A Brief Discussion on Lean Production Planning in the Printing Industry

In recent years, China's printing industry has maintained a positive development trajectory. However, in the current era, the industry is facing challenges such as rising labor costs, small orders, a wide variety of products, outdated management concepts, and a lack of innovation. These issues have become particularly evident through recent research and diagnoses conducted at printing plants. Many printing companies are struggling with prominent planning issues, especially in material control. For example, materials that should have been delivered on time are often delayed, while unnecessary materials are delivered, and in some cases, companies order excessive amounts of materials that don’t align with actual production needs, leading to warehouse overstock. On the other hand, in order to meet customers’ Just-in-Time (JIT) requirements, companies continuously arrange production, which guarantees delivery times for customers but results in large amounts of inventory buildup, with some stock becoming stagnant over time, leading to capital bottlenecks.

Since the 1980s, internet technology has been developing and widely applied. Entering the 21st century, new-generation information technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, and big data have driven significant leaps in manufacturing technology. The printing industry has also entered a new era of development. Particularly since 2016, the accelerated integration of information technology with the manufacturing industry has become a key feature of intelligent manufacturing, which has become the dominant global trend. Lean management is the essential path to smart manufacturing, and all business management, including in the printing industry, relies on effective production planning. The ability to accurately formulate a production plan is crucial for the long-term survival of enterprises. Therefore, exploring the "lean production plan" for the printing industry is essential to help businesses adapt to the evolving trends of the current market.

I. Lean Production Philosophy

Lean production is a production management approach that aims to eliminate waste and reduce costs, supported by principles of just-in-time and automation, with continuous improvement at its core. By adopting a pull-based production model, lean production continuously improves aspects such as organizational structure, personnel allocation, operational methods, and market supply and demand, resulting in shortened production cycles, improved production efficiency, enhanced product quality, and the ability to quickly adapt to market diversification. Therefore, the printing industry can fully adopt Toyota's lean production philosophy in conjunction with the wave of the information age and the current operational goals of enterprises. Through continuous improvement and the implementation of small-scale, holistic integration solutions, waste can be eliminated, production systems can be driven by lean methods, inventory during production can be controlled intentionally, production cycles can be shortened, and customer satisfaction can be improved.

II. Importance of Production Planning

The level of production planning is a key indicator of a company's competitiveness and is essential knowledge for managers. All employees in a company must have an understanding of production planning, as it is integral to financial, technical, production, sales, and other basic activities of the business. Production planning, also known as the production outline, is based on the company's sales plan and analyzes the company's available resources and capacity to forecast the future development direction, types, and quantities of products. It makes comprehensive arrangements for the products' types, quantities, quality, and production progress. As time progresses, production planning has evolved and expanded, extending beyond manufacturing to services and other industries, and modern technology and information have played a significant role in advancing planning management.

III. Production Planning Under Lean Production Philosophy in the Printing Industry

1. Tasks and Requirements of Production Planning

The primary task of production planning is to meet customer delivery schedules and ensure that production volumes are sufficient to meet demand. Production planning provides a baseline for material procurement, helps maximize production capacity, rationally controls inventory, makes personnel and equipment arrangements for long-term production increases, reduces operating costs, and achieves maximum profit. Effective production planning must consider the company’s production capacity, optimize the use of various production resources, and align with the company's actual production activities. Long-term, monthly, and weekly production plans can be created based on timeframes.

2. Six-Step Production Planning Method

A comprehensive production plan follows a six-step approach:

• Step 1: Forecasting - Stay updated on global economic conditions, analyze industry market trends, and make accurate production forecasts based on dynamic customer orders, guiding product development and direction.

• Step 2: Standard Setting - Based on historical production plans and actual execution records, determine the standard time for producing each unit, material requirements, and the workforce needed.

• Step 3: Balancing - Identify bottlenecks in production and adjust resources such as equipment, materials, labor, and space to meet changing production requirements. Information technology, including digital 3D factory simulations, can help optimize this step.

• Step 4: Coordination - Integrate internal and external resources, including customers, suppliers, and partners, through information systems to form a collaborative supply chain. This enables fast market responses.

• Step 5: Instruction - Communicate production tasks to various production units to implement the three-level production planning system (company, workshop, process).

• Step 6: Rolling - Monitor progress during the execution phase and adjust plans as necessary, particularly in response to unexpected changes.

3. Lean Production Planning and Control, and Inventory Management

Lean production planning and control aim to eliminate waste and optimize production resources efficiently. By improving production technologies, product processes, and industry standards, lean production caters to diverse and personalized market demands. Lean production follows a pull-based model, where each production step only produces what is required by the next step, aiming for zero inventory. Various methods such as Kanban are used to communicate between steps, ensuring timely production. The goal is to minimize waste and continually improve processes, streamline product development and design, and reduce unnecessary activities within production management. The ultimate aim is to meet market demands with the highest quality, lowest cost, and greatest efficiency.

4. Total Quality Management (TQM)

TQM starts with cultivating quality awareness among employees, emphasizing that quality is not just detected but built into the process. It encourages quality management at every step of production, ensuring that defective products are neither produced nor passed on. Any quality issues are addressed promptly, and production can be halted until solutions are found. This approach reduces waste and minimizes costs associated with rework or defective products.

5. Personnel Allocation in Lean Production

Manufacturing is a labor-intensive industry, and in lean production, the allocation of human resources is dynamically adjusted to meet production rhythms. This requires employees to possess a broad skill set, making multi-skilled labor training crucial. Internally, companies must manage human resources effectively to avoid waste, prevent misallocation, and foster employee engagement and retention.

6. Lean Production and Smart Manufacturing

The two pillars of lean production—timeliness and automation—align closely with the principles of smart manufacturing. As technology continues to advance, the use of automation to replace manual labor is becoming increasingly common. With the implementation of information systems like ERP, MES, PDM, and ANDON, production process control is digitalized and automated. Virtual simulation workshops allow for real-time adjustments and provide visibility into production processes, helping identify issues such as material blockages, imbalances in production rhythm, and equipment downtime. These tools help design efficient logistics and production workflows, enabling continuous improvement and optimization.

Conclusion

Smart manufacturing is the future of the manufacturing industry. Different sectors face unique challenges, and market demand is diversifying, making it essential for companies to adapt. Lean production is the first step in this process. In the current market environment, the printing industry faces many challenges, but by adopting lean principles, management can be enhanced, leading to cost reductions and improved efficiency. By shifting from traditional management to lean, printing companies can remain competitive, meet customer demands efficiently, and achieve sustainable growth.