Ejefas 43 10

European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative Sciences
ISSN 1450-2275 Issue 43 (2011)
© EuroJournals, Inc. 2011
http://www.eurojournals.com/EJEFAS.htm

The Internal Lean Manufacturing Practices at the Apparel
Manufacturing Companies in Jordan

Bahjat Eid Al-jawazneh
Assistant Professor, Al-Albayt University, Faculty of Business & Finance
Department of Business Administration
Tel: 00962795938745
E-mail: jawazneh9@yahoo.com

Abstract
This study seeks to identify the extent of the practice of internal lean manufacturing at the
apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan .Five internal lean manufacturing practices
were chosen to be part of this study because of their ability to cover the internal aspect of
the lean production. These practices are, Continuous flow Production, Short Set up Time,
Statistical Process Control, Employee Involvement and Total Production Maintenance. As
a tool, a survey questionnaire was distributed for that purpose to those who occupy
managerial positions in these manufacturing companies. The study arrived at a major
finding which is; The apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan do follow the internal
lean manufacturing practices at a very high extent, except for the practice of employee
sharing which was given an almost an average rating. Therefore the researcher can
conclude that the apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan have the major potential to
compete globally and successfully by doing so.

Keywords: Lean manufacturing, internal lean, manufacturing practices Apparel industry,
Jordan

1. Introduction
Many scholars believe that, competition will continue to rise, customer needs, wants and expectations
will continue to increase and the rapid and continuous pace of new technological advancement will
intensify the competitive pressure on the organization (Bodnar & Harrison, 1991).Therefore the
apparel industry is in need of the right implementation of a management practice that leads to its
survival in this volatile global business environment. But since this particular industry is influenced
heavily by external factor such as, Fashion and trend. The apparel industry is advised to adopt a
management principle which is widely believed to be the lean concept of manufacturing. Some
researchers have even argued that as a result of global competition, organizations that are not lean will
not survive (James, 2005).
Liker (1988) claimed that the concept of lean methodology started with the Toyota Production
System (TPS).Toyota was inspired by Henry Ford. Ford may have introduced ways that motivated
Toyota to develop lean processes, but he did not implement lean processes himself. In fact, the two
terms lean methodology and TPS are used interchangeably in industry today. As a matter of fact Lean
production and lean manufacturing are two terms that refer to the same thing (Walton, 1999). Thus,
this study will introduce the two terms interchangeably.

110 European Journal of Economics, Finance And Administrative Sciences - Issue 43 (2011)

Marchwinski and Shook( 2004) , emphasized that lean production is a system for organizing
and managing product development, operations, suppliers, and customer relations that requires less
human effort, less space, less capital, less material and less time to make products with fewer defects to
precise customer desires. Compared with the previous system of mass production, the success of
implementation of any management practice mostly depends upon organizational characteristics, and
not all organizations can or should implement the same set of practices (Galbraith, 1977). In fact, Lean
is a fluid system that causes the entire organization to constantly evolve in response to the market
(Brown et al., 2006). Many researchers argue that a lean production system is an integrated
manufacturing system requiring implementation of a diverse set of manufacturing practices (e.g.
Womack and Jones, 1996).
Jones & Womack (2003) described the lean Organization as “the relentless scrutiny of every
activity along the value stream—that is, asking whether a specific activity really creates any value for
the customer”. Davis and Standard (1999) recognized it as a production philosophy, a fundamentally
different way of thinking about manufacturing. It is an entirely different way of conceptualizing the
entire production stream from raw material to finished goods and from product design to customer
service. Lean production is typically considered a fundamental program for any firm that works to
improve its manufacturing operations, by e.g. removing waste and creating a smooth production flow
(Womack and Jones, 1996).
This study aims at identifying the level of practice of internal lean production at the apparel
manufacturing companies in Jordan. As far as the researcher is concerned, no study was conducted
concerning this topic before, and this type of industry deals with products that have short life cycle and
changing customer demand. Therefore the researcher hopes that, the lean implementation can be
measured in terms of the practice of five important aspects. Applying this schema may open the door to
future researchers to work on measuring the impact of lean implementation on organizational
performance

