Electronic Kanban as the Final Step in Lean Transformation

The Zero Stockout project implemented for Mec-Track in collaboration with Kaizen Institute

This is a successful story for two reasons. On the one hand, the customer, Mec – Track (producer of components for tractors and agricultural machinery), achieved mind-blowing performances thanks to lean consultancy and KanbanBOX implementation.

On the other hand, KanbanBOX and Kaizen Institute made a great partnership, which lead Mec – Track to those results.

Overview of Mec-Track

Mec-Track is an Italian company that is part of an American group known worldwide as a leading global manufacturer of equipment for construction and the mining sector.

A historic manufacturing company in Valsamoggia, in the Bolognese Apennines, with a second plant in Castelvetro, Modena, Mec-Track employs approximately 250 people and has been active in the market for over 50 years.

The company specializes in the production of rollers and components used in undercarriages of earthmoving machines, excavators, tractors, and mining equipment.

Operating in a highly complex and competitive production environment, Mec-Track has chosen to adopt Lean methodology as a strategic lever to improve production efficiency and make its production flows smoother and more reliable.

The Lean Transformation Project at Mec-Track

Mec – Track has two plants in Italy producing components for tractors and agricultural machinery. The company contacts Kaizen Institute because the steps in the production process are not aligned, which causes missing deadlines and daily rescheduling.

Kaizen Institute sets a five-year lean transformation process consisting of three phases:

Identify what the value is to the customer
Simplify the process to achieve this value
Incorporate any supporting technologies

They decide that the value to the customer is the delivery of quality material on time, and they move on to the next steps.

“When the whole organization takes action to achieve excellence, it can achieve amazing results.”
G. Gavioli, Senior Trainer, Kaizen Institute

Mec - Track transitions from the push approach to the pull one

Before the lean transformation, Mec – Track used the MRP to create the production plan. However, the plan was being punctually disregarded due to the anomalies in facilities and stocks.

Now, it is the other way around. The customers’ demand shapes capacity planning. Then, the first step is checking if the needed resources are available. In this way, they prevent the daily rescheduling.

Moreover, high-rotating material is put on Kanban, a lean technique to streamline the replenishment process and prevent shortages.

Lean Methodology Results on Mec - Track

Lead time decreases from 20 to 7 days
Deadline fulfillment increases by +98%
Production line output registers +8%
Set-up times are cut down with the SMED technique
Stock are reduced by 50%
The teams share problems earlier and solve them faster, avoiding cascading impacts on the next steps.

The implementation of an electronic kanban system at Mec-Track

Once the company has streamlined the processes, the ground is ready for a further step. So, they implement the technology to boost the new approach.

Kaizen Institute chooses the electronic kanban KanbanBOX because the manual kanban is no longer suitable for managing all the company’s material flows. Indeed, Mec – Track wants to extend the kanban to its suppliers. However, using a physical kanban with the supply chain is impossible. KanbanBOX, on the other hand, is made for connecting a company both with suppliers and customers.

In one and half months, the digital kanban is up and running.

Next, the process will involve integrating external suppliers and customers into the kanban system.

“KanbanBOX is the software that allows you to do what really matters in a manufacturing company, enabling you to see improvement opportunities in real time and implement them.”
Davide Mucci, Logistics Manager, Mec – Track

Mec-Track extends e-kanban to suppliers and customers

Extending electronic kanban beyond the company’s boundaries, to suppliers and customers, was a crucial step in Mec-Track’s journey.

Supplier involvement went beyond simple platform access and was carried out through a true collaborative effort: in Mec-Track’s case, suppliers were engaged from the very beginning to jointly redesign the Value Stream Map and were subsequently trained in using the software. This approach created a solid foundation for shared continuous improvement, transforming the relationship into a structured collaboration.

Thanks to the adoption of KanbanBOX by external suppliers (through a free license linked to Mec-Track’s license), the company can now collaborate with suppliers on process improvements using common, always-aligned data—eliminating wasted time chasing information from different sources. At the same time, suppliers gain greater decision-making autonomy, being able to view key information such as inventory levels at the customer site and respond quickly and intelligently.

This network logic extends beyond suppliers to include customers as well, with the goal of digitalizing and increasing transparency across the entire supply chain, strengthening coordination, responsiveness, and collaboration throughout all flows.

