Kanban
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A card containing a set of manufacturing specifications and requirements, used to regulate the supply of components. countable
"The sub-assembly line assembles A. It goes to processing line 1 to withdraw part a, and for this purpose it must take the sub-assembly kanban (called withdrawal kanban). It goes to store a, withdraws boxes in the required quantity and removes those kanban (called in-process kanban or production-ordering kanban) that are attached to the boxes."
- 2 Alternative letter-case form of kanban. alt-of, countable, uncountable
- 3 A coordinated manufacturing system using such cards. countable, uncountable
"However, since so many Japanese industries have adopted Kanban, this problem is diminishing."
- 4 A system to manage, visualise, and improve work across teams, often as part of an agile methodology. broadly, countable, uncountable
"kanban board"
Example
More examples"The sub-assembly line assembles A. It goes to processing line 1 to withdraw part a, and for this purpose it must take the sub-assembly kanban (called withdrawal kanban). It goes to store a, withdraws boxes in the required quantity and removes those kanban (called in-process kanban or production-ordering kanban) that are attached to the boxes."
Etymology
From Japanese 看板 (かんばん, kanban), from 看 (kan, “visible”) + 板 (“board or card”), developed and first used in the Toyota Production System.
Related phrases
More for "kanban"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.