CONWIP | AllAboutLean.com

The (True) Difference Between Push and Pull

October 14, 2022June 2, 2015 by Christoph Roser

Push Pull Illustration — Common, but misleading illustration of push and pull

One of the key differences in lean production is to use pull production rather than push production. While pretty much everyone knows (at least in theory) how to implement it using kanban, the underlying fundamental differences are a bit more fuzzy. But what exactly is the difference between push and pull? Also, what makes pull systems so superior to push systems?

It turns out that most definitions are going in the wrong direction. Even the names “push” and “pull” are actually not well suited to describe the concept. Neither are common illustrations, including the one here in the upper left.

Benefits and Flaws of CONWIP in Comparison to Kanban

March 3, 2022February 22, 2015 by Christoph Roser

CONWIP go round with different parts like roller coaster seats with people — CONWIP-go-round with different parts – like roller coaster seats with people

In my last posts I discussed the basics of CONWIP systems (Constant Work In Progress) and answered some frequently asked questions Part 1 and Part 2 on CONWIP. Overall, CONWIP is a pretty cool alternative to kanban, also establishing a pull system. It has some very valuable advantages, but it also comes with some disadvantages. In this final post of my series on CONWIP, I will shed light on some of these advantages and disadvantages, especially in comparison with kanban, but also with drum-buffer-rope.

Frequently Asked Questions on CONWIP Systems – Part 2

April 5, 2021February 15, 2015 by Christoph Roser

Roller Coaster — CONWIP-go-round with different parts – like roller coaster seats with people

In the last two posts I described the basics of a CONWIP system and started with the frequently asked questions on CONWIP, where CONWIP stands for Constant Work In Progress. However, there are some more frequently asked questions that are also important for CONWIP. These I will explain here. The next and final post of this series will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of CONWIP.

Frequently Asked Questions on CONWIP Systems – Part 1

April 5, 2021February 8, 2015 by Christoph Roser

In the last post, I started with the basics of a CONWIP system, where CONWIP stands for Constant Work In Progress. However, there are some more frequently asked questions that are also important for CONWIP. These I will explain here.

Initially, I wanted to write one quick post explaining CONWIP. However, as it happens all too often, one post turns out to be not enough. It quickly expands into multiple posts of a series in order to give you a good, well-rounded overview of the topic. Hence, the frequently asked questions will be covered in two separate posts. After that, the fourth and truly final post of this series will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of CONWIP.

Basics of CONWIP Systems (Constant Work in Progress)

April 5, 2021February 1, 2015 by Christoph Roser

Leviathan_Reactions — CONWIP -go-round with different parts – like roller coaster seats with people

There is broad agreement in industry that a pull system is in almost all cases better than a push system. The most famous way to establish a pull system is to use a kanban system. The idea of kanban is so much associated with pull production that the two terms are sometimes even used synonymously. However, there are other ways to implement pull. Another useful approach is CONWIP, standing for Constant Work In Progress and developed by Mark Spearman and Wallace Hopp in 1990. In this small series of posts, I would like to go into the details of CONWIP and its similarities to and differences from kanban. This first post will explain the basics, the next two posts will go into more details by answering some frequently asked questions, and the fourth post will discuss advantages and disadvantages of CONWIP.