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Customer Focus Jit Gained Popularity Mainly Because Of The Ability Of An ...

Customer focus JIT gained popularity mainly because of the ability of an organization to manufacture effectively to meet the market demand along with reducing the residual costs thus forging strong customer relationship as argued by S. Newell et al (2000). This makes it clear that the effectiveness of the manufacturing process in an organization is purely dependant upon the market demand and hence the control of the production to address reduced demand or change the product lines within short notice to address new market demand is a critical constraint for JIT. Since JIT can help achieve this quick response status for an organization only through the effective integration of the various elements of the manufacturing process, the constraint is in the form of HR involvement, resource availability and the supplier response to increased demand for raw materials.
From the above arguments it is clear that JIT can help achieve a streamlined status of the manufacturing process in an organization to help address the demand efficiently whilst saving residual costs associated with the storage and transit of the goods and services.

Kanban
Kanban is a widely used JIT tool that can be modelled using IT software as well as using traditional methods of product monitoring (Raymond L. Louis, 1997). Kanban was initially used by the Japanese automobile industry to meet the increasing demands whilst reducing the storage space, as the storage space was a crucial element of scarce availability in Japan (Raymond L. Louis, 1997).
Kanban is defined as
Kanban is a finished goods and components management system where the manufacturer keeps safety stock on hand at all times for each stage in the manufacturing process
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From the above it is clear that the Kanban application in an organization can be achieved with or without the use of a Kanban specific IT application. The fundamental rules with Kanban as pointed by Raymond L. Louis (1997) are discussed below.
Needs based production Kanban encourages the need-based production (i.e.) the production of the goods based on the real-time demand in the market rather than a forecast value for the future. This approach is justified as a strategic element in cases where the manufacturing of the product not only involves higher level of investment and the return on the investment is negligible with change in demand or customer interests.
Pull strategy The Kanban approach deploys a pull strategy in the supplier market whereby a manufacturing organization will order more raw materials for production only after the existing inventory is totally used. This approach not only provides the capability to utilize the shop floor effectively, but also increase the productivity and reach the market quickly thus ensuring the new product lines are available for customers in a timely fashion.