Kanban

Contents
1. Introduction

o Kanban Preconditions
o Kanban Limitations

2. Types of Kanban Cards

o Move Cards (or C-card) (YELLOW)
o Production Card (or P-card) (GREEN)
o Signal Card (or Material)
o Supplier Card
3. Special Situation Kanbans
o Rework Authorization Kanban (Orange)
o The Startup Excess kanban (Pink)
o The Other Authorization kanban (Blue)
o The Emergency Authorization kanban (Silver)

4. Kanban Data Entry

5. Kanban Disciplines
o Rules for Kanban control
6. Kanban Sequence Board (KANBAN BOARD)
7. Kanban Process Flow
o Shipping Pull
o Assembly Pull
o Kanban Card Scenario’s
o Partial filled containers
8. One-Card Kanban

9. Two-Card Kanban
10. Kanban Without Cards

11. Brand-Name Kanbans and Generic Kanbans

12. Determining the number of kanban cards / containers needed for each
item

13. Card Status v.s. Supply Status

14. Resources

1. Introduction
 Kanban means 'Display card', Signal, 'visible record' or
.Instruction card' in Japanese'

 Kanban "Card or other device" and systems are used to synchronize

the flow of parts in systems (often manufacturing and assembly) where
many different parts come together at various points in a long and often
.complex process

 This system communicates demand for work or materials from the

preceding station

 It is aPaperless production control system where authority to pull, or

.produce comes from a downstream process

 Cards can, of course, be replaced with electronic system can be used

.to inform the upstream process in real time of parts usage

 Imagine a supermarket, where there are cards attached to all items on

.shelves

 At the checkout, the cashier takes the cards off the items and sends them
.to the warehouse, who send replacement items

 The warehouse also uses the same system, and when an item is
picked off the shelves, the card attached to it is sent furt her back
.upstream

 Consumers picking a product leaves the kanban.

This isolated kanban become an order for a new product to replace
.the one which was just picked up

 This is a pull system, where consumption of an item leads to the kanban

card associated with it being used to 'pull' replacements from upstream in
.the process

 Kanban thus leads to less stock -outs and stock-overflows, with the
.attendant cost savings and more reliable system

 BUT synchronizing an entire system, as the use of kanban does, only

.works if you can predict demand and manage the changes in it

 High stock levels may have masked seasonal swings from upstream
producers (bullwhip effect), but in a synchronized system, they now will
.have to cope with this effect

 :Can use different methods to trigger replenishment activity

o Kanban Cards are the most common
o Kanban Containers are frequently
o Bar Coding of cards / containers helps when automating kanban
systems
Kanban Replenishment for All Types of Industries (Manufacturing & Non-
Manufacturing), Tom Brown Colibri Limited Roswell, Georgia

Kanban Preconditions
 High demand rate
 Small variations in demand
 Limited number of product variants
 Good supplier relations
 The smoothing of production is the most important condition for “
production by Kanban and for minimizing idle time in regard to
manpower, equipment, and work-in-process. Production
smoothing (heijunka) is the cornerstone of the Toyota
.Production System

(Toyota Production System by Yasuhiro Monden, 1998 )

Kanban Limitations
 Unleveled demand
 Long setup times or lead times
 Expensive parts
 Large items
 Items with non-frequent usage
 Items with “non-willing” suppliers
Department of Production Economics (IPE), Linköping Institute of
Technology, TPPE37 Manufacturing Control

2. Types of Kanban Cards

Move Cards (or C-Card)(Yellow)

(Conveyance or Withdrawal kanban cards)

 It signify that a part has moved, but has not been

consumed

 This
may Trigger movements upstream, but not producti
.on of a new part

Production Card (or P-card) (Green)

It indicates that the part has been consumed and
.will Trigger production of a replacement part

