Assessment of energy efficiency in lean transformation: A simulation based improvement methodology

The philosophy of Lean Manufacturing is to do more with less by eliminating non-value-added activities from production process. Lean manufacturing has several tools to improve lead time, cost, and quality performance as well as flexibility of systems. Therefore, the application level of Lean Manufacturing has gone through a significant evolution from shop floor to supply chain. Furthermore, Lean Manufacturing tools lead to significant effect on energy efficiency which is a vital factor for competitive advantage and environment preservation. In this chapter, a simulation-based generic framework is provided for the assessment of energy efficiency in Lean Manufacturing systems with the aim of providing contribution to the theoretical and practical studies addressing both sustainable energy and performance in manufacturing systems. Reflecting hierarchical nature of manufacturing systems, the proposed framework is illustrated in detail.