Productivity improvement through lean tools in a Sri Lankan small and medium enterprise: A case study

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a crucial role in economic value creation in Sri Lanka. The SMEs need continuous improvement initiatives to clutch the competitive advantage while eliminating wastes and increasing profits. However, SMEs are reluctant to practice Lean strategies in comparison to large scale companies. Similarly, limited studies examine the vital factors for succeeding with Lean implementations in Sri Lankan SMEs. The goal of this paper is to test the effectiveness of some Lean tools, when applied in Small and Medium enterprises, particularly in the manufacturing sector. Thus this paper provides a profound case study of productivity improvement in a three-wheeler Accessory manufacturing entity in Sri Lanka. Moreover, it explicates that Lean as a system; the scale of the operation doesn't make any difference to the applicability of the system or the rate of success of the implementation, even though it matters when it comes to the investment ability. Data collection of this research included questionnaires, interviews, work measurement analysis and direct observation. Implementation of this case study was done in three separate phases; 1). Work method Improvement 2). Layout change 3). Implementing 5S. Further, this study delivers the recommendations on which Lean tool is better in which stage of the implementation process.