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Moonshine

'Moonshine' is a Japanese lean manufacturing philosophy that seeks innovative methods for improvements such as decreasing cost and time. A Western early adopter is Boeing.

• It emphasizes creative use of available materials, scrounging and 'doing a lot with a little'.
• Experimentation is encouraged, with all kinds of simulation, prototyping and using trials to explore and inspire. This has been called 'try-storming'.
• Getting out of the immediate worksite, talking with others and watching what they do is encouraged.
• Leaders enable but do not direct (to encourage individual creativity and learning).
• There is deliberately little structure, again, to encourage creativity.

It is named after the thought of working late at night on the idea, under the real 'moonshine'.

Moonshine is also the name given to a strong home-made distilled alcoholic drink. This is not what is meant here.

See also:

Lean systems

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