2. Review of Related Literature and Studies
The lean production can best be characterized as a system of measures and methods. If being
implemented all together, they have the potential to bring about a lean and therefore particularly
competitive state, not only in the manufacturing division, but throughout the entire company
(Warnicke and Huser, 1995).
Balle (2005) concluded that many companies are not able to transform themselves to a lean
manufacturing organization towards creating the world-class companies. Actually the transformation
towards Lean manufacturing is filled with formidable challenges, most particularly to understand the
real essence of Lean manufacturing concept and philosophy
Anderson (2007) stated that, 'It is important to realize that Lean Production is not a successful
tool that you can apply in a company and expect success straight away. Furthermore, it is a way of
thinking. It is important to understand the concept and go the whole way in the company when
implementing it and also to work with the company’s suppliers and consumers". Thus it is evident that
LP exists at both strategic and operational levels (Hines et al, 2004). At the strategic level, the concept
helps one to understand customer value and identify the value stream. At the operational level, it is a
bundle of practices and tools that lead to the elimination of waste and force continuous improvement.
Lean manufacturing focuses on the systematic elimination of wastes from an organization’s
operations through a set of synergistic work practices to produce products and services at the rate of
demand (Womack et al., 1990; Fullerton et al., 2003; Simpson and Power, 2005; Shah and Ward,
2007). A list of bundles of lean practices includes JIT, total quality management, total preventative
maintenance, and human resource management, pull, flow, low setup, controlled processes, productive
maintenance and involved employees (McKone et al., 1999; Swink et al., 2005; Linderman et al.,
2006; Shah and Ward, 2007).


Panizzolo, (1998) divided the lean practices into six areas which are process and equipment;
Manufacturing, planning and control; human resources; product design; supplier relationships; and
customer relationships. The first four areas are grouped as internal oriented lean practices, whereas
supplier relationships and customer relationships are under external oriented lean practices.
Lowe et al. (1997) differentiated between three bundles of practices: factory practices (related
to the minimization of buffers), human resource management (HRM) practices (concerning the
encouragement of high commitment and motivation among the workforce) and work systems (related
to teamwork and the development and application of employee knowledge and skills on the shop
floor).
Baudin (1999) defined Lean Production as the pursuit of concurrent improvement in all
measures of Manufacturing performance by the elimination of waste through projects that change the
physical Organization of work on the shop floor, logistics and production control throughout the
supply Chain, and the way human effort is applied in both production and supply tasks. It must be
noted That Baudin's definition of Lean Production is as a pursuit, which is characterized with
continuous Improvement efforts, rather than as an approach.
Lean production enables an organization to quickly respond to changes by maximizing its
flexibility, and such flexibility can be achieved by promoting teamwork and participatory management.
By designing processes around customized products, small lot production, quick-low cost turnaround,
and to specification, the organization becomes more competitive and flexible. Flexibility requires lean
production to integrate the organization’s decision-making process into one single system. Flexibility
also requires organizations to respect and continuously train employees so that they are ready to
assume greater responsibility and accountability (Klier, 1993)".
The adoption of lean manufacturing can be characterized by a collective set of key factors.
These key factors encompass a broad array of practices which are believed to be critical for its
implementation. They are: scheduling, inventory, material handling, equipment, work processes,
quality, employees, layout, suppliers, customers, safety and ergonomics, product design, management
and culture, and tools and techniques (Wong et al., 2009).
Those who tried to implement the same techniques and tools used at Toyota. their attempts
were not successful (Baines, Lightfoot, Williams, and Greenough, 2006; Spear, 2004). They cited the
differences in Japanese culture to US culture as a barrier to implementation in the United States. Others
argued that it was only effective in organizations that produced high volume, high demand products
similar to those produced by Toyota. Shingo Prize (2009) implied that new and young organizations
cannot be lean organizations since stability is not established in the organizational life cycle until
maturity. Greene's (2002) study indicated a lower implementation rate for young organizations and
therefore, a prevalent perception of inappropriateness of lean in specific situations.
Lean production as a system expands the workers’ span of control, reduces inventory,
standardizes work, promotes teamwork, and efficiently utilizes the organization’s manufacturing
facility (Krafcik, 1988). JIT (lean production) concepts are a quality improvement tool, mainly because
it cuts time delay between process setups so that the trail of causal evidence does not get cluttered and
cold” (Schonberger, 1986).
Lean as a technique can be applied to all aspects of the supply chain and should be if the
maximum benefits within the organization are to be sustainably realized. The two biggest problems
with the application of lean to business processes are the perceived lack of tangible benefits and the
view that many business processes are already efficient The challenge, if we decide we want to be lean,
is whether we know enough about our ways of working, what customers of the business processes truly
value, and how our businesses operate and need to operate (Melton, 2005). The most popular type of
production among lean companies in the study of (Demeter and Matyusz, 2011), is dedicated line
product. Line production necessarily requires a smaller WIP inventory, as the product types and, thus,
components are fewer and the flow is more continuous.


