Lean Academy

The LAI Lean Academy course is a one-week, intensive, hands-on learning experience that introduces lean principles.  It is ideally used in conjunction with an opportunity for "real world" applications, such as a co-op, internship, or first job assignment. The course combines and melds theory, lectures, application through hand-on simulations, case studies, individual and team active learning, anecdotal evidence, and real world examples into a coherent learning experience.

Initially targeted at undergraduate students nearing graduation, the LAI Lean Academy is also an excellent opportunity for graduate students, new hires, or lean neophytes. A typical LAI Lean Academy course is held in early summer for 25-30 summer interns. The faculty is a carefully selected mix of trained academics from major universities and experienced lean trainers and practitioners from industry. Academy logistics are supported by the host organization aided by a professional staff working out of MDC and the Lean Aerospace Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

MDC is under contract from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Lean Aerospace Initiative (LAI) to organize all Lean Academy events.  This work includes helping match sponsor companies and local academic participants with qualified instructors and facilitators and assuring that sponsor facilities and capabilities can support the Lean Academy.  MDC special projects engineers also create locally customized agendas for the meetings, coordinate with the instructors and facilitators to support the agendas, and other work necessary to assure successful events.  MDC serves as the administrators for the Lean Academy events including handling registration, budgets, materials organization and coordinating shipping for the events.  This includes materials for the Lean Enterprise Value Manufacturing Simulation in the events.  Lastly, MDC organizes of workshops to improve and propagate the Lean Academy twice a year