The study began with the problem posed by an organisation for a group of researchers in the UK. There was a need to carry out an in-depth study to evaluate the continuous improvement programmes in the context of Lean Construction, and the following question emerged: How to evaluate the continuous improvement programme? This paper aims to understand how the literature on continuous improvement, ...

A thorough understanding of the effects of lean zones and the improvement of steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) operations with such heterogeneities is critically important for reducing the disadvantages of lean zones. The numerical model shows: (1) SAGD is most influenced by the single-layer lean zone with the above-injector (AI) location; with the decrease of interval distance and increas...

Aim. Our aim was to study how different BMI scores may influence the levels of inflammation, oxidative stress, adipogenesis, glucose, and lipid metabolism, in lean, overweight, and obese Portuguese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods. We studied 28 lean, 38 overweight, and 17 obese patients with T2DM and 20 controls (gender and age matched). The circulating levels of oxLDL, C...

Motivation Fuel lean combustion is often employed to reduce pollutant emissions (CO, NOx,...) and increase gas turbine lifetime via reduced temperature. However, lean combustion is susceptible to thermoacoustic instabilities and lean blowout (LBO). Thermoacoustic instabilities are due to the coupling of heat release to acoustic oscillations, and lead to reduced combustion efficiency and increas...

This paper considers the migration of lean process improvement methods from hospital systems to outpatient clinics. We review the strengths and weaknesses of a series of lean projects that were conducted in a community mental health center over a four-year period. We consider the evolution of the organization’s lean approaches and project results to identify areas of continuing research that ap...

PURPOSE The purpose of this article is to discuss lean as a learning system in a hospital ward. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH Discusses lean as a learning system in a hospital ward. FINDINGS The Toyota veterans are fond of saying, lean is about "making people before making parts" or, in the wards' context, developing nurses before delivering care. ORIGINALITY/VALUE This example in using lea...

Discrete-event simulation (DES) and lean are approaches that have a similar motivation: improvement of processes and service delivery. Both are being used to help improve the delivery of healthcare, but rarely are they used together. This paper explores from a theoretical and an empirical perspective the potential complementary roles of DES and lean in healthcare. The aim is to increase the imp...

Body composition, fat distribution and bone mineral density were examined in lean women suffering from polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and compared with body composition and fat distribution characteristics of weight-matched lean controls. Ten women with PCOS and a body mass index (BMI) below 25.00 (kg/m(2)) and 10 healthy women with a BMI below 25.00 (kg/m(2)) matched for age and weight and B...