“At first, suppliers were intimidated by the idea of learning a new software, but when we showed them how KanbanBOX works, both via the software and the app, they realized it was really easy to use and understood the benefits they would gain.”
Davide Cavazza, Logistics Manager, Mec – Track

The Value of a Shared Data Vision

One of the most significant lessons from Mec-Track’s experience is the value of sharing information across the entire supply chain. With the transition to KanbanBOX, both the company and its suppliers work from the same data set, viewing in real time the status of consumption, inventory, and orders.

This eliminated many of the inefficiencies typical of traditional kanban systems, which relied on phone calls, emails, and manually exchanged files.

The real breakthrough was not only technological but also cultural: there is no longer debate over data reliability or who updated it last, because everyone sees the same information at the same time. This shift allowed discussions to move from “what went wrong” to “how can we improve the process.”

A particularly significant aspect is that suppliers can now view stock levels at Mec-Track, enabling them to make more informed and autonomous decisions, such as prioritizing production of critical items.

In this way, collaboration becomes concrete, based on transparency and shared responsibility, strengthening the customer-supplier relationship and making the entire supply chain more responsive and reliable.

“One of the keys to KanbanBOX’s success is definitely the real-time data sharing between customer and supplier.”
Davide Cavazza, Logistics Manager, Mec-Track

The Multiprocess Feature for Managing Internal Complexity

Within the plant, Mec-Track had to manage complex production flows composed of numerous consecutive stages. One of the main challenges was understanding whether internal lead times were being met and identifying where delays occurred.

Thanks to KanbanBOX’s Multiprocess feature, the company was able to “split” the kanban flow into multiple controlled stages, establishing intermediate monitoring points at the most critical steps of the process.

This provided a much more detailed view of material progress within the workshop without adding operational complexity for the operators.

As a result, Mec-Track shifted from a reactive, “after-the-fact” problem perception to a proactive approach, detecting deviations early and intervening before they impacted the end customer.

The simplicity with which this feature was adopted made flow control compatible with Lean philosophy, avoiding bureaucratic monitoring.

“In managing our very complex production flows, it was difficult to know if Lead Times were being respected. With the Multiprocess feature, KanbanBOX allowed us to split the kanban flow into multiple processes, so we could monitor them in much greater detail, with astonishing ease.”
Davide Cavazza, Logistics Manager, Mec-Track

The Sequencer to Digitalize Production Sequencing

Another step in the system’s evolution was the use of KanbanBOX’s Sequencer, introduced to digitally manage production sequencing on internal lines.

With the Sequencer, operators now clearly see the assigned production sequence digitally, working according to a defined and shared order. If the production sequence needs to be changed during the day, the supervisor can make the change in just a few clicks, and it is immediately reflected in real time on all devices.

This approach reduces waste, increases flexibility, and maintains a complete, up-to-date view of what is happening in the production flow.

The Sequencer thus becomes a fundamental tool for connecting planning and operations, making the actual work sequence visible and supporting operators in their daily decisions. Combined with electronic kanban and multiprocess, it contributes to creating a coherent, stable flow management system fully aligned with continuous improvement principles.

A Story of Continuous Improvement

The “Zero Stockouts” project was not an isolated initiative, but part of a continuous improvement journey that started years ago and is still evolving.

KanbanBOX was the enabling tool that allowed Mec-Track to take a leap forward, extending simplicity, transparency, and collaboration to previously hard-to-reach areas, such as the extended supply chain.

“A story of continuous improvement with high persistence”.
Giancarlo Gavioli, Senior Trainer, Kaizen Institute

The Mec-Track Case Study Presented at Lean Global Connection 2024

The Mec-Track case study was presented during the 2024 edition of the Lean Global Connection, the world’s largest online Lean event organized by the Lean Global Network, a consortium of non-profit organizations promoting Lean thinking and practice worldwide.

Presentation details (delivered by Francesco Dall’Oca, Founder of KanbanBOX):

Title: Reach the full potential of kanban in the whole supply chain with digitalization
Description: In today’s competitive manufacturing landscape, lean principles must go beyond the factory floor to include the entire supply chain. This presentation explores how digital solutions enable organizations to extend the benefits of Kanban across supplier networks and customer touchpoints. Through a case study of a high-complexity, multi-plant production environment, we demonstrate how real-time data sharing, automation, and seamless communication improve inventory management, production flow, and supplier coordination.
Video link: Available on the Lean Global Network YouTube channel