PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to take a critical, analytical approach to explore the growth and spread of Lean through the academic and practitioner community over the last twenty-five years to understand the impact of the book The Machine that Changed the World on management thinking. Design/methodology/approachA comprehensive and systematic review of the extant literature of lean was undertaken and analysed critically to observe patterns and trends that could explain the acceptance of Lean as an operations management philosophy. The review spans from 1987 to 2013. To enable us to effectively manage and understand the diffusion of this literature a database, the Lean Publications Database (LPD), was constructed. The number of publications has been adjusted to compensate for growth in the total number of articles published in the same period.

Lean thinking is a powerful method that allows organizations to improve the productivity, efficiency and quality of their products or services. Achieving these benefits requires good teamwork, clear communication, intelligent use of resources and a commitment to continuous improvement. This 2006 book shows how lean thinking can be applied in practice, highlighting the key challenges and pitfalls. The authors, based at a leading centre for lean enterprise research, begin with an overview of the theory of lean thinking. They then explain the core tools and techniques and show how they can be applied successfully. The detailed implementation of lean thinking is illustrated by several case studies, from a range of industries, in which the authors had unprecedented access to the management teams. With its focus on implementation and practical solutions, this book will appeal to managers at all levels, as well as to business students and researchers in lean thinking.

Describes the approach one company has taken to develop such a logical, time-phased supply chain improvement plan. This approach involves input from a range of representatives from within the organisation, thereby avoiding the often misguided pursuit of``hobby horses''. The approach described has been derived from matrix-based methods of Japanese origins, in particular quality function deployment (QFD). The strength of these matrix-based techniques lies in their ability to integrate the many qualitative and quantitative-based variables that impact the supply chain. From the matrix, a meaningful and coherent strategy for improvement can be determined. The approach is appealing in its simplicity and yet rigorous at the same time, and, as such, may be of use to practitioners in any complex environment such as a supply chain.

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