Developed by the author and now being employed by a number of businesses, Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM) is an expansion of time-based competition, aimed at a single target with the goal of reducing lead times. The key difference between QRM and other time-based programs is that QRM covers an entire organization, from the shop floor to the office, to sales and beyond. Providing guidelines for establishing a QRM enterprise, this volume builds upon kaizen, TQM, TPM, and other practice to help organizations streamline all functions of their operation. It shows how to quickly introduce products, along with ways to rethink materials and production management.
About the Author
About the Author:
Rajan Suri is Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Wisconsin- Madison. Dr. Suri serves as Director of the Center for Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM), a consortium of over 40 firms working with the university on understanding and implementing QRM strategies. He is internationally regarded as an expert on the analysis of manufacturing systems, specializing in lead time reduction and time-based competitiveness. Dr. Suri is author of over 100 technical publications and has chaired three international conferences on manufacturing systems.
Dr. Suri has consulted for leading firms, including 3M, Alcoa, AT&T, Ford, General Motors, McDonnell-Douglas, and Xerox. He received a Bachelor's degree in Engineering from Cambridge University, England, and a Master's and Ph.D. in Engineering from Harvard University.
Like a lot of manufacturing books, this one tries hard to separate itself from all others by showing why every other system is so bad, and then claiming to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. If you can get past all the posing, this book has some fantastic ideas that are suprisingly simple and effective. It is a must read for manufacturing professionals (much like "The Goal"), and if you are in a job shop or custom fab facility, you have to get this book now! Warning: It is a very dry read so expect many long nights filled with coffee and more coffee, and more coffee. Because, typical of most mfg books, Suri feels he has to explain everything to the Nth degree, along with every related issue he can think of. This book could have been done in about 50 pages, so lets hope he comes out with a work-book that does just that... but it the mean time the information here is way to valuable wait for. Cheers, Al.
It was hard to put this book down when I first read it. As a manufacturing manager, it almost seemed as if Prof. Suri had spent time in my plant. Most of the topics he addresses in QRM are relevant to the issues I was struggling with. He writes about reducing lead time in all aspects of operations, even product development. His concept of POLCA to create a pull system for low volume, high mix manufacturing is innovative. I recommend this highly to anyone who is trying to understand a manufacturing operation and how to improve it. It is easy to read and understand with concepts that work.
As a former manager of strategic planning, now returned to the manufacturing side, I consider this book to be one of the most important I have read over the past several years. What I am seeing in manufacturing is that the cookie cutter products, high tech or not, are moving to either Asia or Mexico. The remaining products are being sold to customers who require a high level of customization on a very short lead time. The author has developed a system to accomplish this. He focuses not just on the nuts and bolts of the shop floor, but also on streamlining the support systems needed to achieve this level of service. If you are in high level manufacturing or corporate management, you need to read this book. If you are at a lower level, you will still be exposed to many ideas which you can incorporate into improving your service, to both internal and external customers, and reducing your lead times. I think it ranks right up there with The Goal as one of the most important business books written in the era of modern manufacturing.
QRM is a manufacturing strategy that focuses on speed throughout the manufacturing process. All efforts are focused on lead-time reduction. Unlike other lean manufacturing clones, QRM distinguishes itself with some unique approaches. While I'm not willing to accept everything the author is pushing, I certainly found some valuable insights. The author does an excellent job of explaining the concepts, providing enough detail and examples to ensure the reader does not go away confused. I thought this was a really good book and would recommend it to anyone involved in manufacturing, but even more so to anyone involved with engineer-to-order or make-to-order manufacturing.
Product Details :
- Hardcover: 576 pages
- Publisher: Productivity Press; 1 edition (June 22, 1998)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1563272016
- ISBN-13: 978-1563272011
- Product Dimensions: 1.4 x 6.3 x 9.4 inches
More Details about Quick Response Manufacturing: A Companywide Approach to Reducing Lead Times, 1st Edition
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