Japanese Terms Used in Lean

The Lean process is full of Japanese terms — small wonder since it's a product of studying the Toyota Production System. Study these Japanese terms to better understand the Lean process:

• andon: A signal to alert people to problems in a process

• gemba: Where the action occurs

• genchi genbutsu: Go and see

• heijunka: Smoothing; the technique of leveling schedules

• hoshin: A system of planning, forms, and rules

• jidoka: Stopping machines when an error has been detected, preventing defects from progressing through the process

• Kaikaku: Radical improvement.

• Kaizen: Incremental, continuous improvement

• kanban: A signal system used to trigger replenishment

• poka-yoke: A device to prevent defect production

• sensei: A master or teacher