Pulling the Figurative Andon Cord

So the Andon Cord is a vital part of the Toyota Production System (TPS). From what I remember correctly an Andon Cord is a physical switch you can pull whenever there is a problem on the assembly line which stops the whole assembly line and alerts the Managers about the problem. There are several benefits for doing this. Toyota believes in finding a problem as soon as possible which means not passing on the problem to the next station where it could possibly escalate into something more serious or harder to fix or detect. Pulling the andon cord and stopping the assembly line there and then allows this to happen. Another is kaizen or continuous improvement. Stopping the assembly line sure causes a loss in productivity in the short term but in the long term root causing the problem and fixing it is way better for productivity than hiding problems under the carpet until they build up and cause a catastropic failure. I also read somewhere that Toyota measured the health of a factory by the number of Andon Cord Pulls. If there were none thats suspicious because there is no way there are zero problems in the whole factory which meant the factory was hiding problems which is a serious quality and safety issue.

When I worked at Woven by Toyota even though we didnt have any assembly line we sure were still making software products and passing them onto someone else to use downstream. We had a company wide “Andon Cord” policy where anyone could pull a digital andon card if they sense a safety risk in any part of the software. In our simulator team also we practiced this philosophy strongly. If you see something off, raise it, create a ticket or slack post, get some eyes on it dont just ignore it and forget about it. With Murphys law, if that was actually a bug it is likely bug about again and next time it might have a much worse timing.

We can practice pulling a figurative Andon Cord on the personal level too. If at work or elsewhere, if you see something off definitely raise it. If you see something unsafe definitely report it to the right authorities. If you see unprofessional behavior from a co worker, communicate it to the HR. You owe to your own safety and also the well being of those around you to always equip yourself with an Andon Cord and use it responsibly.