The Role of Slack in Standardized Work in Construction: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Standardized work (SW) is a type of action-oriented procedure that sets a basis for continuous improvement in the Toyota Production System. However, the usefulness and applicability of this practice to construction is still unclear. Furthermore, while some studies have addressed the key elements of SW, the role played by the concept of slack as a fundamental element of operations design is rarely discussed in an explicit way. This is a drawback since slack resources allow for the system to cope with variability from different sources.