The Automation Trap: One Shop’s Hard Lesson in Lean Thinking, Ep #19

In this explosive second installment of our manufacturing audio drama, The Automation Trap, we return to the saga of Gary and his struggling shop, Iron Clunk Machining. Desperate to prove himself and catch up to his more successful rival Klaus, Gary dives headfirst into automation—but without the foundational principles that make automation work. The result? A perfect storm of waste, burnout, and broken trust.

Through vivid storytelling, the Lights Out team unpacks the brutal consequences of automating without strategy. We see veteran machinists demoted to deburring, quality control falling apart, and a lonely cobot churning out parts no one can use. The shop floor becomes a textbook case of lean gone wrong: overproduction, motion waste, inventory overflow, and worst of all—unused employee creativity.

But the story isn’t just about failure. It's a hard look at leadership missteps and the redemptive power of collaboration. When Gary finally hits rock bottom, the very competitor he resented—Klaus—offers him a lifeline and a fresh start. Along the way, we explore why lean thinking matters, what value stream mapping really looks like, and how to turn chaos into clarity.

If you’re leading a shop through automation or scaling up with tight margins, don’t miss this episode. It's raw, real, and packed with lessons you can’t afford to learn the hard way.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in...

• (0:20) Invest in your shop by investing in ProShop ERP
• (4:07) How the audience is relating to Gary’s story
• (5:23) A breakdown of lean’s eight wastes—and how they show up
• (12:13) The team recaps Gary’s struggles
• (13:54) Scene 1: The cobot goes live, but chaos erupts—flawed parts, angry employees, and mounting delays
• (19:53) Grow your top and bottom line with CLA
• (20:33) Scene 2: Deburring, quality, and morale collapse as Gary isolates his team
• (26:13) Scene 3: Gary's marriage and shop fall apart as his machine monitoring data lies
• (27:25) Scene 4: Gary misses out on hiring Sarah, who joins Lean Stream instead
• (30:11) Scene 5: Klaus offers Gary a second chance—if he’s willing to commit
• (34:12) What Gary (and the audience) can learn from pausing to evaluate the real bottlenecks
• (37:31) Scene 6: Gary begins the process of transformation—with Klaus as a mentor
• (39:13) Reflections on community, leadership, and what’s next for Gary
• (41:08) Reasons you should listen to Machine Shop Mastery

Resources & People Mentioned

• The 8 Wastes of Lean
• The Goal

Connect With Lights Out

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