Doolen and Hacker(2005) on A Review of Lean Assessment in Organizations: An Exploratory
Study of Lean Practices by Electronics Manufacturers, found that while electronic manufacturers have
implemented a broad range of lean practices, the level of implementation does vary and may be related
to economic, operational, or organizational factors.
There are scholars such as, (Cooney 2002; Katayama and Bennett 1996) contend that other
manufacturing strategies may be superior to lean under certain market conditions In particular, Cooney
asserted that market characteristics of an industrial sector should influence the type of production
strategy chosen. A push system utilizing batch production was found to be effective for automotive
component manufacturers given unstable customer demand and short-term customer relationships.
Katayama and Bennett found that some Japanese manufacturers who adopted a lean manufacturing
Strategy was faced with problems due to variations or reduction in product demand. Success associated
with lean in the 1990s was attributed to favorable market conditions in Japan and the rest of the world.
Lean production includes many practices and tools to minimize process time variability. For
example, specifying work to its smallest detail enables line balancing and, thus, more predictable
production quantities. A stringent quality assurance regimen reduces rework and results in less
variability in process time. Cross-trained employees are able to step in for absent employees without
disrupting flow, quality, and quantity of work (Monden, 1983).

3. Statement of the Problem
Jordan’s apparel manufacturers confront very challenging environment in remaining globally
competitive. Low wages are not enough to provide a competitive advantage. Speed-to-market, labor
availability and higher-value added products and services now play a far more crucial role in
determining international competitiveness. Despite of skilled labor shortages, Jordan’s most pressing
challenges relate to higher productivity costs. Such challenges if not addressed will greatly affect the
ability of manufacturers to compete in the long-term. Buyers are nowadays looking at new ways to
maintain or improve key items and this can create opportunities for stable current businesses or new
businesses for Jordanian manufacturers. Manufacturers in Jordan should focus on these items and work
to become the best option (Gonzales and Austin, 2008).
Buyers are demanding more risk sharing, lower prices and fast fashion. Fast turn around orders
today account for almost half of all orders and inventories have been reduced to a minimum, These
trends in apparel and retail business dynamics are expected to favor small countries that base their
competitive advantage on a high quality, proximity and flexibility. Jordan is one of these small
countries that must grab this opportunity by manipulating it to its own advantage (World Bank Report,
2008).
There are many managerial tools available that can help the apparel industry in Jordan in
confronting the stated above challenges. One of these tools is the lean manufacturing, which is known
to be a powerful strategic tool that can result in positive operating results for manufacturers of all sizes,
by increasing their ability to confront their competitors (Claycomb, Germain, & Droge, 1999;
Soderquist & Motwani, 1999).
Therefore, this study seeks an answer to these two questions:
1. Do the apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan practice internal lean manufacturing
in terms of their ability to keep a continuous flow production, short set up time,
statistical process control, employee involvement and Total production maintenance?
2. Are there any significant differences among the answers of respondents pertain to some
demographic profile?


