August 1st, 2018
The Lean Six Sigma Belt Structure Mike Horton, Senior Consultant Eleven years ago, while working for an American chemicals corporation which was beginning to introduce Lean globally, I got my first 100% improvement focussed job, and the role was officially called Tool Facilitator. Two years later, when it was announced the role names were all […]
July 19th, 2018
Creating a vision is one of the most challenging tasks undertaken by a team or organisation. “Vision” in this context refers not to a few simple phrases, but rather the complete articulation of the future state, i.e. company values, processes, structure, technology, job roles, and environment. The question is… What steps can I take […]
July 3rd, 2018
Process FMEA – A step by step guide to facilitating continuous improvement by driving down errors and rework Keith Bennett, Senior Consultant A Process Failure Mode Effects Analysis (PFMEA) is a structured analytical tool used by teams to identify and evaluate the potential failures of a process. PFMEA helps to establish the impact of the […]
June 21st, 2018
3 Elements of Motivation – what buttons to press, or not to press! Our quick overview outlines three forms of motivation in the workplace: Achievement Affiliation Influence It is an insight into why team members might respond differently to change and offers some useful do’s and don’ts when influencing individual team members. Imagine the scenario… […]
June 11th, 2018
Has Lean had its time? Mike Horton, Senior Consultant – June 2018 I was recently lucky enough to attend the excellent annual National Manufacturing Debate at Cranfield University. Mingling in the reception area upon arrival a fellow delegate who had read my ID badge asked what type of consulting I do. As soon as I […]
May 23rd, 2018
Eliminating waste ultimately ensures efficiency – increasing productivity A recent workshop of ours, attended by over 300 senior managers demonstrated that over 30% of the examples of waste came from simply over-processing of services or activity. In other words, doing too much to something when a simpler approach would be more effective. When asked why […]
May 21st, 2018
Bourton Group LLP are delighted to announce that Partner, Rob Walley has been appointed as Director to the board of the Lean Construction Institute. The Lean Construction Institute UK is a charitable membership organisation supporting research into and dissemination of Lean construction principles and best practice with a view to improving public sector construction. Rob […]
May 8th, 2018
Lean and Industry 4.0 It has been said that Industry 4.0, or “The Internet of Things” or “increased automation”, depending on which you prefer is set to revolutionise the workplace. Twenty years ago, we were told that children starting school at the time would be leaving university and going into jobs that weren’t yet invented. […]
April 26th, 2018
Creating a Positive and High Performing Culture Recently Bourton Group took the decision to move offices from The Stables at Bourton Hall to newer, more contemporary offices in Daventry. As part of the move we had to carry out a very rigorous 5S activity so that we only took with us what we would need […]