Application of selected lean tools in an automotive sector company

Introduction/background: A special place in the development and improvement of the Lean concept is occupied by the automotive industry – the natural and primary environment of lean manufacturing. All manufacturers in the industry follow a pro-quality approach, regulated by the technical specification ISO/TS 16949, which points to Lean as the preferred form of production process management. Womack, Jones and Roos, in their book "The Machine That Changed the World", called the automotive industry an "industry of industries" pointing to the natural and primal environment for the creation, implementation and improvement of the Lean concept. Taking into account the operating conditions of modern production organizations, which force the design of production systems, and taking into account their flexibility, modularity and adaptation to specific customer needs, the application of the Lean Management concept should be stated, and especially Lean Manufacturing in relation to the current situation in the automotive industry. Lean Management is a management standard adopted in the automotive industry around the world. The essence of this concept boils down to increasing the quality of the product and raising the level of organizational culture, and individual tools are used to improve the production system. The result of the actions taken is the elimination of waste, which leads to lower production costs and improvement of the financial result. Aim of the paper: The author of this paper has analysed a selected production line functioning in the automotive sector located in the Silesian region. In order to improve the flow of materials and information, as well as to enhance the production process, selected methods of the Lean Management concept were applied. Materials and methods: The paper is an attempt to present the application of selected Lean tools (Kanban, Supermarket, Standard Operating Procedure) and it uses the observation and interview methods among company personnel. Results and conclusions: It is assumed that satisfactory results can be achieved using this method, which would certify the improvement of work organization and increase the efficiency of individual tasks.