4. Objective of the Study
As far as the researcher is concerned, this study is the first of its kind to explore the topic of internal
lean manufacturing at the apparel sector in Jordan. Therefore, its main objective is to find if the apparel
manufacturing companies in Jordan practice internal lean production, and if it is being practiced, what
the extent of that practice is.
The researcher is also going to find out, if there is a relationship between the respondents
profile and their answers on the construct of the study.
The paper aims at introducing academicians and researchers in Jordan to a field of research that
tackles issues related to their own business environment.
Finally, the researcher hopes that this study will encourage local scholars to dig deeper in
unexplored managerial problems, and lean manufacturing is believed to be one of them.

5. Hypothesis of the Study
The researcher is testing the following null hypothesis:
H01: The apparel manufacturing Companies in Jordan practice internal lean manufacturing at a
very low extent.
From the main Hypothesis, the researcher derived the following sub- hypotheses;
H0a: The Apparel Manufacturing Companies in Jordan do not have the ability to keep a
continuous flow production.
H0b: The Apparel Manufacturing Companies in Jordan have a long set up time.
H0c; the Apparel Manufacturing Companies in Jordan do not control their process through the
statistical methods.
H0d; the Apparel Manufacturing Companies in Jordan do not involve their employees in
decisions related to their work.
H0e; the Apparel Manufacturing Companies in Jordan do not adopt the total productive
maintenance.
H02: There is no difference among the answers of the respondents of the study pertains to their
demographic profile.

6. Research Methodology
Descriptive and analytical tools have been utilized in this study. Moreover, the importance and the
sensitivity of the topic calls for tested, credible and timely construct. Thus, the study applied the
construct, which was developed by (Shahna and Ward, 2007) to get answers of the respondents on the
internal lean production practices. Though the construct consists of ten dimensions through which Lean
production can be measured, the researcher opted to use only five dimensions that are closely related to
the internal lean manufacturing.
The researcher also consulted people from the Apparel industry and some academicians about
the suitability of the research instrument. They confirmed that, the instrument is fit for the apparel
manufacturing companies setting. Then it was translated to Arabic language and worded carefully so as
to make it easy to be understood.
The final version of the instrument consisted of two parts: The first part; covers the
demographic profile of the respondents and the second part; Includes the Internal lean manufacturing
dimensions such as , Continuous flow production, Set up time, Statistical Process Control, Employees
Involvement and Total Productive Maintenance.
Nominal scale was used to allow the respondents to answer the questions related to their
demographic profile, while Likert scale was used to allow the respondents to rate their answers on the
different Internal lean manufacturing practices, which is ranging from strongly agree as the highest
while strongly disagree as the lowest.


6.1. Population and Sample of the Study
A convenience sampling technique was utilized. The researcher distributed 140 questionnaires to
General Managers and other managers who belong to different levels in the production function in the
apparel manufacturing companies in the northern & the national capital region of Jordan. One hundred
and thirty two or (94.28%) of the questionnaires were recovered, 7 or (5%) of which were excluded for
not meeting the validation requirements, hence 125 or (about 89.3%) of the questionnaires were valid
for analysis.

6.2. Statistical Treatment
The following statistical techniques were applied in this study:
1. Descriptive analysis such as mean and standard deviation of the answered items of the study.
2. One sample t- test to test the main hypothesis of the study.
3. Analysis of variance one way ANOVA was used to test the second main hypothesis, which is
regarding the demographic profile of the respondents. In addition to that, Post Hoc Multiple
comparisons Scheffe were also used.
4. Pearson correlation was used to measure the inter-correlation between the different lean supply
practices.

6.3. The reliability Test of Variables

Table 1: The Reliability test of the internal lean manufacturing environment practices

FACTORS N of Cases N of Items Alpha
Continuous flow production 125 5 72.74%
Set up time 125 5 69.73%
Statistical process control 125 5 81.79%
Employee involvement 125 4 72.82%
Total production maintenance 125 4 76.75%
Reliability for all 74.17%

In the case of reliability test, Cronbach’s alpha was applied to measure the internal consistency
of the research instrument as shown in the table no.1. According to (Sekaran, 2005) reliability
measurement is an indication of the stability and consistency of the instrument. It shown in table no.1
that, the value of coefficient of internal consistency of the internal lean Manufacturing practices is
74.17% which is acceptable because it is generally agreed that, the value of the lower limit for
Cronbach’s alpha is 0.70, although it may be as low as 0.60 in exploratory research (Field,2006).

