Japanese increase output from 500 to 50000 disposable gowns using Toyota Production System methods. Note especially how seemingly minor changes such as a permanent place for the scissors (arranging, part of 5S) makes the job easier, and use of a cardboard tube to smooth out the material. Use of a light box (?) for inspections allows rapid discovery of 2 mm defects that would otherwise take much longer to find and could easily be missed. Two people doing a folding job do far more work than two people working at the same job separately because the material is kept under control.
They mention items from a “100 yen store” which is a dollar store in the U.S. as 1 yen equals about $0.01 USD. This is consistent with the low cost of items used in Shigeo Shingo case studies to implement error-proofing.
A vital takeaway is that seemingly small changes deliver enormous productivity improvements. Henry Ford told us about 100 years ago that manufacturing is a matter of small things whose effect adds up to very big things.
If we apply these ideas in the U.S. we can reduce costs, increase profits, and pay workers much higher wages.