Speaker
Description
Lean manufacturing, a management philosophy emphasizing waste elimination, continuous improvement, and the creation of value through efficient processes, can be implemented in transport services. Despite the growing demand for reliable transportation options due to population growth and urbanization, Nekemte city transportation service is plagued by issues such as long waiting times, overcrowded vehicles, inconsistent schedules, and inadequate route planning. For the assessment purpose, the study applied stratified random sampling combined with purposive selection for key informants. Stratification was done on the basis of service type; passenger taxis/minibuses, city buses, and freight and logistics. The results revealed significant inefficiencies, with over 70% of respondents dissatisfied with current transport services. Low to moderate lean adoption, with preventive maintenance is most common. Awareness of lean is limited, with over 60% of respondents unfamiliar with the concept. The Value Stream Mapping (VSM) analysis revealed that the current transport service system in Nekemte City is dominated by non–value-adding activities. Waiting waste accounted for approximately 25% of total service inefficiency, followed by transportation waste (15%), over-processing (12%), motion (10%), and defects (8%). These wastes were primarily caused by unplanned scheduling, inefficient routing, manual ticketing systems, and lack of standardized terminal operations. The future-prospects of VSM demonstrates that the application of lean tools such as demand-based scheduling, 5S, standardized boarding, preventive maintenance, and digital payment systems can reduce total waste by more than 60%, thereby significantly improving service flow, operational efficiency, and customer satisfaction.
Keywords: Lean Manufacturing, Transport Service, Waste, Value Stream Mapping,
| Topic Area | Design Optimization, Additive Manufacturing Technologies & Applications |
|---|