 A kanban card is physically located on the product, or

waiting for it at production
 No kanban in front of machine means no order, so no
.production
 Kanban(s) in front of machine means as many orders
as kanban cards, so production is required for
.equivalent quantity
 As soon as a product is manufactured, kanban is
.associated
 When the product is "pulled" or "purchased" by the
customer "internal or external" the card is removed
and re-circulated back to the beginning of the
production process.
 .There are also sub-categories of these types

Signal Card (or Material)

It is a type of Production Card that can be used
.to flag low stock levels and thus trigger purchases

Supplier Card
It is one that goes directly to a supplier and enters their
.kanban system

3. Special Situation Kanbans

Rework Authorization Kanban(Orange)

 When an item is returned to the production area for rework after the
Production Authorization kanban has been removed, the Rework
.Authorization kanban may be used

 The Rework Authorization kanban helps limit the amount of rework and
.provides a visual feedback on the amount of rework in process

 If a large mass of orange color is visible on a wall in the rework area,

.we know that not much is in rework

The Startup Excess kanban (Pink)

 The Startup Excess kanban is helpful when first converting over to
kanban control.

 Production Authorization Kanbans are used to authorize items in

production up to the limit calculated.

 In many instances, however, when a company is beginning Just-in-

Time, inventory in production exceeds the kanban ceiling.

 The excess in inventory needs to be identified until it can be used up.

 Failure to authorize each item in inventory at the start will make it

difficult to see which items without" a kanban exist due to prior
conditions and which have been created in violation of the kanban
control process.

 It is easier and more consistent if everything has a kanban authorization

from day 1.

 When a product with a Startup Excess kanban is "purchased" by the

customer, the kanban is not re-circulated, because we do not want to
replace excess inventory.

The Other Authorization kanban (Blue)

 The Other Authorization kanban (blue) is used for very special
instances and temporary usages.
 The Emergency Authorization kanban (Silver)
 The Emergency Authorization kanban (silver) is used to allow inventory
temporarily to exceed calculated limits.

 Normally it takes at least two higher-level managers to approve

emergency kanbans and they are used no more than six times in a
twelve-month period.

 When a product with an Emergency Authorization kanban is

"purchased" by the customer, the kanban is not recirculated, because
we do not want to replace excess inventory.

4. Kanban Data Entry

 A description of the data that goes into each field follows. Most people
fill in only a minimum amount of data, thereby avoiding data-entry effort
and visual distractions where the information is obvious.

:Description
 Give the description of the part number entered above, that is, the
name of the part number or part family authorized by the kanban.

:Operation
 Enter the operation or series of operations authorized by this kanban to
occur. That is, enter the operations within which this kanban card
circulates.

:From
 For Production, Rework, Emergency, and Startup Excess
authorizations, enter the supplier's location of the part to be
"purchased" with this kanban.

 For the Restock Authorization, enter the supplier's name and/or location
for the replenishment part number.

 The name and location may be for an external supplier, an internal

supplier operation/ location, or a stockroom location. When deliveries
begin directly to the point of use, simply change the entry from
stockroom to the supplier name. For all cards, if the "from" location is
obvious or not relevant,
leave it blank.

:To
 For Production, Rework, Emergency, and Startup Excess
authorizations:

o Enter the outbound-kanban storage location where this WIP

part number will be placed when this segment of the production
process is completed.

o The location may be a work position or another point-of-use

storage location.

 For the Stock Authorization:

o Enter the destination of the replenishment part number.

o This location may be a work position or another point-of-use

storage location. For all cards, if the "to" location is obvious or
not relevant, leave it blank.

:Transfer Quantity
 Indicate the maximum number of kanbans allowed at one work position
before movement to the output-kanban location or next work position is
required.
 The work position is only for active work, not for storage.
 This field defines the maximum amount of temporary storage that is
allowed at the position if it is inconvenient to move each item
individually.
 (Usually not required for Restock Authorization.)

:Transfer Container
 Specify the container in which to move the material if a particular
container or conveyance type is required.

