Toyota Production System
Basic comcept of the Toyota Production System
The Toyota Production System (TPS) is a management concept based on the Just-in-Time system and jidoka which can be loosely translated as 'automation with a human wisdom.
The Just-in-Time system derives from a comment by founder Kiichiro Toyoda: the best way to gather automotive parts is just in time. jidoka was created from the enthusiasm and practices of Sakichi Toyoda in automatic loom development. These two concepts were realized to automobile manufacturing by Taiichi Ono, a former Executive Vice President of Toyota Motor Co., Ltd.
During the late 1940s and early 1950s, the foundations of the TPS were established through repeated trial and error conducted at the Honsha Machinery Plant. In the late 1950s, the TPS was expanded to the entirety of the Honsha Plant, and implementation at all plants began in 1960. Introduction at Toyota Group companies (suppliers) began in the late 1960s. Training and study groups were conducted throughout the Toyota Group during the late 1970s and early 1980s to further expand application of TPS concepts. Activities, whereby each member organization-wide works for improvement through 'thorough implementation of the fundamentals', began in 1982 with the aim of further developing the TPS.
Starting around the late 1980s to the early 1990s, the TPS was adopted in different cultures in conjunction with Toyota's globalization, with various innovations being introduced to address long local parts procurement times. The TPS continues to address new issues in the form of the Toyota Way.
