Case in Point: Leading Business Transformation the “Lean” Way

Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is a systematic, rigorous methodology that uses metrics and analysis to drive continuous improvement of an organization’s processes, practices, and performance. The ultimate goal of LSS is to meet or exceed stakeholder expectations through data-driven decision making and optimized Business Capabilities.
Like thousands of major corporations and businesses worldwide, the Defense Department is realizing many important benefits in better serving customers through the disciplined application of LSS. Because of LSS’s effectiveness in achieving cultural and organizational change, DoD Enterprise-level executives and managers will engage in comprehensive LSS training, over the next 18 months, toward achieving Black Belt certification, the master level of knowledge and skill for business process improvement.
The Services were among the first to embrace lean management concepts, and a few examples of how LSS is driving Defense business transformation are provided below.

• Since it began employing LSS, the Department of the Navy (DON) has completed 1,700 Black Belt/Green Belt projects and over 2,000 Kaizen events (i.e., action-oriented events designed to improve existing processes). Initial projects were designed to build confidence and gain momentum for success in high-impact core business value streams. The DON’s total of 3,399 trained LSS Green Belts exceeds the Secretary’s goal of 2,000 by the end of 2006, and of the 935 trained LSS Black Belts in the DON, 93 have attained American Society for Quality (ASQ) Black Belt certification.
• Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) joined with Raytheon to complete an LSS project, which ultimately saved $133.5M across the 2006 FYDP and $421M over the life of the Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) Block II program. The integrated product team developed a three-tier approach to reducing weapon unit cost over a two-year period. Success of the JSOW program has led to development of a follow-on Block III weapon system.
• The Marine Corps is applying LSS concepts, analytic techniques, and tools to improve the process for identifying, evaluating and acquiring critically needed warfighting equipment. Initial analysis focused on the evaluation stage, where improvements reduced the time required for this step by 35% – from 131 days to 85 days – and identified savings valued at $135K per year.
• The first LSS initiative for Army aviation scheduled maintenance was deemed a success and signals a more efficient future for maintaining the Fort Rucker helicopter fleet. More than 32 days of scheduled maintenance were saved during the first LSS effort for Aviation Unit Maintenance involving UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter scheduled maintenance. The first helicopter inducted into the newly developed process was returned to flying status in just 18 days, which included a four-day break for the Fourth of July weekend. That is a 67% improvement in phase flow efficiency from the previous average time of more than 50 days of phase cycle maintenance for the UH-60.
• The application of LSS to the purchase of C-17 aircraft reduced the time it took to award a contract to 10 months from 20 months. The Warner Robins Air Logistics Center in Georgia recently won the Shingo Gold Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing, named after a Japanese lean leader, after it used lean principles to reduce repair times for C-5 aircraft to an average of 210 days from 390 days.
• An LSS Kaizen event for the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) program, focused on reducing labor charges and improving the flow of parts for EFV repair during system design and demonstration without adversely affecting tests. This event resulted in a 55% reduction in process time without transferring unnecessary work to other entities. Additionally, the event showed a potential to reduce the contractor staff by two, resulting in a savings of approximately $300K per year.