Just-In-Time Manufacturing & Production (JIT): A Quick Guide

Just-In-Time Manufacturing & Production (JIT): A Quick Guide


Just-in-time manufacturing (JIT) is a production planning system that aligns material orders with production schedules so raw materials only arrive as they are needed for the manufacturing process. It helps manufacturers streamline production planning, reduce their production cost and improve their lead time. JIT also focuses on continuous improvement and eliminating waste, so production control systems need to be in place to capture these problems. Manufacturing teams often use kanban boards and other project management tools to create a JIT system. Before implementing JIT, it is important to have a solid understanding of other aspects of your business.
Just-in-time manufacturing (JIT) is a manufacturing process that focuses on eliminating waste and building a positive relationship with raw material suppliers and using efficient transportation methods. It began in post-World War II Japan, when the war left Japan without the working capital to finance big-batch production methods. To stay competitive, JIT requires accurate demand forecasts, capacity planning, capacity utilization, waste elimination, supply chain management, lead time, and a history of JIT manufacturing. Just-in-time manufacturing (JIT) is a process that focuses on estimating raw material requirements and aligning production inventories with production schedules. It has many benefits, such as reducing inventory, labor costs, space, work-in-process (WIP), quality, lead time and throughput time, standard hours, and number of shipments. Lean manufacturing is a more thorough process that strives to improve the overall efficiency of your manufacturing business through continuous improvement, waste reduction and business process improvement.