Lean Construction Management: The Toyota Way

402 Pages·2014·7.42 MB·English

by  Shang Gao

Shang Gao · Sui Pheng Low
Lean
Construction
Management
The Toyota Way
Lean Construction Management
.
Shang Gao (cid:129) Sui Pheng Low
Lean Construction
Management
The Toyota Way
ShangGao SuiPhengLow
SchoolofArchitectureandtheBuilt DepartmentofBuilding
Environment NationalUniversityofSingapore
TheUniversityofNewcastle, Singapore,Singapore
Australia(Singaporecampus)
Singapore,Singapore
ISBN978-981-287-013-1 ISBN978-981-287-014-8(eBook)
DOI10.1007/978-981-287-014-8
SpringerSingaporeHeidelbergNewYorkDordrechtLondon
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2014939931
#SpringerScience+BusinessMediaSingapore2014
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Preface
The Chinese construction industry has witnessed many remarkable achievements
overthepastyears.Yetitstillsuffersfrommanyproblems,includinglowproduct
quality, low working efficiency, projects finishing over budget, huge construction
wastes and others. As very little past studies have shed light on the Chinese
constructionindustryinthecontextofimplementingleanorToyotaWaypractices,
thisstudyaddressesthisresearchgapwiththeaimofgeneratingusefulinsightsthat
maybetterguidelargeChineseconstructionfirmsinembarkingonaleantransfor-
mationexercisebymeansofdeployingtheToyotaWayprinciples.
The Toyota Way was historically the first domain, where the practices and
principlesofleanproductionorleanconstructionwereformulatedanddeveloped.
It can be easily seen that lean construction has already borrowed some principles
andtechniquesoftheleanconceptorToyotaWayandhasbecomeanestablished
theme in the construction domain. The aim of this study is to establish the
implementation framework of the Toyota Way model for large construction firms
in China. It begins with an extensive literature review of the lean concept, the
Toyota Way and the relevant frameworks of lean construction. A theoretical
framework for the Toyota Way model within the construction context has been
developedandisaccompaniedbyalistofToyotaWay-styledattributes,whichfit
intotheconstructioncontext.Itisworthhighlightingthatthefocushasbeenputon
the Toyota Way model, over other existing frameworks of lean construction,
becauseofthecomprehensivenessoftheToyotaWaymodel,whichcontainsfour
layers—the philosophy model, the process model, the people and partners model,
and the problem-solving model. Most importantly, it has addressed the technical
andsocialaspectsoftheleanconcept.
InordertoassessToyotaWaypracticeswithinlargeChineseconstructionfirms,
amixedresearchmethodwasadoptedatdifferentstagesofthestudy.Forastart,a
structured questionnaire based on the identified Toyota Way-styled attributes was
developed,anddatawascollectedfrombuildingprofessionalswithlargeconstruc-
tion firms in China. The quantitative data outlines the status quo of the Toyota
Way-styledpracticesimplementedintheChineseconstructionindustry,aswellas
theextenttowhichtheseattributeswereperceived.Theresultsshowedthatallthe
actionableattributesderivedfromtheToyotaWaymodelwereappreciatedbythe
respondents,butsomeattributesfallshortofimplementation.Tofurtherinvestigate
why implementation was uneven, and also to understand how these Toyota Way
v
vi Preface
practices could be implemented in real-life projects, interviews and case studies
were carried out as part of the investigation. At this stage, from the interview
findings, the evaluations of the case study projects and the comparisons with the
theoreticalmodeloftheToyotaWay,thefindingshaveenhancedtheunderstanding
of Toyota Way practices in the Chinese construction context. Furthermore, the
results highlighted that the gap between actual practice and Toyota Way-styled
practicesisenormous,andimplementationfacesconsiderablechallenges.Basedon
