Kanban: A Just-In-Time System at Toyota Motor Corporation
In 1938, the logistics management legacy of the Toyota Motor Corporation began in central Japan with a single factory constructed on a stretch of land cleared from a red-pine forest, under the instruction of company founder, Kiichiro Toyoda (Dawson, 2004). Sixty-six years later, that plant is located in an area now referred to as Toyota City (Dawson, 2004), and the pioneering concepts developed from the Corporations first factory have withstood the test of time, appearing as the companys continuing mission statement on the current corporate website (www.toyota.com). The cornerstones of these enduring concepts include the Japanese business philosophies of kaizen (continuous improvement) and Kanban (signal) disciplines, which contribute to the overall logistical system of Just-In-Time (JIT) inventory control.
