The document discusses Just-in-Time (JIT), a lean manufacturing concept that aims to eliminate waste by providing the right parts at the right place and time. It originated in Japan in the 1970s and was pioneered by Toyota. The key aspects of JIT are eliminating sources of waste, reducing inventory levels, flexible workforces, and reliable suppliers. While JIT has benefits like reduced costs and improved quality, implementing it fully requires overcoming challenges like resistance to change and developing multi-skilled workers. Indian companies have had mixed success implementing JIT due to factors like a lack of total quality management programs.

1. JUST –IN- TIME
BY: SRIBATSA PATTANAYAK
M.B.A,ABA, BALASORE
INTRODUCTION
WITH THE INCREASED COMPETITION AT THE GLOBAL LEVEL, MORE & MORE ORGANIZATIONS
ARE BECOMING CONSCIOUS & HAVE STARTED FOCUSING ON VARIOUS ASPECTS , SUCH AS :
BETTER QUALITY.
ZERO DEFECT.
NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT.
ELIMINATION OF WASTAGE.
CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT , ETC.
A VERY HIGH EMPHASIS ON QUALITY BOTH FOR PRODUCTS & SERVICES HAS GENERATED A
NEW CONCEPT KNOWN AS JUST- IN –TIME . THIS SYSTEM IS A PRIMARY EXAMPLE OF A LEAN
SYSTEMS, I.E, A OPERATION SYSTEM WHICH INCLUDES A TOTAL SYSTEMS PROSPECTIVE, SUCH
AS : OPERATIONS STRATEGIES, PROCESSES, TECHNOLOGY, QUALITY, CAPACITY, LAYOUT,
INVENTORY & RESOURCE PLANNING ETC.
JUST-IN-TIME/JIT IS AN APPROACH WHICH SEEKS TO ELIMINATE ALL SOURCES OF WASTE,
ANYTHING WHICH DOESN’T ADD VALUE IN PRODUCTION ACTIVITIES, BY PROVIDING THE
RIGHT PART AT THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME .
JIT - BACKGROUND AND HISTORY
JIT IS A JAPANESE MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHY WHICH HAS BEEN APPLIED IN PRACTICE SINCE
THE EARLY 1970S IN MANY JAPANESE MANUFACTURING ORGANISATIONS. IT WAS FIRST
DEVELOPED AND PERFECTED WITHIN THE TOYOTA MANUFACTURING PLANTS BY TAIICHI
OHNO AS A MEANS OF MEETING CONSUMER DEMANDS WITH MINIMUM DELAYS . TAIICHI
OHNO IS FREQUENTLY REFERRED TO AS THE FATHER OF JIT.
TOYOTA REALISED THAT JIT WOULD ONLY BE SUCCESSFUL IF EVERY INDIVIDUAL WITHIN THE
ORGANISATION WAS INVOLVED AND COMMITTED TO IT, IF THE PLANT AND PROCESSES WERE
ARRANGED FOR MAXIMUM OUTPUT AND EFFICIENCY, AND IF QUALITY AND PRODUCTION
PROGRAMS WERE SCHEDULED TO MEET DEMANDS EXACTLY.

2. SEVEN WASTES
JIT ALWAYS INSISTED ON ELIMINATION OF WASTES. SHIGCO SHINGO, A JAPANESE JIT
AUTHORITY IDENTIFIES 7 WASTES. TO HIM BY ATTENDING TO THESE WASTE, THE
IMPROVEMENT IS ACHIEVED. THOSE 7 KINDS OF WASTAGES ARE:
1. WASTE OF STOCKS.
2. WASTE OF WAITING.
3. WASTE OF PROCESSING.
4. WASTE OF DEFECTIVE PRODUCTION.
5. WASTE OF OVER PRODUCTION.
6. WASTE OF MOTION.
7. WASTE OF TRANSPORTATION.
KEY ELEMENTS OF JIT
1. TO HAVE A FLEXIBLE WORKFORCE CAPABLE OF USING MULTIPLE SKILLS.
2. INSIST FOR DEFECT FREE MATERIALS & SUPPLIES BE DELIVERED WHEN NEEDED.
3. STRIVES FOR REDUCED SET-UP TIMES & SMALL LOT SIZES.
4. THERE SHOULD BE RELIABLE VENDORS, EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT & CO-OPERATION
WITH TOTAL PRODUCTIVE MAINTENANCE.
AS A CONCEPT JIT MEANS THAT, VIRTUALLY NO INVENTORIES ARE HELD AT ANY STAGE OF
PRODUCTION AND THAT THE EXACT NUMBER OF UNITS ARE BROUGHT TO EACH SUCCESSIVE
STAGES OF PRODUCTION AT THE RIGHT TIME.
THAT’S WHY THE JIT CONCCEPT IS OTHERWISE KNOWN AS : ZIPS (ZERO INVENTORY
PRODUCTION SYSTEM), ZIN (ZERO INVENTORIES), MAN ( MATERIALS AS NEEDED), NOT (NICK
OF TIME).

