Sustainability of the Brazil more productive program in the state of São Paulo

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the sustainability of Lean Manufacturing initiatives implemented in small and medium-sized companies in the state of São Paulo conducted by the Brazil More Productive Program. The article proposes through the Theory of Organizational Knowledge Creation developed by Nonaka and Takeuchi a sustainability assessment model in the implementation of Lean Manufacturing, which is a challenge for companies that adopt the methodology in their production process. The method used for the analysis of the companies served by the program was through quantitative descriptive research. Based on bibliographic research on Lean Manufacturing, methodology implemented during the program, and on the Theory of Organizational Knowledge Creation, which covers the explicit and tacit knowledge important base of the Lean Manufacturing, a questionnaire was prepared with the purpose of analyzing the behavior of companies after participation in the program in relation to the sustainability of the initiatives. The answers from the companies with low continuity of the initiatives showed that tacit knowledge obtained a significantly lower result compared to explicit knowledge, mainly in the category of motivation and involvement of the people, requiring interference aimed at strengthening them to ensure sustainability of the initiatives implemented.