:Lot-size quantity
 Specify the lot size for this part. When the lot size is accumulated,
thekanban (s) must be put in the priority queue to initiate new
production.
 (Usually not required for Restock Authorization.)

:Lot-size kanbans
 Specify the number of kanban cards equivalent to the lot size.
 For example, if the lot size is 100, and each kanban card authorizes
production of 20 units, 5 kanbans represents the lot size.
 (Usually not required for Restock Authorization.)

:Maximum Quantity
 Required only for Restock Authorizations using the order point
replenishment method (i.e. a min./max. or dipstick approach).
 No item is allowed to exist without a kanban ceiling; therefore, specify
the maximum allowable inventory for this part at this location.

:Reorder Point
 Required only for Restock Authorizations using the order-point
replenishment method (i.e. a min/max or dipstick approach).
 Specify the minimum inventory point at which the Restock Authorization
must be submitted to ensure replenishment in the required turnaround
time.

:Replenish Maximum Quantity

 Required only for Restock Authorizations using the order-point
replenishment method (i.e. a min./max. or dipstick approach).
 Enter the difference between the Maximum Quantity and the Reorder
Point.
 This quantity represents the maximum amount of inventory that can
safely be replenished without exceeding the allowable level.
 It is permissible to restock less than this quantity, but not more.
 If the full amount is not restocked, the result will be that the Restock
Authorization will be turned in sooner next time.
 Ideally, the quantity is a multiple of the supplier-package quantity.

:Blank space on back

 Most often used to affix a bar code to simplify transaction processing
and facilitate quality data collection. Sometimes used to show complex
routings.

:___ Card #____ of

  Used to identify the sequence number of each kanban card for a given
part number or product family.
 Numbering each card will make it easier to know how many exist in the
series and will permit detection of an additional or missing card.
 Note that the card design is the same for all types; only the name of the
card changes.
 It is possible to use only one type of card, with the heading "Do it!"
authorizing production, movement, etc.
 Sometimes, however, color coding can help to simplify the process.
Just remember to keep it simple.
 For that reason also, many data fields are left blank if they do not apply
or if the information is obvious.

W. A. Sandras, Jr., Just-In-Time, Make it Happen, Unleashing the power of

Continuous improvement

5. Kanban Disciplines

 Always turn kanban cards in after lunches, breaks, and between shifts to
get up to date scheduling every two hours.
 Have a Common Drop-Off Location for cards to be dropped off
(Example: break room, restroom or production office).
 Operators on the way back from break or restroom will look at kanban
drop off to see if any parts are pulled from their processes.
 If there are cards the operator will return the cards to their work station
and place them on the KANBAN BOARD
 Never run over the kanban card
amount and never substitute paper notes for kanban cards. If you
must run extra parts get overrun cards from the scheduling department.
 It’s always best to run the specified kanban amount.
 Never run machines with set-up times earlier than when the cards are
fully up to the GREEN on the kanban board.

 Nothing is made or moved without a kanban card

 Establish a Primary Location for all parts.

 Always fill containers to specified quantity on kanban card.
 If you have a partial container generated at the end of a run, use a partial
tag to identify the container and store it away from the Primary Location.
 When that part is set-up on the next run then finish filling the container.
 Always define kanban cards with a color scheme
o WIP “Green”,
 o Finished Goods “Yellow”,
o Overrun Cards “Orange”, etc...
 Always start out slow when implementing kanban. Do one machine
and then audit that machine for at least two weeks to make sure you have
the discipline in the system.
 Train Everybody ..This is very important.
 Always start the kanban system simple, then fine tune the system later. If
you start a difficult kanban system, it will fail.
 Pass scheduling responsibility to the Operators. This gives process
ownership to the people operating the equipment or work center.
 Scheduling personnel should only step in when a designated quantity of
parts are in the RED zone on the Kanban Board
 Schedule Overtime based on kanban cards in the RED zone on
the Kanban Board
 Only quality parts are sent to the subsequent processes.
 Kanban cards are not to be left on products in the hold area.
 Place a kanban card on all parts in stock when setting up the kanban
board on a machine.
 This will tell you where you are at with the schedule on the Kanban board.
http://www.optimumperform.com/disciplines.htm

