Lean Six Sigma (LSS) has established itself as one of the key business process improvement strategies available to companies today. With roots based in the single strategies of Lean and Six Sigma, LSS offers a dual strategy towards systematically reducing waste and increasing value whilst resolving Critical to Quality issues that affect consistency and repeatability in a product and process. This paper proposes a Strategic Lean Six Sigma Framework (SLSSF) that attempts to create an integrated approach between the Lean and Six Sigma elements and one that is capable of achieving greater efficiency of production whilst also ensuring that CTQ issues are eradicated from the production process. The case study involves the application of the SLLF in an aerospace manufacturing company. The work highlights the key stages of the framework before closing with an analysis of its effectiveness and the difficulties encountered in its application. When the LSS model was implemented it achieved significant improvements in business performance. The key improvements were seen as; Build time reduction of 20.5%, improved on-time-in-full (OTIF) delivery to customer by 26.5%, reduced Value Added time by 5% and, reduced Non-value added time by 44.5%. Also, estimated financial savings of over £2 Million are proposed.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to identify the tools, methods and models that UK manufacturing companies adopt and apply in order to achieve resiliency and economic sustainability. The results of this work can assist in developing the foundations for defining a new joint resiliency/ sustainability paradigm to assist industry. Design/methodology/approach -Through a detailed, triangulated secondary data analysis and industry survey, the authors initially identify and then analyse the key resiliency and sustainability characteristics surrounding manufacturing operations. This paper initially reviews key literatures around resiliency and sustainability models and frameworks and subsequently draws out their key features and weaknesses. The work then details the research survey undertaken in to manufacturing companies aimed at identifying the resiliency/sustainability approaches that are adopted in companies. A sample of 72 manufacturing companies are used in the survey and from which the results are based. Findings -Through analysing the fundamental business data of sales and manufacturing costs for 72 manufacturing companies, the authors cluster the companies in to four key manufacturing profiles. The work then shows through a more detailed analysis of the profiles that companies which are sustainable and more resilient in nature are, better engaged and connected to the development and application of resiliency and sustainability models. It was found that companies who seem to struggle in achieving economic sustainability or lack the ability to bounce back from various set-backs either do not employ such models or at best apply tools and techniques in an ad hoc manner. Research limitations/implications -The paper provides key insights in to the adoption of tools, techniques and models surrounding the achievement of resiliency and sustainability in manufacturing companies. In so doing, the paper offers a new view on these issues and with the profiling exercise undertaken, companies will be able to identify their position in relation to the survey companies. This can be of benefit to the wider industrial and academic community. The development of a qualitative assessment around a relatively small sample size has its obvious limitations and it is crucial that further work with a range of companies in the area of manufacturing sustainability is key to developing (and also validating) a comprehensive set of resiliency and sustainability characteristics. Practical implications -The paper highlights the issues surrounding existing academic resiliency/ sustainability models and through the industry survey, it provides further information on where UK manufacturing companies are on adopting specific resiliency/sustainability models. The work suggests that the resiliency/sustainability landscape of UK manufacturing companies is much more complex and that a single strategic approach towards achieving improved manufacturing performance is somewhat dated and ineffective. Originality/value -The development of a set of resili...

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to recognise the key manufacturing challenges currently facing UK manufacturing industry and to further identify the Key Developmental Areas (KDAs) (which includes technologies, systems and paradigms) which need to be developed and employed in order to ensure manufacturing firms in the UK become economically sustainable and are able to operate effectively in a global competitive market. The aim of the paper is to provide a benchmark for UK manufacturing industry to work from, after which future measuring instruments could be employed to track whether companies are meeting these challenges. Design/methodology/approach -A survey into 100 UK manufacturing companies provides the basis for the identification of the challenges and KDAs. The findings from the survey are analysed against information obtained from existing strategy reports and foresight papers/studies to reach a point where the authors identify a balanced set of challenges and developmental areas obtained from this mixed research approach. Findings -Through a comprehensive academic and industrial study, the authors identify and propose nine key manufacturing challenges for UK manufacturing industry to consider. Furthermore, the authors also identify a number of the KDAs which could be used to assist companies in meeting these challenges. The KDAs are not meant to be exhaustive but aimed to provide the underpinning support to the challenges proposed.Research limitations/implications -The paper proposes a set of key manufacturing challenges for UK manufacturing businesses to consider and apply appropriate technologies and systems to achieve business resilience. This paper will therefore be of benefit to the academic community in that it distils a wide range of academic theory and industrial practice in order to create a coherent body of knowledge. As with any survey work, the accuracy of information depends largely on the size of the survey. Whilst 100 companies were surveyed, a further extension to this number would always help to strengthen future research. Originality/value -The identification of these key manufacturing challenges and their corresponding technologies, systems and paradigms is aimed at providing a new manufacturing perspective to both academics and industrialists. The challenges and developmental areas proposed provide the basis for a new and advanced manufacturing strategy to be developed for UK companies which aims to create economically sustainable manufacturing organisations.

PurposeBoth total productive maintenance (TPM) and Six Sigma are key business process strategies, which are employed by companies to enhance their manufacturing performance. The purpose of this paper, therefore, will be to develop and implement an integrated Six Sigma maintenance (SSM) model for manufacturing industryDesign/methodology/approachThrough the development of a case study approach, the paper chronicles the design, development and implementation of an integrated Six Sigma maintenance (SSM) model. The model is subsequently evaluated for its effectiveness in the subject company.FindingsA model is proposed and the effectiveness of the approach is subsequently evaluated highlighting the benefits the host organization received through this new approach by measuring the effects of implementation against the seven quality, cost and delivery (QCD) measures.Practical implicationsThe design, development and implementation of a Six Sigma maintenance model shown in this paper provides a simple yet highly effective approach to achieving significant improvements in a company's product quality cost and delivery measures. The model combines contemporary business management techniques with total productive maintenance strategies and offers practicing maintenance managers and engineers a strategic framework for increasing productive efficiency and output.Originality/valueThe proposed SSM model contributes to the existing knowledge base on maintenance systems and subsequently disseminates this information in order to provide impetus, guidance and support towards increasing the development companies in an attempt to move the UK manufacturing sector towards world class manufacturing performance.

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