The Obeya Room (Japanese for “big room”) is a central management space where teams visualize performance, plans, and issues to drive collaborative decision-making. Originating from the Toyota Production System, Obeya has become an essential element of Lean Management and Industry 4.0.
In today’s digital factories, the concept is evolving into the Digital Obeya Room — a virtual environment where MES, OEE, and BDE data are visualized in real time for cross-functional decision-making.
An Obeya Room serves as a control center for performance and problem-solving. It consolidates all key production and project data in one place to support fact-based management.
Typical components include:
Performance boards displaying KPIs like OEE, availability, and quality.
Process dashboards showing order progress and bottlenecks.
Problem-solving areas for root cause analysis and action tracking.
Project planning boards visualizing goals, responsibilities, and timelines.
It functions as a visual management hub, aligning teams around shared metrics and continuous improvement.
In digital manufacturing, Obeya Rooms are powered by live data:
MES provides real-time visibility into production and order status.
BDE captures manual inputs, downtime reasons, and operator notes.
OEE analytics reveal where efficiency is gained or lost.
Together, they form a Digital Obeya Room that unites shop floor and management levels with one transparent data source.
Real-time transparency – all teams work with shared, up-to-date production data.
Faster problem-solving – deviations are detected early and addressed immediately.
Improved collaboration – production, quality, and maintenance align around common goals.
Fact-based leadership – data from MES and OEE support precise performance control.
Scalable integration – combines physical meetings with digital dashboards and analytics.
A Tier-1 supplier introduced a digital Obeya Room connected to its cloud MES. Live dashboards displayed production KPIs, downtime, and quality trends.
Results:
15 % faster response to issues
12 % increase in line availability
Stronger collaboration across production and quality departments
The Obeya Room is more than a meeting concept — it is the nerve center of data-driven manufacturing leadership. By combining Lean principles with MES, BDE, and OEE insights, it transforms information into action and fosters continuous improvement across the organization.