3. BENEFITS OF JIT
• PRODUCT COST: THE COST OF PRODUCTION IS GREATLY REDUCED DUE TO REDUCTION
OF MANUFACTURING CYCLE TIME, REDUCTION OF WASTES & ELIMINATION OF NON-
VALUE ADDED OPERATIONS.
• QUALITY: QUALITY IS IMPROVED BECAUSE OF CONTINIOUS QUALITY IMPROVEMENT
PROGRAMMES.
• DESIGN: DUE TO QUICK RESPONSE OF TECHNICAL CHANGE, ALTERNATIVE DESIGNS CAN
BE QUICKLY BROUGHT ON THE SHOP FLOOR.
• PRODUCTIVITY IMPROVE MENT: UNDER JIT SYSTEM SUPPLIERS SUPPLIES HIGH
QUALITY MATERIALS AND THE USE OF AUTOMATED ROBOTICS WITH PREVENTIVE
INTENSIVE MAINTENANCE PROGRAMMES, WHICH PREVENTS MACHINARY
BREAKDOWNS ETC. ENSURES HIGH & PERFECT PRODUCT QUALITY.
• HIGH FLEXIBILITY: IN JIT WORKERS ARE MULTI- SKILLED AND EMPHASISES ON ZERO
DEFECT BEFORE THEY ARE PASSED TO THE NEXT OPERATION, HENCE PRODUCTION
OPERATION BECOMES MORE FLEXIBLE.
DISADVANTAGES OF JIT
• JIT REQUIRES SPECIAL TRAININGS WITH REORGANISATIONS OF POLICIES AND
PROCEDURE.
• RESISTANCE TO CHANGE: JIT INVOLVES A CHANGE THROUGH OUT THE WHOLE
ORGANISATIONS, BUT HUMAN NATURE RESISTS CHANGE.
• JIT REQUIRES MULTI-SKILLED WORKERS WITH FLEXIBILITY TO CHANGE. AND IT IS VERY
HARD TO FIND THOSE WORKERS.

4. Are Indian Companies Ready for Just-In-Time?
IN INDIA, ATTEMPTS WERE MADE TO APPLY CONCEPTS SUCH AS QUALITY CIRCLES AS EARLY
AS THE 80’S. THERE HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTS TO IMPLEMENT JIT PRINCIPLES AS WELL. THE
EXPERIENCE SO FAR SEEMS TO SUGGEST THAT PROGRESS, AS YET, HAS NOT BEEN
SATISFACTORY.THERE HAS BEEN LITTLE OR NO DOCUMENTATION OF THE EXPERIENCES OF
MANUFACTURING FIRMS THAT INITIATED THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE JIT PROGRAMMES
WITH THE RESULT THAT OTHER FIRMS ARE NOT AWARE OF THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS AND
PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH JIT PHILOSOPHY.
SEVERAL INDIAN FIRMS HAVE EITHER INITIATED STEPS TOWARDS JIT IMPLEMENTATION OR
CLAIM TO HAVE ALREADY IMPLEMENTED MANY ASPECTS OF JIT. MOST OF THE FIRMS WITH
SOME JIT EFFORTS REPORTED STARTING THEIR EFFORTS ONLY RECENTLY. THOSE WITH MAJOR
JIT PROGRAMMES HAD STARTED THEIR EFFORTS AS EARLY AS IN 1986. 22 COMPANIES HAD
UNDERTAKEN JIT EFFORTS AT THE TIME OF THE STUDY. WHILE 13 OF THEM REPORTED SOME
EFFORTS SUCH AS EXPERIMENTAL AND AD HOC MODIFICATION OF SYSTEMS, 9 REPORTED
MAJOR JIT EFFORTS IN PLACE.
THREE MOST IMPORTANT REASONS FOR EMBARKING UPON A JIT IMPLEMENTATION
PROGRAMME WERE GAINING COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN THE MARKET PLACE,
SIMPLIFYING PRODUCTION PLANNING & CONTROL, AND CURBING RISING INVENTORY
LEVELS. BUT PROXIMITY OF SUPPLIERS, STABLE PRODUCTION PLAN, OR HIGH VOLUME
REPETITIVE MANUFACTURING WERE NEVER MENTIONED AMONG THE MAIN REASONS FOR
JIT IMPLEMENTATION.
THE FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT TQM AND VENDOR DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS MUST PRECEDE
THE LAUNCH OF MAJOR JIT PROGRAMMES. MANAGERS NEED TO PRIORITISE TQM
PROGRAMMES AHEAD OF TPM. JIT AND TQM ARE CONSIDERED AS TWO SIDES OF THE SAME
COIN. WHILE JIT PROVIDES AN ORGANISATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE EXPOSURE OF WASTE
AND PROBLEMS, TQM PROGRAMMES PROVIDES AN ORGANISATIONAL FRAMEWORK TO
SOLVE THESE PROBLEMS. HENCE, IT IS IMPORTANT FOR MANAGERS TO UNDERSTAND THAT
NEITHER JIT NOR TQM CAN “STAND ALONE” IN THE LONG RUN.
INDIAN MANAGERS, THE STUDY SUGGESTS, HAVE NOT EXPLOITED THE LEAP FROGGING
EFFECT. MANY OF THESE IDEAS RELATING TO SUCCESSFUL JIT IMPLEMENTATION ARE WELL
KNOWN AND HAVE BECOME COMMON PLACE. DESPITE THIS, THEY SEEM TO TREAD THE SAME
PATH AS SOME OF THE EARLY ENTRANTS TO THIS FIELD ELSEWHERE.

5. CONCLUSION
JUST-IN-TIME METHOD IS A PHILOSOPHY, WHICH BELIEVES THAT WASTE CAN BE
ELIMINATED BY CUTTING UNNECESSARY INVENTORY AND REMOVING NON
VALUE-ADDED ACTIVITIES IN OPERATIONS. THE GOALS ARE TO PRODUCE GOODS
AND SERVICES AS SPECIFICATIONS AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT THROUGH
VALUE ADDITIONS.