Lean production, value chain and sustainability in precast concrete factory – a case study in Singapore

Research Question: Is the lean production philosophy applicable in precast concrete factories to achieve sustainability? If it is, what are the imperfections that can be improved to achieve sustainability? Purpose: This study aims to identify the contribution of the lean concept to achieve sustainability in precast concrete factories. By using appropriate lean principles, the precast concrete industry can move closer towards sustainability. Research Method: Quantitative assessment of each non-value adding activity is provided. Qualitative descriptions are provided for activities that cannot be assessed quantitatively. Findings: The results indicate that the value chain in precast concrete factories has the potential to improve. Carbon emissions can be reduced in precast concrete factories to achieve low-carbon production. Limitations: Precast concrete products are investigated in this study, which may limit the applicability of this study to other construction materials. Further researches are suggested. Implications: The lean production philosophy has practical contributions to sustainable development, which can be adopted by precasters to achieve better performance in some sustainability factors, such as energy consumption, carbon emissions as well as production efficiency. Value for practitioners: By eliminating the non-value adding activities identified in this study, precasters can achieve more environment-friendly and efficient production. In addition, regulatory bodies may initiate a lean benchmark for the precasters to identify how efficient current production is, as well as for the consumers to choose truly environment-friendly construction materials.