Lean Construction Ireland Annual Book of Cases 2021 7 Case 1 substantial resources and time to gather the information from each site and produce and share the information across the business.The significant amount of time taken to complete this work meant that, by the time the documents had been complete and presented to the SLT, the information was almost two weeks old.This had a significant effect on the business’s ability to make decisions and the SLT did not have the ability to be proactive with their decision-making. Decisions were, therefore, often reactive given that they were based on information that was several days or weeks old. A Kaizen event was held to address this issue using Lean principles. At this event, we discussed how we could standardise the recording of information across sites, reduce the workload in order to produce repor ts, and also make the information easier and more accessible throughout the business. Whilst there are many software packages that claim to offer solutions to these problems, when we engaged with the solution providers we found that we would need to spend significant time and effor t working with developers to make their software work as we needed, or that the software on offer did not have the flexibility to provide what we required to drill down for the business’s areas of focus and we would thus be confined to working within its limited parameters. Therefore, the decision was taken to create our own platform as this would allow us to develop a bespoke solution.While working with the developer on the design of the app, a critical consideration for us related to LeanWaste, namely Muda, Muri, and Mura.Working closely with the developer allowed us to simplify the application, thus making it extremely user-friendly and ensuring that even users with the most basic of computer skills could easily use the system and not feel overburdened (i.e. Muri) by the data collection.With a standard dataset being recorded across the business, it means everyone is working in the same way, thus removing ambiguity and potential imbalance (i.e. Mura). As only information that is needed is being requested by the app, there is no unnecessary data collection, thus eliminating waste overall (i.e. Muda). A 5S approach was applied to the T2 app.This approach was taken when it came to information requested by the app, and the order in which it would be requested, as we wanted to ensure there would be a natural flow when theT2 questions were being completed and that there would be no unnecessary questions that would be recorded in the app, thus keeping completion time to a minimum. By implementing a 5S approach to the project, we could develop a better and easier product to use, thus resulting in greater buy-in from management and site teams. Sort Remove data and information that was not needed and only keep what was needed. By doing this, the app becomes easier, quicker, and more efficient. Set in Order Arrange the questions in an easy to follow arrangement where information flows easily one step after the other. Shine Keep things clean and tidy.The app interface was kept simple to ensure a barrier-free and user-friendly approach. Standardise Establish standards and guidelines to maintain the first three S. Every site would then be recording the same KPI in the same format. Sustain Make 5S a habit.The benefits of 5S are only truly to be seen if it is maintained in the long-term.With the app able to generate beneficial real time data, users could see the benefit. Another critical aspect was that the senior management bought-in to getting their information from no other source other than via the T2 app and this was a considerable factor giving sites no choice but to adopt the app. Figure 3. Sections of theT2 app Figure 4. Data presented simply and without clutter
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