Enigma of KAIZEN approach in manufacturing industry of Northern India – a case study

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to uncover the significance of KAIZEN technique in manufacturing environments. Design/methodology/approach KAIZEN is a management approach focused on incremental improvements in operations. Different elements of KAIZEN are being utilized by manufacturing industry to improve the performance of current manufacturing system processes. This study attempts to evaluate the performance of different elements of KAIZEN in manufacturing industry of Northern India. The importance level of different elements of KAIZEN, important benefits achieved after successful implementation of KAIZEN approach and benefits occurred after implementation of different elements of KAIZEN have been identified. Questionnaire survey in the case company has been performed and the most important element of KAIZEN has been implemented. Findings Results explicitly depict that failure mode and effective analysis is the most important element of KAIZEN. Results indicate the net savings of rupees 422,208 annually after implementing KAIZEN technique in a case company. Originality/value The paper demonstrates the practical application of KAIZEN technique showing how it can bring real breakthroughs in saving cost in the manufacturing industry.