Characterization of the production processes of textile SMEs in Cundinamarca

The aim of this research is to characterize the production processes of textile SMEs in Cundinamarca, based on the use of Lean Manufacturing tools. To select the companies to participate in the study, a non-probabilistic sample was applied for convenience, and only 31 were selected, who finally decided to participate in the study.These provided the necessary information to know their status, from the three fundamental pillars of Lean philosophy: Kaizen, Jidoka, and Just in Time. The information was collected by applying a 24-question instrument: the first 5 questions were general information about the companies and the remaining 19 were selection questions. A Likert scale was also used. The questionnaire was sent in an email, and Google form was used to tabulate the data. The results obtained suggest, on the basis of the 31 companies surveyed, that SMEs strive to achieve operational excellence; however, there are great opportunities for improvement in terms of production, waste and quality control, which can be achieved through appropriate knowledge transfer.