WCM

Temple of WCM: World Class Manufacturing is a systematic approach to eliminating losses in business operations. WCM is the result of many centuries of production knowledge and ability where focus is to eliminate Losses in all aspects.

WCM: World Class Manufacturing is a systematic approach to eliminating losses in business operations. See also more about Lean Manufacturing, WCM is the result of many centuries of production knowledge and ability.Starting with the guild structure in the Middle Ages, this knowledge and ability evolved via the manufacturing in the 18th century, scientific management/mass production, socio-technology and lean production in de twentieth century into the State-of-the-Art manufacturing companies in the beginning of the 21st century: World Class Manufacturing.

WCM starts from the theoretically ideal situation, this means that involved employees have the production processes always run without losses. Then one goes back to reality and focuses on differences between the ideal and real process. This difference is called loss. WCM aims to eliminate this loss. In this respect two things are of overriding importance.

World class manufacturers tend to implement best practices and also invent new practices as to stay above the rest in the manufacturing sector. The main parameters which determine world-class manufacturers are quality, cost effective, flexibility and innovation.

Some of the techniques are as follows:

Make to order
Streamlined Flow
Smaller lot sizes
Collection of parts
Doing it right first time
Cellular or group manufacturing
Total preventive maintenance
Quick replacement
Zero Defects
Just in Time
Increased consistency
Higher employee involvement
Cross Functional Teams
Multi-Skilled employees
Visual Signaling
Statistical process control

Idea of using above techniques is to focus on operational efficiency, reducing wastage and creating cost efficient organization. This leads to creation of high-productivity organization, which used concurrent production techniques rather than sequential production method.

Well-known WCM methodologies and techniques are (TPM, TPS, Kaizen, TQM, Six Sigma, JIT, and Lean Manufacturing under the WCM umbrella). Read more about WCM at the Management Study Guide.