Rules for Kanban control

 Manufacturing or assembly may not be initiated without
the permission of a production kanban
 Material may not be transported without the permission
of a transport kanban
 Only standardized containers loaded with the correct
items may be used
 There should be exactly one production kanban and one
transport kanban for each container
 Defect details should not be transported to the next
station
Department of Production Economics (IPE), Linköping Institute of
Technology, TPPE37 Manufacturing Control

6. Kanban Sequence Board (KANBAN BOARD)

 Fig. 1 Kanban Sequence Board

 The above figure shows an empty kanban board with hooks for hanging
kanban.
 Each column is set up for kanban for that part.
 Shown in parentheses are the maximum number of kanban that have
been allocated and thus the maximum number of containers of parts in
the system at any point in time.
 A material handler will pick up cards from the consuming operation which
represent containers of parts that have are being used in production and
bring them to the producing operation.
 The material handler will fill the board by placing the Kanban on available
hooks from the bottom
up.
 The Green Zone indicates No Rush to make these parts.
 Cards in the Yellow Zone are Higher Priority and cards in the red zone
mean the downstream operation may be starved for parts unless you
build these right away.
 For example, in the above figure there are 2 hooks in the Red
Zone for Part A so someone decided two bins is the Minimum Reorder
Quantity.
 Fig. 2 Planning the kanban system

 Figure 2 shows a board loaded with kanban that have been coming back
from the consuming operation (e.g., assembly).
 In this case we have color coded the Part A segment of the board with
green indicating the cards for Part A are almost into the red zone and
production should be set up to make those parts next.
 By contrast, there are only two cards back for Part C out of a total
possible 21 cards so there is plenty of Part C in the supermarket and that
is the lowest priority for production.
 It should be clear that this simple manual system is literally
the Schedule or (Prioritisation)
 Automatic Prioritisation is possible using a Traffic Light (RAG) system
 Figure 3: APS Can Enhance The Kanban System

 Figure 3 illustrates that when conditions change, e.g., customer demand

rates (volume or mix or both) change or perhaps there are problems with
parts or machines which require more safety stock for some parts, cards
should be added or subtracted from circulation.
 In this case conditions changed and the APS systems calculated cards
should be reallocated. For example, four more kanban should be added
for Part A to increase the maximum WIP of Part A.
 These will be allocated by adding two hooks to the green zone and one
each to the yellow and red zones.
 APS recommended the change in kanban and can also recommended
how to allocate the kanban (e.g., what should be the minimum trigger
point).
 The board and cards can be a very powerful, visual control system which
is loaded manually—but the optimized planning for this can be done by
computer almost instantly.
Advanced Planning Systems as an Enabler of Lean Manufacturing, Jeffrey K.
Liker Principal and Senior Lean Consultant Optiprise, Inc., Karl Burr Vice
President i2 Technologies

7. Kanban Process Flow

 Shipping Pull
o Shipping department pulls customer containers and removes
kanban cards from containers before shipping product.
 o Shipping Technician returns kanban cards to appropriate
machines that product was pulled from, and places cards on
the KANBAN BOARD
 When the kanban board hits the green run position on a part, that cell
should begin running that part.
Note: (Some cards can be returned directly to previous cell from shipping,
and some cards will be returned to a central zone. (Mailbox)
(Example: By restroom where everybody goes)
 When cards are put in a central zone mailbox they will be picked up
after break, lunch or in between shifts by the operators of that machine
and placed on their kanban board to see if any parts are in the run
condition.