7. Data Presentation and Analysis
7.1. The Demographic Profile of the Respondents of the Study

Table 2: The distribution of the sample of the study

Variable Category Frequency Percentage
Male 73 58.4
Sex
Female 52 41.6
Less than 30 49 39.2
Age
30- less than 40 40 32.0

Table 2: The distribution of the sample of the study - continued

40- less than 50 24 19.2
50 & above 12 9.6
10+2 and less 20 16.0
Diploma 28 22.4
Education
Bachelor 69 55.2
Higher education 8 6.4
Executive/ general manager 12 9.6
Head of department 44 35.2
Position Production manager 32 25.6
Supervisor 8 6.4
Engineer 29 23.2
Less than 5 years 32 25.6
5- less than 10 years 57 45.6
Experience
15 years & above 24 19.2
Number of experience 5- less than 10 years 37 29.9
years in the same position 10- less than 15 years 20 16.0
Industrial company age
Large 89 71.2
Size of Industry
Medium 36 28.8
International 4 3.2
Market Orientation Local 93 74.4
Both local & international 28 22.4
Less than 60 4 3.2
60- less than 120 16 12.8
Number of employees
120- less than 240 24 19.2
240 employees & above 81 64.8
local 28 22.4
Foreigner 73 58.4
Ownership Structure
Both local & Foreigner 24 19.2
Total 125 100%

The results of data analysis as it is shown in (table2) confirm that most of the study respondents
were males with a percentage of (58.4%) which is considered fair enough in a culture that is considered
a male oriented. It is also shown that the age bracket of the respondents is less than 30 years old which
is believed to be an ideal age for occupying managerial positions especially in the lower level of
management. Most of the study respondents are bachelor degree holders with a percentage of (55.2%),
which is not surprising since Jordanians pay special attention to education. aside from that, the
positions that are being occupied depend on the level of the managerial and technical knowledge the
holders possess. Most of the respondents occupy the position of department head with a percentage of
(35.2%) and most of the respondents possess an experience between5-10 year in the company with a
percentage of (45.6%) which somehow indicates a low labor turnout due to appropriate work
environment.
The results also indicate that, most of the respondents have an experience in the same position
of less than 5 years and most of the apparel manufacturing companies that joined this study have
between 10-15 years operational experience in Jordan with a percentage of 48.8%. Thus means that the
business environment in Jordan is attractive and stable. The analysis shows also most of the apparel
manufacturing companies are of large size with a percentage of 71.2%. Moreover, their market
orientation is international with 74.4% percentage. The reason is that the employees, therefore they can


play active role in solving the jobless problem among Jordanian youth, but when it comes to the
structure of ownership most of these companies are owned by foreigners with a percentage of 58.4%.

7.2. Answering the Main Research Problem
Do the apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan practice internal lean manufacturing in terms of
their ability to keep a continuous flow production, short set up time, statistical process control,
employee involvement and Total productive maintenance?

Table 3: Descriptive Statistics for The practices of internal Lean manufacturing

FACTORS N Mean Std. Dev.
Continuous flow production 125 4.31 .501
Set up time 125 4.10 .535
Statistical process control 125 3.90 .649
Employee involvement 125 3.61 .708
Total productive maintenance 125 3.64 .931
Total average 3.912

For the sake of making initial judgment based on the results shown in Table (3), it is obvious
that the apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan do practice internal lean production at a high
extent scoring a total average of (3.912). However, the score is not very high but it is considered very
good taking into consideration the business environment in Jordan. This finding somehow supports the
finding of (Doolen and Hacker, 2005) that concluded; the level of implementation of lean production
does vary and may be related to economic, operational, or organizational factors. On the contrary, it
collides with the conclusion of (Greene, 2002) which indicates a lower implementation rate for young
organizations.
Going to more detailed analysis, table (3) shows that the highest average among these Practices
are: the Continuous flow production, which got a rating of (4.31), followed by Set up time got a rating
of (4.10) then Statistical process control rated (3.9) and the lowest were Employee involvement (3.61)
and the Total production maintenance (3.64) which are according to our scale at the medium level.

