Funny Video Friday - 8/29/08

It's mud slinging season again...where has all the humor in politics gone?

The good, the bad, and the...governor?



This candidate puts the bite on the opposition party...



A mudslinger for the movie "Swing vote"...



As they say in Chicago, vote early, and vote often!

Have a great weekend!

Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

The Great Household Purge update 8/27/08

This Kaizen is slowly transforming our home to a leaner and better place for everyone. Here's my latest stats:

Cash generated by selling unneeded items: $1520
Cash recovered: $71.00 (found 2 unused gift cards)

Items donated to date:

1995 Mercury Sable and auto supplies
Two bags of clothes
Several pairs of old shoes
800+ new, unused greeting cards and envelopes of all types

New stuff: Gave an old computer to my relatives and the other PC was donated.

Several computer accessories and bags, blank paper, unused keyboards, old laptops, etc.

Wow moment due to "kaizening" in our home:

We can see the back wall around our furnace once again. Also, our purging helped us discover a leaky pipe. For some time, we thought the leak was coming from the outside but our purging helped us locate it.

Possession arrow this week:
Net reduction in household waste and inventory.

Here's to murdering the muda(waste)!
Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

Quick and Easy Kaizen #5 - Tools

Quick and Easy Kaizen is an improvement that you can easily do for yourself that improves a process by improving quality, saving time, and so forth. The book, The Idea Generator, by Norm Bodek addresses quick and easy Kaizen and I have been practicing this technique at work for some time. Using the ideas from Norm's book, I have added improvements at home and here are some that have made my life better but didn't require that much time and effort to implement.


#5 Tools at the top of my toolbox.


When I got my Christmas present of a new toolbox, I wanted to organize the top layer. Not only did want the tools to be well organized, I wanted a sampling of the tools that I would use 80% of the time I went to the toolbox. So, these implements are what I would need to take out for various jobs most of the time:

I also outlined the tools for two reasons:

1) Anyone could see where the tool is to be put back in place

2) If a tool is gone, I would know immediately which one was missing.

Ever since I organized things this way, I have never lost or misplaced at tool!

Time to complete: 8 minutes to add the cardboard and make the outline

Cost: Reused cardboard, nothing.

Benefit: Reduce tool searching time, better organization.

What have you improved today?

Dan Lafever

Kaizeneer

Quick and Easy Kaizen-#4 Ewwww!

Quick and Easy Kaizen is an improvement that you can easily do for yourself that improves a process by improving quality, saving time, and so forth. The book, The Idea Generator, by Norm Bodek addresses quick and easy Kaizen and I have been practicing this technique at work for some time. Using the ideas from Norm's book, I have added improvements at home and here are some that have made my life better but didn't require that much time and effort to implement.

#4 Leaf roll up for dog poop.



Here's my bio-degradable feces quicker picker upper.

Our dog Alek is walked a couple times a day down our street. Until recently, I picked up the waste in plastic bags and discarded it in the trash but I never felt good about it. It seemed like a double waste.



Now, I can discard the nasty stuff in a big shrub area at the front of my driveway and behind my house and not worry about it. I found some trees with really big leaves so taking care of the dog waste is easy. The waste and the leaf will break down organically and nothing goes in the landfill.

Time to complete: 3o seconds to collect the leaf.

Cost: Free

Benefit: Reduce plastic use, no longer send animal waste to landfill.

What have you improved today?

Dan Lafever

Kaizeneer

Quick and Easy Kaizen-#3 Security loop

Quick and Easy Kaizen is an improvement that you can easily do for yourself that improves a process by improving quality, saving time, and so forth. The book, The Idea Generator, by Norm Bodek addresses quick and easy Kaizen and I have been practicing this technique at work for some time. Using the ideas from Norm's book, I have added improvements at home and here are some that have made my life better but didn't require that much time and effort to implement.

#3 Security loop in garage to lock up my bike in the garage.

Been biking to work this summer when the gas prices spiked at $4/gallon. I read that you should lock up your bikes at home in case of a burglary. This is a very good idea so I added a security loop in the garage to secure the two wheeler:

Time to complete: 3 minutes to install.

Materials: Reused an old pipe clamp and a screw so the cost was negligible.

Benefit: Safer and more secure bike at home. Peace of mind when on vacation.

What have you improved today?

Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

Funny Video Friday - 8/21/08

Silliness from other English speaking countries...

Political fun from Australia...



Pulling the wool over his eyes from New Zealand...



The state of mental health from Ireland...



How things really get done from South Africa...



Have a great weekend!

Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

Quick and Easy Kaizens-#1 Wallet home position

Quick and Easy Kaizen is an improvement that you can easily do for yourself that improves a process by improving quality, saving time, and so forth. The book, The Idea Generator, by Norm Bodek addresses quick and easy Kaizen and I have been practicing this technique at work for some time. Using the ideas from Norm's book, I have added improvements at home and here are some that have made my life better but didn't require that much time and effort to implement.

#1 Home position for wallet, pager, and keys.


Before: For years, my wallet has grown legs and was constantly moving around the house and I could never find it before leaving. I had the same problem with my pager and car keys and this led to blame shifting, aggravation, and great frustration.


After: My dad, a woodworker, created a rack to store my wallet, keys, and pager. This became my home position for those items and made it much easier to keep these organized:

































The effect: Wow. Much reduced stress and less time wasted looking for things. This change was simple but it has been one of the best things I have done in the last year.


Time to complete(hanging it up): 3 minutes

This is a really cool rack that my dad made and the wood is all from trees that grow on his farm. It's a family heirloom. I don't know how much time he put into it but it's a beautiful piece.

What have you improved today?

Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

Quick and Easy Kaizens-#2 CPAP position

Quick and Easy Kaizen is an improvement that you can easily do for yourself that improves a process by improving quality, saving time, and so forth. The book, The Idea Generator, by Norm Bodek addresses quick and easy Kaizen and I have been practicing this technique at work for some time. Using the ideas from Norm's book, I have added improvements at home and here are some that have made my life better but didn't require that much time and effort to implement.

#2 CPAP machine Q&E Kaizen

Before: My CPAP machine that I wear at night to prevent sleep apnea was always getting in the way of my seeing the clock. The hoses and straps always blocked my view of the time and I had to raise up and move stuff out of the way to see-it was a hassle when I was half asleep. See the picture below:

After: I simply turned the CPAP machine 90 degrees and it was easier to see the clock and easier to take the mask and hose off and lay it on top of the machine. See below:

The effect: Now it's much easier to read the clock at night and nothing is blocking my view. I sleep sounder because I don't have wake up and sit up to read the clock. Also, it's easier to lay the mask down on top in the morning.

Time to complete: 30 seconds

So simple yet I had to think about making it better. What have you improved today?

Dan Lafever

Kaizeneer

The Great Household Purge update 8/9/08

This Kaizen is slowly transforming our home to a leaner and better place for everyone. Here's my latest stats:

Cash generated by selling unneeded items: $1520

• Sold an old car, fridge, and non-working lawn index

Cash recovered: $61.00

• Found $61.00 in a money bag that I had completely forgotten about.

Items donated to date:

• 1995 Mercury Sable
• Two bags of clothes
• Several pairs of old shoes
• 300+ new, unused greeting cards of all types
• Several auto supplies for the Sable

Wow moment due to "kaizening" in our home:

• My wife was stunned and amazed when I was able to locate some of our old records in seconds.
• I was able to locate things that she was not and that shocked me since my wife has been the uber organizer...I say that with the utmost respect dear.

Possession arrow this week:

Net reduction in household waste and inventory.

I'll try to get some pictures out soon. Here's to murdering the muda!

Dan Lafever

Kaizeneer

Funny Video Friday-2008 Olympic games

Events not sanctioned by the International Olympic committee...

10 meter pit diving...



The hide and seek long jump...



WWF adolescent wrestling...





Enjoy the competition(Go USA!) and have a great weekend.



Dan Lafever

Kaizeneer

Word on the street...

"The paper holds their folded faces to the floor and every day the paper boy brings more."
Brain Damage, Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon 1973

We still take the local paper, the Indianapolis Star. Several months ago, my wife and I decided to take the Sunday paper. It’s full of coupons, articles, and especially the color comics page more commonly as known as “the funny paper” which we cannot live without. I have also found that we can reuse the funny papers as wrapping paper, pet cage liners, and other valuable uses. The Sunday paper was all we needed and anything we didn’t reuse was faithfully and righteously recycled.

Sometime along the way, we are now getting a daily paper. Neither my wife or I know why this changed. Now, papers came everyday producing the following muda(Japanese word for waste):

-It takes 1 minute and 1 second per day to bring the paper in from the end of driveway
-That results in 5.21 hours of time spent retrieving a paper every year Monday-Saturday
-I don’t read the daily paper so it goes to recycling
-Extra waste is produced because the paper is delivered in a plastic bag that needs to be recycled
-Several times the paper gets smashed by a car or soaked by rain resulting in a complete waste
-I have to add more recycling storage space for the extra papers
-I spend additional time taking the extra papers to the city recycle bin

As a result, I get a paper I don’t need, taking time that I don’t have, taking up space that I need for something else, and creates a headache that I don’t want.

