The effect of Kaizen practices and principles on manufacturing process improvements of aerospace companies

The purpose of this dissertation was to provide an insight into the effect of Kaizen techniques and practices on the manufacturing processes of aerospace companies. A case study involving three different divisions of United Technologies Corporation (UTC) provided a solid ground for this research. The researcher also surveyed 124 operations managers of aerospace companies using a questionnaire. The survey included demographics and addressed the relationship between Kaizen practices and process improvement, upper management commitment, and training and education of the workforce.; The literature review provided a definition of the Kaizen philosophy and identified the tools and factors that encompass a Kaizen approach. The case study explored how UTC incorporated Kaizen principles to produce change and implement improvements. Through the survey of aerospace companies, it was the intent of the study to support the validity of the conclusions and hypotheses. That was achieved by testing the hypotheses using a t-distribution statistic. The survey also measured the relationship between the variables through use of cross-tabulation tables and correlation analysis.; The focus of the study was on the proven results of a Kaizen approach to improvement and its contribution to the betterment of the firm's manufacturing processes.