7.3. Testing the Research First Main Hypothesis
The statistical analysis of the research hypothesis shows that the first, the second, the third, the fourth
and the fifth sub-hypothesis were rejected .Their t- values ( 29.116, 23.013, 15.509, 9.725, 7.756)
consecutively, are more than the tabulated value of 1.96, and under the significance level of (œ ≤.05) as
shown in the placed tables at the end of the paper . Therefore, all the alternative sub hypotheses is
accepted, thus, the apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan do practice internal lean production.
A closer eye- look at the results of the statistical analysis of the study shows that, the apparel
manufacturing companies in Jordan have a continuous flow production manifested by a high total
average of 4.31. Therefore, most of the answers of the respondents agreed on the fact that, the apparel
manufacturing companies classify products into groups according to their processing and routing
requirements. Families of products determine the factory layout, and pace of production directly linked
to customer demand as shown in table 4.

Table 4: Sub-problem no.1

Q Continuous flow production N Mean Std. Deviation Rank
Products are classified into groups with similar
1 125 4.50 .577 1
processing requirements
Products are classified into groups with similar routing
2 125 4.21 .838 4
requirements

Table 4: Sub-problem no.1 - continued

Equipment is grouped to produce a continuous flow of
3 125 4.28 .643 2
families of products
4 Families of products determine our factory layout 125 4.24 .767 3
Pace of production is directly linked with the rate of
5 125 4.28 .771 2
customer demand
Total average 4.31

Table 5: One-Sample Test for sub-hypothesis no.1

Internal Lean manufacturing Sig. (2- Mean 95%Confidence Interval of
t do
practice tailed) Difference the Difference
Lower Upper
Continuous flow production 29.116 124 0.00 1.3072
1.2183 1.3961
≤.05 Test Value α = 3

Sub- problem no.2 questioned dealing with setup practice because proper set up time reflects
positively on cost. This aspect scored a high response rate with an average of (4.1). Most of them
agreed that they work to lower setup times in their plants to gain more benefits. They even practice
setup time to reduce the time required for that. In spite of that, the respondents believe that short supply
lead times help responding quickly to customer requests. Detailed findings are in table no. 6


No
Set up time N Std. Deviation Mean Rank
.
1 Our employees practice setups to reduce the time required 125 .773 4.15 2
2 We are working to lower setup times in our plant 125 .550 4.38 1
3 We have low set up times of equipment in our plant 125 .866 3.96 4
Short production cycle times facilitate responding quickly
4 125 .896 3.93 5
to customer requests
Short supply lead times help responding quickly to
5 125 .849 4.08 3
customer requests
Total average 4.102

Table 7: One-Sample Test for sub hypothesis no.2

Internal Lean Mean 95%Confidence Interval
t df Sig. (2-tailed) (upper)
manufacturing practice Difference of the Difference(lower)
Set up time 23.013 124 0.00 1.102 1.007 1.197
Test Value 3 ≤0.05α

As shown in Table (8), the statistical process control practice got an average of (3.9), but the
item "Large number of equipment / processes on shop floor is currently under extensive use of
statistical techniques to reduce process variance" got the highest rating, which is normal in an industry
that serves huge markets that demand big production volume. The lowest was "We use fishbone type
diagrams to identify causes of quality problems" with a rating of (3.7) .This shows that the
manufacturers give moderate attention to cause and effect method of quality control.


