From the viewpoint of customers One of the main tasks in a company is the continuous assessment and improvement of processes. Gira also constantly works on improvements. The methods of lean management, which have been used at Gira for some time, prove particularly effective and have already reaped positive benefits for the company. In particular, the Improvement Kata developed at Toyota, a standardised procedure for dealing with problems and challenges, produces good results. The aim is to align processes entirely with the interests of the customer and examine them from their point of view. The continuous application of this approach in our everyday work should, amongst other things, increase value creation by avoiding any kind of wastage. After all, waste is not in the customer's best interests.  This has both economic and ecological components: on the one hand costs are saved, and on the other the consumption of resources is reduced. Both are key requirements for sustainable action.

Promoting a positive attitude to change The social aspects of sustainability are also reflected in lean management. Ultimately optimisation of working conditions as well as employee training are important elements of this concept. "We want to make improving the organisation and process a permanent task," says Martin Brochhaus, Head of Internal Corporate Development. To this purpose, since 2012 a long-term project has been ongoing in which all managers and selected experts are given training in the Improvement Kata as improvers or coaches. This is not only implemented in production, but gradually also in all departments. Initial successes have, for example, already been achieved in the service centre and HR department. "Participants are shown that constant improvement is possible. As a result, they can develop a positive attitude to change and carry this through to their departments," explains Andreas Dürwald, Head of Manufacturing and Logistics. "We have therefore set the ball rolling for a major project of change," emphasises Brochhaus. "Sustainability means acting responsibly with a view to the future. This also goes hand in hand with change – after all, this is the only way to develop further. We empower people to do that."

 Employees take care of improvements themselves How this works in practical terms is shown by a number of optimisation concepts developed and implemented by Gira employees – for example the development of the so-called route train. This is a special trailer designed to help move the transport boxes from the automatic small parts warehouse [AKL] to production and at the same time considerably lower the physical strain on employees. The starting point was optimising the route for transport from the AKL to the production segments. During the necessary investigations it became apparent that the physical strain on employees unloading the transport boxes was very high, especially on their backs. Employees then collaborated to come up with a concept showing how an ergonomically optimised alternative would have to be. While searching for a solution, they worked very hard on developing a trailer prototype that would be very suitable for transporting the boxes and that makes it unnecessary to lift them. The trailer can then be pulled by a so-called pick-up train. Gira went along with the proposed improvement and is having the trailer made. From the spring of 2016, a prototype of the vehicle will be taken into operation in the assembly shop. Several of the new route trains comprising a towing vehicle and up to four trailers are planned for the Gira new building, into which the assembly shop will be moving in 2018. Fully in line with lean management principles, employees developed individual solutions during the improvement project which they successfully implemented.