allthefindings,thisstudythenemploystheSWOTanalysistopresentapicturethat
addresses the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the implementa-
tion ofthe Toyota Way inChina. It is also confirmed that the Toyota Way model
presented in this book is considered appropriate for use in Chinese construction
firmsandmayadditionallybeusedasaholisticassessmenttoolformeasuringthe
maturityoffirmsintermsoftheirToyotaWayimplementation.Managementwould
then be in a better position to develop plans for Toyota Way implementation by
focusing on weak areas, and thus increasing the likelihood of success in the
implementationoftheToyotaWay.
Keywords:ToyotaWaymodel;Leanconstruction;LargeChineseconstruction
firms;SWOT
Singapore,Singapore ShangGao
Singapore,Singapore SuiPhengLow
Abbreviations
ACE Architectural,EngineeringandConstruction
BIQ Built-inQuality
BIM BuildingInformationModeling
CCA ChineseConstructionAssociation
CCETB ChinaConstructionEngineeringThirdBureau
CCTV Closed-circuitTelevision
CI CorporateImage
CII ConstructionIndustryInstitute
CICA ChinaInternationalContractorsAssociation
CICC ChineseInternationalConstructionCompany
COE Collective-ownedEnterprises
CSCEC ChinaStateConstructionEngineeringCorporation
DI DesignInstitute
GDP GrossDomesticProduct
GM GeneralMotors
HRM HumanResourceManagement
JIT Just-in-Time
LCCF LargeChineseConstructionFirm
LCI LeanConstructionInstitute
LPS LastPlannerSystem
MHURD MinisterofHousingUrban-RuralDevelopment
MOC MinistryofConstruction
NAOC NationalAuditOfficeofChina
NUMMI NewUnitedMotorManufacturing,Inc
NBSC NationalBureauofStatisticsofChina
NIE NationalInspectionExemption
PDCA Plan-Do-Check-Act
POM ProductionandOperationsManagement
PE ProjectEngineer
PM ProjectManager
PMBOK ProjectManagementBodyofKnowledge
PPC PercentPlanComplete
PPT ProjectPlanningTaskforce
vii
viii Abbreviations
QCs QualityCircles
Rebar Reinforcementbar
RMB Renminbi
SME SmallandMediumEnterprises
SOE State-OwnedEnterprises
SOP StandardizedOperatingProcedure
SQC StatisticalQualityControl
SWOT Strengths,Weaknesses,OpportunitiesandThreats
TFV Transformation-Flow-Value
TPS ToyotaProductionSystem
TQC TotalQualityControl
TQM TotalQualityManagement
WIP Work-in-process
WTO WorldTradeOrganization
List of Non-English Terms Used
5-S 5-S is the acronym for Sort (Seiri), Simplify (Seiton), Sweep
(Seiso),Standardize(Seiketsu),andSelf-discipline(Shitsuke):
a visually oriented system for organizing the workplace to
minimizethewasteoftime
Andon A visual control device to notify management, maintenance
staffandoperatorsofqualityorprocessproblems
Gemba Theactualplacewheretherealadded-valueworkisdone
GenchiGenbutsu Goandseeforyourself
Guanxi Relationships among various parties that cooperate and sup-
portoneanother
Hansei Relentlessreflection
Heijunka Productionsmoothingorlevelingtheproductionschedule
Hoshinkanri Also called policy deployment. It is a step-by-step planning,
implementationandreviewprocesstomanagechange
Jianli ThisisthesupervisionfirmintheChineseconstructionindus-
try. The jianli’s main role is to ensure that a project is
constructed safely and to the quality standards as required
underthelaw
Jidoka Providingmachineriesandoperatorswiththeabilitytodetect
whenanabnormalconditionhasoccurredandtoimmediately
stopwork
Kaizen Continuous,incrementalimprovementofanactivitytocreate
morevaluewithlesswaste
Kanban A signal, often a card attached to suppliers or equipment that
regulatespullbysignalingupstreamproductionordelivery
Muda Wasteornon-value-addingactivities
Muri Overburden—when workers or machines are pushed beyond
theircapacity
Mura Unevenness—when some workers and machines work below
their capacities for some of the time, while others may
overproduce
Nemawashi AcommonlyusedJapaneseconsensusbuildingtechnique
ix