Dr. Shigeo Shingo

Shigeo Shingo Born January 8, 1909 in Saga City Japan, Mr. Shingo distinguished himself as one of the world's leading experts in improving manufacturing processes. He has been described as an "engineering genius" who assisted in the creation of, and wrote about, many of the features of the revolutionary just-in-time manufacturing methods, systems, and processes which make up the renowned Toyota Production System and related production systems.

Utah State University recognized Shingo for his lifetime work with an Honorary Doctorate in Business in 1988. The Shingo Prize Model has been developed as a "world class" model for manufacturing that incorporates much of the work of Dr. Shingo, but also incorporates best practices from other sources as well. The model, however, is not just a production model, but an overall systems model incorporating all manufacturing and business functions and processes.

Utah State University recognized Shingo for his lifetime work with an Honorary Doctorate in Business in 1988. The Shingo Prize Model has been developed as a "world class" model for manufacturing that incorporates much of the work of Dr. Shingo, but also incorporates best practices from other sources as well. The model, however, is not just a production model, but an overall systems model incorporating all manufacturing and business functions and processes.

Shingo is the author of numerous books, including A Study of the Toyota Production System; Revolution in Manufacturing: The SMED System; Zero Quality Control: Source Inspection and the Poka-yoke System; The Sayings of Shigeo Shingo: Key Strategies for Plant Improvement; Non-Stock Production: The Shingo System for Continuous Improvement; and The Shingo Production Management System: Improving Process Functions. His greatness was in his ability to understand exactly why products are manufactured the way they are, and then transform that understanding into a workable system for low-cost, high-quality production. Mr. Shingo died peacefully November 14, 1990 at the age of 81.

Dr. Shigeo Shingo at a Quick Change Conference hosted by Productivity Inc. in May 1990, Indianapolis, Indiana. It was Dr. Shingo's last visit to the United States.