| Since Womack et al. (1990) published “The Machine that Changed the World”, showing the results of an international assembly plant benchmarking study carried out by the MIT International Motor Vehicle Program, the Lean Production paradigm, initially based on the Toyota Production System, has been applied successfully by an increasing number of leading companies within the automotive industry. Currently, Lean Production methodologies and tools have already shown their potential, both in manufacturing and service sectors, to improve dramatically productivity, speed, responsiveness, delivered value, and profits. Lean Manufacturing has also been applied by large companies in the agri-food sector, but there is little information on these applications available... |