Q Statistical process control N Mean Std. Deviation Rank
Large number of equipment / processes on shop floor are
1 currently under Extensive use of statistical techniques to 125 4.01 .723 2
reduce process variance

Table 8: Sub-problem no.3 - continued

Charts showing defect rates are used as tools on the shop-
2 125 3.88 .867 3
floor
We use fishbone type diagrams to identify causes of quality
3 125 3.70 .813 5
problems
4 We conduct process capability studies before product launch 125 3.85 .814 4
Large number of equipment / processes on shop floor are
5 currently under Extensive use of statistical techniques to 125 4.06 1.02 1
reduce process variance
Total average 3.90

Table 9: One-Sample Test for the third sub hypothesis

95%Confidence
Internal Lean Sig. Mean
t df Interval of the (upper)
manufacturing practice (2-tailed) Difference
Difference (Lower)
Statistical process control 15.509 124 0.00 .9008 .7858 1.0158
≤.05 Test Value = 3α

Moving sub-problem no.4 the analysis illustrates that the total average for employee
involvement practice is (3.61) representing a moderate response rate. The item "Shop-floor employees
lead product/process improvement efforts", scored the highest rating of 3.75, followed by," Shop-floor
employees are key to problem solving teams" with an average of (3.74). The lowest in rating was the
item "Shop-floor employees undergo cross functional training" which was about (3.25). This could be
seen as pessimistic indicator since employee involvement in the decision making process is a
competitive strategy for any company that seeks survival and success.
Table (12) shows that the overall average of all the items related to the fifth sub- problem
concerning the total productive maintenance, is (3.64), which is considered a slightly above average
response rate. The highest rating went to item number (3) which is; we maintain excellent records of all
equipment maintenance related activities with a response rating of 4.18. The lowest average went to the
query related to" We post equipment maintenance records on shop floor for active sharing with
employees "with an average of (3). This finding is related to the practice of employee involvement
since the culture of sharing is not prevalent at high level in the apparel manufacturing companies.


Q Employee involvement
N Mean Std. Dev. Rank
.
1 Shop-floor employees are key to problem solving teams 125 3.74 .897 2
2 Shop-floor employees drive suggestion programs 125 3.72 .848 3
3 Shop-floor employees lead product/process improvement efforts 125 3.75 1.06 1
4 Shop-floor employees undergo cross functional training 125 3.25 .989 4
Total average 3.61

Table 11: One-Sample Test

Internal lean Sig. (2- Mean 95%Confidence Interval
t df (upper)
manufacturing practice tailed) Difference of the Difference (lower)
D- Employee involvement 9.725 124 0. .000 .6160 .4906 .7414


Q Std.
Total production maintenance N Mean Rank
. Deviation
1 We dedicate a portion of everyday to planned equipment
125 3.82 1.131 2
. maintenance related activities
2 We maintain all our equipment regularly 125 3.58 1.31 3
We maintain excellent records of all equipment maintenance
3 125 4.18 1.17 1
related activities
We post equipment maintenance records on shop floor for active
4 125 3.00 1.23 4
sharing with employees
Total average 3.64

Table 13. One-Sample Test

95%Confidence
Internal Lean manufacturing Sig. (2- Mean
t df Interval of the (upper)
practice tailed) Difference
Difference (lower)
Total production maintenance 7.756 124 0.000 .616 .4906 .8109
≤.05 Test Value = 3α

7.4. Testing the Second Main Null Hypothesis: there is No Significant Difference Among the
Answers of the Respondents Pertains to Their Demographic Profile
In order to prove or reject this hypothesis one way ANOVA was used as shown in table (14). That
shows there are differences among the answers of the respondents of the study pertain to their
demographic profile, because the level of significance is less than 0 .05 (.000 <.05). Thus indicates a
high difference among the answers of the of the respondents regarding the Internal lean manufacturing
practices. The F value is > 1.96 for all the practices, which implies that, workers have different
opinions regarding the internal lean practices in their respective manufacturing companies.

