Management objectives of lean manufacturing in material handling operations

Regardless of industry, one of the key processes of manufacturers is material handling. A great deal of waste can often be found in the material handling processes of manufacturers. The operational management teams of firms are often tasked with the hurdle of reducing this waste to meet business goals and meet customer demand. Many times, techniques such as lean manufacturing are mandated as the methods by which operational groups must reduce this waste and create improvement opportunities, but a specific roadmap to define the objectives of the operational group is not provided. The goal of this research is to develop a methodology that will provide management groups with a tool to assist in defining the objectives of lean manufacturing implementations. The central focus of the methodology is to identify waste and prioritize solutions based on the business goals of the organization.