Features of lean manufacturing in the energy sector

Abstract

© International Research Publication House One of the energy companies’ main goal is the efficient use of energy. A mean of attaining this goal is the lean manufacturing concept, which is growing increasingly popular around the world. Lean manufacturing is a concept in production management focusing on continuous improvement and eliminating production wastes [1]. The philosophy behind lean manufacturing roots from the Toyota Productions System developed at the Japanese company Toyota. This paper reviews the specifics of lean manufacturing in the energy industry. It identifies key problems of the energy sector, provides global statistical data on energy losses and classifies them. Implementing “Lean Energy” would increase the competitiveness of the companies operating in the energy industry, reduce some of the energy losses, and, consequently, help reach a qualitatively new level of operations. Prospect results of implementing “Lean energy” at OAO “Setevaya kompaniya”, a territorial energy company conducting energy transportation in the Republic of Tatarstan, are presented in this paper. The main stages in the development of “Lean Energy” at the company are reviewed. The lean tools and methods implemented at the company are presented, along with the results of an internal and external audits of the company’s production system. The practical implications of the study are seen as provisions of results of the analysis presented in the paper for future use by the companies implementing the lean manufacturing management system.