Lean vocabulary: the dictionary for your organization's performance

Master the meaning of lean terms and concepts. Get clear definitions that turn the language of management into practical results in your day-to-day work.

Alphabetical navigation of the dictionary

C

1 term

Chief Engineer

Term used at Toyota for the manager with full responsibility for the development and success of a product line; formerly known by the Japanese term shusa.

See : Value Stream Manager.

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D

1 term

Design-in

Collaboration between customer and supplier to design a component and its production process.

See : Resident Engineer.

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L

1 term

Lean Product and Process Development

A business system focused on eliminating waste in product and process development through the generation and application of useful knowledge.

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P

1 term

Production Preparation Process

A disciplined method for designing a lean production process for a new product, or for fundamentally redesigning the production process for an existing product when the product or demand changes substantially. It may also be called Lean Process Development.

See: Kaizen, Kaizen Workshop.

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S

2 terms

Set-Based Concurrent Engineering

An approach to designing products and services in which developers consider sets of ideas rather than a single idea.

See : Trade-off curves.

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Shusa

A project leader, like the chief engineer in Toyota's product development system.

See: Chief Engineer.

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T

3 terms

Target Cost

The development and production cost that a product cannot exceed if the customer is to be satisfied with the product's value and the manufacturer is to obtain an acceptable return on its investment.

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Three Ps (3P)

See: Production Preparation Process.

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Trade-off Curves

Describes, in a simple and visual way, the performance limits that are possible with a given design approach.

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U

1 term

Usable Knowledge

The value created by lean product development processes. Because almost all defective designs result from not having the right knowledge in the right place at the right time, lean companies generally spend proportionally more development time creating and capturing knowledge, and less creating hardware.

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Frequently asked questions about the Lean Glossary

It is a glossary of terms and concepts used in lean management. It helps you understand lean terminology by aligning definitions and examples for study, reading and day-to-day application.

Use the search box to look for a specific term, browse by letter or filter by theme. Click the item to see a summary and open the full definition.

Some terms may have translations in other languages. When a translation is not available, the site may show the Portuguese version as a reference.

Yes. New terms may be added and definitions may be revised to keep the content clear, consistent and evolving over time.

Ao longo do Vocabulário, você encontrará links para conceitos relacionados e conteúdos do Lean Institute Brasil, como artigos, materiais da Central do Conhecimento, livros e capacitações.

A academia lean do Lean Institute Brasil oferece trilhas de capacitação EaD e presenciais, incluindo o Programa Prático de Formação Lean (PPFL), que ensina a utilizar frameworks consolidados e a aplicá-los resolvendo problemas de negócio reais.