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Henry Ford introduces the moving assembly line at Ford Motor Company's Highland Park factory, ushering in mass production and laying the foundation for lean manufacturing -
Toyota begins its implementation of the Toyota Production System (TPS), known as Just-in-Time (JIT), developed by Taiichi Ohno and Eiji Toyoda. This system becomes the model for lean manufacturing -
Toyota engineers Taiichi Ohno and Shigeo Shingo refine and develop the principles of TPS, including the concept of eliminating waste (muda) and continuous improvement (Kaizen). -
Business Week magazine publishes an article on Toyota's success, popularizing the term "lean manufacturing" in the West -
The publication of the book "The Machine that Changed the World" by James P. Womack, Daniel T. Jones and Daniel Roos formally introduces the concept of lean manufacturing to Western audiences and highlights Toyota's achievements -
Western companies, including General Motors and Ford, are beginning to adopt lean manufacturing principles to improve efficiency and reduce costs. -
The book "Lean Thinking" by James P. Womack and Daniel T. Jones expands on the concepts presented in "The Machine that Changed the World," detailing the key principles of lean manufacturing -
Lean manufacturing extends beyond the automotive industry and is applied in sectors such as healthcare, technology and food production -
Lean manufacturing continues to evolve with the integration of technologies such as automation, the Internet of Things (IoT), and data analytics to further improve efficiency and quality in production processes.