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The Well-Being of Workers in Lean Manufacturing Work Environments

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Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing: Establishing Bridges for More Sustainable Manufacturing Systems (FAIM 2023)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Mechanical Engineering ((LNME))

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Abstract

Lean philosophy has been widely introduced in many manufacturing and service industries, allowing for increased operational gains and creating a relationship between the work environment and the workers’ well-being. This study aims to understand the relationship between Lean and workers' well-being on a shop floor. A questionnaire based on the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model was conducted in an industrial company in Brazil, and a total of 165 responses were collected. Through an exploratory factor analysis (EFA), eight factors were identified (soft Lean practices, Lean training, the pace of work, small group problem solving, interdependencies, problem-solving work demands, engagement and exhaustion). Posteriorly, a cluster analysis allowed us to identify 3 distinct groups in the sample, cluster 1 – includes those employees with a high level of engagement and exhaustion: cluster 2 – employees with a moderate level of engagement and exhaustion; and cluster 3 – employees with a low level of engagement and exhaustion. Additionally, using multiple linear regression analysis, it can be concluded that soft Lean practices (0.46) and the pace of work (−0.23) are the variables that most influence the engagement, and the same can be observed regarding exhaustion, where soft Lean practices (−0.36) and pace of work (0.40) also present statistically significant results.

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Acknowledgments

This research is sponsored by national funds through FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia–, under the project UIDB/00285/2020.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Tomaz Calcerano

  2. Univ Coimbra, CEMMPRE, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Coimbra, Portugal

    Luís Miguel D. F. Ferreira

  3. Faculty of Economics, University of Coimbra, CeBER, Coimbra, Portugal

    Ana Pinto

Authors
  1. Tomaz Calcerano
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  2. Luís Miguel D. F. Ferreira
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  3. Ana Pinto
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Luís Miguel D. F. Ferreira .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, ISEP – School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Francisco J. G. Silva

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, ISEP – School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Luís Pinto Ferreira

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, ISEP – School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    José Carlos Sá

  4. Department of Mechanical Engineering, ISEP – School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Maria Teresa Pereira

  5. Department of Mathematics, ISEP – School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Carla M. A. Pinto

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Calcerano, T., Ferreira, L.M.D.F., Pinto, A. (2024). The Well-Being of Workers in Lean Manufacturing Work Environments. In: Silva, F.J.G., Ferreira, L.P., Sá, J.C., Pereira, M.T., Pinto, C.M.A. (eds) Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing: Establishing Bridges for More Sustainable Manufacturing Systems. FAIM 2023. Lecture Notes in Mechanical Engineering. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38165-2_90

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38165-2_90

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-38164-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-38165-2

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