mine: Balle Personal Evaluation: An easy read, truly well written, set in a fictional setting that clearly depicts lean concepts. This book talks about how important it is to the success of a lean transformation to show people respect and to get them involved because your people -- not the experts -- are the ones who improve processes

26 Mar 2007

AFSO21 Reading list

KAIZEN by Masaaki Imai: Overview: A comprehensive handbook of 16 Kaizen management practices that can be put to work. KAIZEN uses more than 100 examples in action and contains 15 corporate case studies. Personal evaluation: The book is becoming a bit dated having been written two decades ago and is hard reading. However, the concepts are enduring

26 Mar 2007

AFSO21 Reading list

Lean Lexicon, Lean Enterprise Institute Lean Lexicon is basically a Lean dictionary. It contains 58 illustrations and defines 187 key lean terms. Personal evaluation: Great reference for personnel not familiar with Lean terminology. Breaking through to Flow, Ian Glenday Overview (www.lean.org):

26 Mar 2007

The Machine that Changed the World by Roos, Womack and Jones

Personal Evaluation: Highlights some key concepts, but USAF personnel may have a hard time directly relating the automobile industry to their workspace. Overview: This book is a classic on the advantages of being lean - Product Design, Manufacturing, and Supply Chain Management - the entire gamut from concept to delivery in the Automobile

22 Mar 2007

The history of British Summer Time

Don't forget to Change your clocks this weekend and "Spring Forward" one hour on Sunday March 25 at 1 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time It has been 100 years since British Summer Time was first proposed. But why change the clocks, which way and whose idea was it? History of legal time in Britain Before the railways, local mean time was the time kept by

20 Mar 2007

RAF Mildenhall AFSO21 coverage

Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century is about making improvements. It's about a culture change and a new way of doing business to enhance our ability to fly and fight. These changes involve eliminating waste and implementing continuous improvement efforts to save resources while improving the productivity of our most valuable resources,