A manufacturing company produces several final products at one facility. The production manager wants to implement lean principles to improve production efficiency. Which strategy should the manager use for this facility?

Maintaining a higher inventory contradicts lean principles, as it leads to increased holding costs and the risk of excess stock. Lean practices advocate for minimizing inventory levels to reduce waste and enhance efficiency, making this strategy counterproductive.

Producing large batches of a single product before switching can result in significant waiting times and idle resources, which are inefficient. Lean principles promote continuous flow and smaller batch sizes to better respond to changing demands, thereby improving overall efficiency.

While maximizing machine capacity may seem beneficial, it can lead to overproduction and increased lead times, which are contrary to lean strategies. Lean production emphasizes the importance of maintaining flexibility and aligning production with demand rather than simply maximizing output.