Abstract
More than 20 years ago, Toyota revolutionized the production methods in the car industry due to its flexible production system called Toyota Production System. Originally called 'Just in Time Production', this system was built on the approach created by Sakichi & Kiichiro Toyoda and Taiichi Ohno. From this process philosophy, was originated the principle of the TPS. TPS set the basis for much of the 'lean production' movement that has dominated manufacturing trends. The main purpose of lean production, what we call here a flexible production system, is to eliminate waste. Toyota defined different types of obstacles such as muda, muri and mura. By eliminating waste, flexible production enables also to eliminate inefficiency of production systems by reducing costs, improving quality and reliability and speeding up the cycle.
