Also called continuous flow processing, flow manufacture, single part working, one part working, one piece flow, just-in-time manufacture, Toyota Production System and other terms.
The key idea of Flow Production is moving the product or information from one process step to the next as continuously as possible. The capability to produce a single unit of a product at the same throughput and cost as volume production requires flow production, short setup times, and Kanban supply of materials. The ideal is single part working, but in some cases small batches may move continuously, e.g. pitch for Fast Moving Consumer Goods products.
Flow production shortens the lead time from order to delivery, improves response to customers and makes wastes (non-value-added activities) visible in the system. Flow Production is the key method of lean processing and enables many benefits of lean.
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