Training
After many years working in UK industry, the arrival of NMUK in the early eighties provided an opportunity to learn - at first hand - the approach which had enabled Japanese manufacturing industry's rise to pre-eminence in such a few years. Frankly, there was little new, but we found that 'common sense' was common practice - rigorously applied! What we knew, they practiced and refined!
Months of training in Japan were followed by years of implementation in the UK. After a while, the time came to cascade the benefits to NMUK's suppliers. Again, the we worked with Japanese colleagues to understand their approach, and the thinking behind this.
Tools and techniques were applied quickly and effectively. There were few barriers to making change, so new methods could be rapidly tried out and assessed. 'Process & Results' is an underlying improvement principle.
Although different companies had their own 'corporate cultures', a common theme was that social activities were not neglected!
