Waste Reduction Applying Lean Manufacturing Methodology in a Textile Industry. A Case Study

Lean Manufacturing focuses on the customer by identifying non-value-added activities, wastes, and their elimination or reduction through process optimization and continuous improvement. The textile company under investigation manufactures clothing and seeks to establish an organizational method for its production process focused on continuous improvement using lean manufacturing tools. The proposal is about the “simple set”, products composed of t-shirt and pant or short, as the main product of the company, specifically focusing on the t-shirt manufacturing process and its cycle time. The results show that by using 5S production improved from 58% to 95% with TPM, production flow interruptions in the production area were reduced, and by eliminating downtime, Lead Time decreased from 1361 min to 1254 min. The proposal aims to reduce the processing time from 804.55 to 685.42 min, which would increase production capacity from 1,116 to 1,181 units per month. All of this will reduce unproductive times and fully meet the monthly customer demand. The textile companies in the area work with processes under similar conditions, so the study could be replicated.