 Assembly Pull
o When containers are pulled from WIP area (e.g. Press) the cards
are pulled from that container in assembly when the container is
empty.
o The kanban card then is placed in the mailbox by (e.g. Restroom)
and picked up by the operators of the previous machine after
lunch, break, or in between shifts to be placed on the Kanban
board by their machine.
o When the cards build up to the Green line at that press, setup
and run that job. When a container is complete at the press place
a kanban card on the container and move container to primary
WIP area for that part.

 Kanban Card Scenario’s

o If there are multiple jobs up to the green line (Run status) chose
which one to run next by your customer pull.
(Example: If part is directly shipped to outside customer, probably
run that one first.)
o If multiple cards on multiple parts are in the “Red Zone” contact
Materials Dept. for assistance on what sequence to run the parts.

 Partial filled containers:

o If a container is not quite full due to a insufficient amount of raw
material, put a partial tag on that container and store that
container in a partial area in the plant.
o When the operator sets up on a part that has a partial container
the tow motor should go to the partial area to pick up that
container, to finish filling the container to the required kanban.
o The operator will know he has a partial because the partial tag is
not on the kanban board.

 Kanban cards may include instructions to the person upstream, so

when they receive the card, they
.simply move or produce items as instructed
  A production operator, when receiving a kanban card, will m ake only as
.many parts as are in the kanban lot size

 One card may be attached to a single item or to a number of items, where

the number of items in the batch will depend on the variation within the
.system, the time taken to product items, and other factors

 An improvement objectives is to reduce the number of parts in the

.kanban batch or lot size

 Reducing this size exposes variation and other problems, and so must be
.linked to process improvement

http://www.optimumperform.com/disciplines.htm

8. One-Card Kanban

 Push Manufacturing and Pull Transports

 This system uses only a Move Card.
 The most common (similar to OP/OQ systems)
 An empty space in the outbound stock point becomes the production
order for another container.
When the downstream (pulling) workstation takes a container, the
attached kanban is sent back to the upstream workstation to authorize
production of a replacement.
 It is appropriate when:
o the workstations are close together.
o Simple prod with few options e.g. motor bikes

9. Two-Card Kanban
 Pull manufacturing and Pull transports
 For more complex material flows
 E.g. car manufacturing (many options/variants)
 Uses a Move card and a Production card
 Move card:
o Move requests movement of a specific number of
units from an outbound stock point to an inbound
stock point.
o Attached to a standard container of parts when
the container is moved.
 Production card:
o Indicates that items should be made for use or to
replace pipeline stock.
o Tells what to produce
o Used only at the work center and its outbound
stock point.
o Suitable when workstations are not close
together.
 One card (move or production) stands for one standard
container of parts.
 The production card remains at its workstation.
 When a container of parts is taken (pulled downstream),
the production card authorizes production of another
container.
 When the requesting (pulling) workstation empties a
container of parts, return the move card to the supplying
operation and attach it to the next container.
10. Kanban Without Cards

 Kanban-style pull production control can be achieved without using cards.

The setup is very similar to a two-bin replenishment system.
  CPIM Participant Guide, "Execution and Control of Operations," Version
1.1, January 2001, from APICS

 http://www.ct-yankee.com/lean/kanban.html

 Department of Production Economics (IPE), Linköping Institute of

Technology, TPPE37 Manufacturing Control

11. Brand-Name Kanbans and Generic Kanbans

A brand-name kanban
 The more familiar type, answers both questions at
once: When we receive a free brand-name kanban, we
are authorized to immediately ("when") build another
identical item ("what")
 If we have hundreds of items with high product-
variety environments, brand-
name kanban become impractical

A generic kanban
 Generic Kanban authorizes production to begin
immediately ('when''), but it does not provide specific
information regarding what to build.
  Often the generic kanban will authorize production of
an item within a family of parts but will not specify
the item or its options.

