Taiichi Ohno As father of Lean Manufacturing, Taiichi Ohno maintained a very low profile in the business world. Taiichi Ohno is Japanese born in China, and graduated from Nagoya Technical High School. He never went to college or attended any higher education than high school. He was one of the first employees in the Toyota family. He later moved up to Toyota Motor’s and slowly became an executive of the corporation. During the time Toyota was on the brink of bankruptcy, due to they could not afford major investments on new equipments or new inventories.

Ohno helped this problem by his manufacturing system, also called as the Toyota Production System or Lean Manufacturing. Toyota Manufacturing System is systems that are designed to ease on overburden and inconsistency, along with eliminate waste. Things Toyota Manufacturing System address are: over-production, motion and waiting of machine, conveyance, processing itself, inventories, and correction of rework. The most important concept in this system is to eliminate waste.

Most company waste on average of 70 to 90 percent of their resources, Toyota Manufacturing System is designed to control resources and eliminate waste. Which they uses specific tools and techniques. Inventory which is one of the largest wastes reduces capital and consumes manpower. In addition, people and technology must integrate in order to fully utilize available resources and man power. The tools and techniques are highly interdependent. Each acts upon and improves the others in a continuous “Virtuous Circle”. Results for the system are greater than the separate effects.