Table 14: Analysis of variance (ANOVA)

Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
Between Groups 23.154 60 .386 3.423 .000
Sex Within Groups 7.214 64 .113
Total 30.368 124
Between Groups 87.337 60 1.456 2.768 .000
Age Within Groups 33.655 64 .526
Total 120.992 124
Between Groups 73.224 60 1.220 5.588 .000
Education Within Groups 13.976 64 .218
Total 87.200 124
Between Groups 93.252 60 1.554 2.457 .000
Experience Within Groups 40.476 64 .632
Total 133.728 124
Between Groups 170.480 60 2.841 3.998 .000
Position Within Groups 45.488 64 .711
Total 215.968 124
Between Groups 110.321 60 1.839 4.583 .000
Number of years in
Within Groups 25.679 64 .401
the current position
Total 136.000 124
Between Groups 67.953 60 1.133 3.344 .000
Number of years of
operation
Total 89.632 124

Table 14: Analysis of variance (ANOVA) - continued

Between Groups 20.392 60 .340 3.107 .000
Type of market Within Groups 7.000 64 .109
Total 27.392 124
Between Groups 22.799 60 .380 8.583 .000
Company size Within Groups 2.833 64 .044
Total 25.632 124
Between Groups 67.758 60 1.129 3.755 .003
Number of
employees
Total 87.008 124
Between Groups 40.777 60 .680 3.920 .000
Type of ownership Within Groups 11.095 64 .173
Total 51.872 124
≤.05 α

Table 15: The correlation between the variables of the study

Continuous Statistical
Set up Employee Total production
flow process
time involvement maintenance
production control
Continuous Pearson Correlation 1 .295** -.034 -.298** -.139
flow of Sig. (2-tailed)
------ .001 .703 .001 .122
information
Set up time Pearson Correlation 1 -.069 -.146 . 296**
Sig. (2-tailed) ------ .445 .103 .001
Statistical Pearson Correlation 1 .206* .333**
process Sig. (2-tailed)
------ .021 .000
control
Employee Pearson Correlation 1 .333
involvement Sig. (2-tailed) ------ .000
Total Pearson Correlation .404**
production Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
maintenance

8. Conclusion
1. The apparel manufacturing companies in Jordan follow the internal lean manufacturing
practices at a very high extent, therefore the said companies are aware of the importance of the
role that lean manufacturing practices can play in a achieving a high performance level.
2. To keep a smooth flow of production, the apparel manufacturing companies group equipment
to produce a continuous flow of families of products. A way from that, production volume is
directly linked with rate of target market demand, then the major determinant of the plant
layout are the families of products, besides products are classified into groups with similar
processing and routing requirements.
3. Working to lower setup times in their plants is a major task for the apparel manufacturing
companies in Jordan. Believing that short production cycles and short supply lead times can
ease the responsiveness to customer demand. However, now, many workers believe that they
have low set up times of equipment through continuous practice.
4. Large number of equipment and processes on shop floor are currently under extensive use of
statistical techniques to reduce process variance through the utilization of charts showing defect
rates. They also conduct process capability studies before product launch to align process
requirements with product requirements.
5. The employee involvement in terms of being part of problem solving teams, getting the proper
cross functional training, leading the improvement efforts and driving the suggestion programs


is a slightly lower than what must be and expected but still within the statistically accepted
level.
6. The total productive maintenance is applied in the apparel manufacturing companies because
they maintain excellent records of all equipment maintenance related activities .They also
dedicate a portion of everyday to planned equipment maintenance related activities, but
maintaining their equipment regularly still away from being excellent.
7. There is some kind of difference among the answers of the respondents regarding the internal
lean manufacturing practices pertains to their demographic profile. Which is normal thing to
happen taking into consideration the characteristics of each respondent and their respective
companies.

9. Recommendations for Future Research
This study tried to find the level of the practice of the internal lean manufacturing in the apparel
industry in Jordan, which means future researches can also be conducted to examine the level of
practice in an industrial sectors that also must be lean in order to gain access to the super performance,
such as Pharmaceutical , Food, Electronics…etc.
Researchers are advised also to examine the relationship between Lean production and
competitive advantage and Lean production and organizational performance.
Future researches can also take other lean practices other than those identified by Shah and
Ward.

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