W. A. Sandras, Jr., Just-In-Time, Make it Happen, Unleashing the power of

Continuous improvement

12. Determining the number of kanban cards / containers

needed for each item

K
a
n
b
a
n

Q
u
a
n
t
i
t
y

(
M
a
x
.
)

D
 (
P

C
)
/

S
S

Where:

D = Demand (Consumption Rate in units per

time period) Takt Time

P = Production Time per batch (order to

replenishment) LEAD
C = Conveyance Time per batch (order to
replenishment) TIME

Q = Quantity per Kanban (Transfer Batch Sizes) Order

Quantity
SS = Safety stock.

N.B. Kanban Quantity must be regularly reviewed and adjusted

 Typically there is one kanban per container and the container size is
then the size of the order quantity.

 Thus, adding a kanban means adding an additional container of parts,

that is, work-in-process, in the system. We can see from this equation
that:

o The greater the takt time the greater the number of kanban.

o Takt time will vary across different end products which will
require different parts.

o The greater the lead time the greater the number of

kanban.
 o Note that the lead time, which is the time required to replenish
the marketplace when a kanban has been sent back,
includes production time and conveyance time.

o Both of these will vary across components and thus different

number of kanban are needed depending on lead time.

o Capacities of containers also vary depending on the size of the

part.

o The safety stock depends on how much variability there is in

customer demand, manufacturing, and supplied component
lead time—that is, how reliable the processes are.

o This also varies across different products and manufacturing

processes.

o Production smoothing, referred to as heijunka is so critical

o When all the marketplaces and kanban quantities are sized to

this takt time, a wild swing in demand for a particular product
cannot be handled by the kanban.

Example:
 An item has a 2 day lead time (when a kanban is emptied it will take 2
days to refill it)
 An item has a 2 day lead time (when a kanban is emptied it will take 2
days to refill it)
 Average daily usage of the item is 50 per day
 You will need 100 within the replenishment lead time (average daily
demand times lead time)
 Thus, you need to activate 5 kanban cards (demand during lead time
divided by kanban size)
Kanban Replenishment for All Types of Industries (Manufacturing & Non-
Manufacturing), Tom Brown Colibri Limited Roswell, Georgia
13. Card Status v.s. Supply Status

Card Status
 Active: kanban card is in the replenishment chain
 Hold: card temporarily removed from replenishment
chain
 Canceled: card permanently removed from
replenishment chain

Supply Status
 New: kanban just created and not yet part of
replenishment chainEmpty: kanban is empty and
replenishment signal has been generated - impacts Inter-
Org and Supplier source types
 Full: kanban has been replenished and material is
available for use
 Wait: kanban is waiting for minimum order quantity to be
met by the aggregation of cards.
 In process: For the Supplier source type, PO has been
approved. For Inter-Org source type, internal requisition
has been approved
Kanban Replenishment for All Types of Industries (Manufacturing
& Non-Manufacturing), Tom Brown Colibri Limited Roswell,
Georgia
14. Resources
 http://syque.com/improvement/Kanban.htm
 http://chohmann.free.fr/lean/supermarket.htm
 http://www.ct-yankee.com/lean/kanban.html
 http://www.optimumperform.com/disciplines.htm
 Department of Production Economics (IPE), Linköping Institute of
Technology, TPPE37 Manufacturing Control

 Kanban Replenishment for All Types of Industries (Manufacturing & Non-

Manufacturing), Tom Brown Colibri Limited Roswell, Georgia
 CPIM Participant Guide, "Execution and Control of Operations," Version
1.1, January 2001, from APICS
 http://www.ct-yankee.com/lean/kanban.html
 Department of Production Economics (IPE), Linköping Institute of
Technology, TPPE37 Manufacturing Control

 http://www.optimumperform.com/disciplines.htm
 W. A. Sandras Jr., Just-In-Time, Make it Happen, Unleashing the power
of Continuous improvement
 Advanced Planning Systems as an Enabler of Lean Manufacturing,
Jeffrey K. Liker Principal and Senior Lean Consultant Optiprise, Inc., Karl
Burr Vice President i2 Technologies
 http://www.smthacker.co.uk/kanban.htm