My improvement today is to call the paper and stop all delivery except Sunday. I called up the Star’s subscriber services line to get this done. Here is my version of the conversation:

Kaizeneer: “I’d like to only get the Sunday paper. Please stop all deliveries except Sunday”
Star: “We can do that but we don’t have just a Sunday delivery. We have a Thursday and Sunday delivery-would you like that?”
Kaizeneer: “No, I just want Sunday. Tell the deliverer to not put a paper on my drive on Thursday”
Star: “Sir…you can just throw away the Thursday paper”
Kaizeneer: “I don’t want a paper on Thursday. I just want to have to pick it up and recycle it…”
Star: “Sir…you can just destroy it…”
Kaizeneer: “You don’t understand. I don’t want to even see it. Tell the delivery person he can give my Thursday paper to a person whom wants to trail the Star. I don’t want to take 1 minute and 1 second everyday to pick up the paper…”
Star: (laughing)

Well, I think I have reduced the waste newspaper from six days to one day a week. This improvement means will be less trees cut, less plastic to deal with, and less storage needed. As for my time, this means I can reclaim 4.785 hours a year for some better purpose…like taking a nap.

Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

It's only natural...

Some people resist change no matter how small. At my work, someone recently relayed a conversation to me between two employees. Apparently, one worker apparently made the following statement to the other:

"Why do we have to improve things all the time?"

That's a good question. Why should we strive to improve things like saving money, eliminating wasted time, simplifying tasks, and reduce waiting time? Shouldn't we be satisfied with horse and buggy, whale oil lamps, wood burning stoves, and whiskey for anesthesia?

It's hard to believe a highly intelligent person would make such a silly statement. Even animals will improve their processes. Take a look at these kaizening critters...




This animal behavior goes to show that kaizen is an organic process. At least, if you use the higher parts of your brain.

Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

Muda Monday - The seven wastes at my home

Welcome to the "Muda" Monday when I shall discuss one of the 7 wastes that affects our household. Muda is the Japanese word used to describe waste and I am learning how many valuable resources I don't use effectively. Taiichi Ohno, a pioneer of lean methods in Japan, had published a book called “Toyota Production System” in it he explained the main foundations of “lean” manufacturing. Mr. Ohno devised 7 categories which cover virtually all of the means by which manufacturing organisations waste or lose money; these have become known as “The 7 wastes”. I have adapted these to what happens at my house.

The Seven Wastes at my home are:

• Unnecessary Transport of household occupants and materials

o Too many unecessary trips outside the home, trips not optimized for efficiency, one person commuting in a multi-passenger vehicle, trips up and down stairs to transport items within the home.

• Inventories beyond the absolute minimum

o Garages full of excess junk, too many clothes resulting in time consuming garage sales, multiple items of the same type, no available closet space, too much food resulting in leftovers that aren’t eaten and spoil, too much waste generated due to high inventory of stuff.

• Motions of household members

o Looking for needed things, bending over, reaching for materials, searching for tools due to lack of organization of household items, etc.

• Waiting for the next process step.

o Waiting for shared resources to become available such as the phone, bathroom, kitchen sink, washer, dryer, car, etc.

• Overproduction ahead of demand.

o Preparing too much food resulting in uneaten leftovers, gifts that won’t be used and requires return trip to store, too many refrigerators with empty space.

• Overprocessing

o Keeping the home at the same temperature all the time, cooking food with too much energy, using too much water, gasoline, soap, coffee, detergent, etc.

• Defective processes and products

o Cooking food that will not eaten due to not following recipe, hurrying through homework that is not checked, paying bills too late resulting in late fees, overdue library book fines, bank overdrafts, video late fees, taking shortcuts that result in problems later instead of making proper home repairs.

Obviously, we can't run our home like a factory but it does open ones eyes to the squandering of precious commodities and resources. As I mentioned in a previous post, our great household purge is showing our family how much we have and in turn how much we waste. Lord willing, we will reduce our uneeded consumption, save valuable time, recover and save money, and do the things we really want to do.

Mind your muda! Don't let this happen to you...

Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer

Funny Video Friday 8/1/08

It's Fair time...

Improve your farm knowledge...



Napoleon demonstrates fair rides of old...



Cow Cashmere...



Eat some deep fried chocolate covered elephant ears and have a great weekend!


Dan Lafever
Kaizeneer