Pull system

Concept

A way of controlling production in which work is started only when the next step signals demand, instead of being pushed forward by a forecast or schedule. Kanban is its best-known tool.

Description

In a pull system, an order or signal from the customer or the next process step starts the work. Nothing is made just because capacity is free. This is the opposite of a push system, where a plan or forecast releases work to the floor whether the next step is ready or not.

Pull limits work in progress, because a step stops when the buffer ahead of it is full. That makes queues short and delays visible. Typical tools are kanban cards, supermarkets of parts and fixed limits on work in progress. Pull fits repeating products with fairly steady demand. For very varied or one-off products, many plants mix both: pull where flow is stable, scheduled push where it is not.

Related topics in brief

• iFAKT GmbH · Related to · Organization
  Stuttgart-based consulting company and software specialist for Industry 4.0, founded in 2001, that helps manufacturers plan and optimize production and logistics processes; developer of the Polaris software.
• Just-in-time production · Related to · Concept
  A production principle in which parts are made and delivered only when the next step needs them, in the amount needed. It keeps stock low and is one of the two pillars of the Toyota Production System.
• Kanban · Related to · Concept
  A pull system from lean in which visual signals, often cards, tell a process when to produce or move more parts, so work in progress stays limited and production follows actual consumption.
• Work in progress (WIP) · Related to · Concept
  Work in progress is material or product that has started its production route but is not yet finished; too much WIP ties up material and space and hides problems in the flow.
• Lean management · Related to · Concept
  A management approach derived from the Toyota Production System that creates more value for customers with fewer resources by removing waste, improving flow and involving the people who do the work in continuous improvement.
• Polaris VSM · Related to · Product
  Module of iFAKT Polaris for data-based value stream mapping that models material and information flows collaboratively and makes waste and bottlenecks visible.
• Safety stock · Related to · Concept
  Extra inventory held to cover uncertainty in demand or supply, so that a delay or a spike does not stop production or delivery. It costs money, so its size is a balance.

Glossary

Experts and companies for this topic

• Mirko Peters · Microsoft MVP

Maintained by Mirko Peters (Microsoft MVP) · Last updated: 2026-11-11