When I was first given the job of managing a small plastics factory back in 1989, I quickly realized that most of the books and teaching on Lean Manufacturing were designed for big companies and were not relevant to my factory.
-Tim Mclean

The last 25 years has seen Tim lead and assist over 100 small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) manufacturing operations. This experience has now been condensed in to Grow Your Factory, Grow your Profits: Lean for Small and Medium-Sized Manufacturing Enterprises, a start-to-finish guide on how to run a successful small and medium-sized manufacturing operation.

The book presents case studies, practical examples, illustrations, charts, and pictures from real SME manufacturers to provide straightforward solutions to the issues facing every growing manufacturing business. In the book, Tim McLean explains:

• How to recruit the right people and design the right organization
• How to empower those people to take accountability and free yourself up from day to day "fire fighting"
• How to develop a Lean Plant Layout that will maximize productivity and optimize the use of space
• How to manage materials in order to slash inventory and shortages
• How to schedule production in order to cut lead times, cut inventory, and delight customers
• How to get started on a Lean transformation when you lack the resources of a big company

The book details how SMEs differ from large organizations and why the approach to improvement must also be different. Covering the complete life cycle of small and medium-sized manufacturers, the book addresses a different SME manufacturing issue in each chapter. This enables readers to tackle issues at their own pace and in their own order of priority.

Grow Your Factory, Grow Your Profits is essential reading for owners, managers, and operational leaders in the 90 percent of manufacturing enterprises that are small or medium sized.

Tim McLean is the founder and managing director of TXM, one of the Asia Pacific's leading Lean consulting companies. Tim was first introduced to Lean and Operational Excellence in the late 1980s as a young production manager of a small plastics extrusion plant, part of German global chemical manufacturer, Hoechst AG. Tim went on to lead a range of medium-sized manufacturing plants across the plastics molding, packaging, printing, and chemical industries for major companies, including Hoechst AG, Amcor, and PPG. Tim was fortunate to be coached by a succession of mentors steeped in the principles of Lean. As an operations manager and general manager, Tim then faced the real challenge of applying these theories to drive performance in his plants. After a successful 16-year career leading manufacturing operations, Tim turned down a transfer to Europe in order to set up TXM, a consulting business in Australia aimed at helping other manufacturing leaders like himself achieve their goals. TXM has since grown to be one of the leaders in Lean in Asia and the Pacific, operating from offices in Australia and China and carrying out projects with small, medium, and large manufacturers throughout the region. In line with Tim's experience and values, TXM has developed a reputation for delivering practical outcomes for manufacturers, especially SMEs. It is this experience that Tim has drawn on in writing Grow Your Factory, Grow Your Profits.

Tim and TXM have an extensive network throughout the Asia Pacific region, and Tim is a frequent speaker at industry events, including the Association for Manufacturing Excellence Conferences, Lean Enterprise China, the International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineers, Australian Manufacturing Week, and many more. TXM has a weekly blog (www.txm.com.au/blog) to which Tim is a major contributor, and Tim's quarterly e-newsletter goes out to more than 2,000 manufacturing leaders around the region (www.txm.com.au/resources/newsletters ).

Tim also provides articles to a wide range of manufacturing industry publications, including Australian Manufacturing Technology, Manufacturers Monthly, Australia-China Connections, China Sourcer Magazine, etc. Examples of these articles can be found at www.txm.com.au/resources/articles.

Tim and TXM have a strong social media presence, primarily on LinkedIn, with over 1,000 connections, three groups (Australian Manufacturing Futures, Total Excellence Manufacturing, and Lean Support China), and regular and popular contributions to Lean interest groups across the globe. TXM also actively promotes its content via Twitter, Facebook, and a YouTube Channel (TXMLeanVideo).