The Linbeck Group [ Company ]

Innovative Idea - Lean Thinking

Linbeck is one of the first firms in the country to incorporate the tenets of Lean Thinking into our planning and construction management processes. Lean has one overarching goal – to eliminate as much waste as possible from any process.

It has been estimated that a typical construction project has as much as a 40% waste factor in terms of labor. Lean Design & Construction seeks to eliminate wasted effort by:

Defining Value	actively understanding what is valuable to our clients in terms of budget, function, aesthetics, standards and time
Mapping the Value Stream	identifying the most effective sequence of activities to deliver the value defined by the client
Achieving Flow	eliminating unnecessary procedures that allow for more work to be put into place
Responding to Pull	doing work only when needed (in accordance with the Value Stream) and when it will release downstream work that will advance the overall process
Seeking Perfection	the continuous application of the four steps above

Lean may sound complicated but it is really a common sense approach. The value stream essentially serves as a road map that is created by the entire team to increase efficiency and productivity from conceptualization through construction and commissioning. By improving production and eliminating waste, the team is able to circumvent many typical challenges involving labor, time, and schedule. The bottom line is that Lean helps us deliver projects faster and more cost-effectively for our clients.

To learn more about Lean Thinking, we suggest the following reading:

Lean Thinking by James Womack and Daniel Jones
The Machine That Changed the World by James Womack, Daniel Jones and Daniel Roos
The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt