Definition
A withdrawal kanban is a card that authorizes the movement of a specific part in a specific quantity from a supermarket or upstream storage location to a downstream process that needs it. It is the counterpart to the production instruction kanban. While the production kanban authorizes making, the withdrawal kanban authorizes moving. Together, the two types form the complete kanban loop that implements pull in the Toyota Production System.
Japanese Origin
Hikitori kanban (引き取りかんばん) uses 引き取り (hikitori), meaning “to take back” or “to withdraw/retrieve.” The name precisely describes the function — this kanban authorizes the retrieval of parts. In some Toyota documentation, it is also called a conveyance kanban (運搬かんばん, unpan kanban).
History at Toyota
The withdrawal kanban became necessary as Toyota’s kanban system expanded beyond adjacent processes. When the producing process and the consuming process are next to each other, a single card can suffice. But when parts must be transported — from a supermarket to a line, from one building to another, or from a supplier to the plant — a separate authorization for movement is needed. The withdrawal kanban provides this authorization and defines the logistics: where to get the parts, how many to get, and where to deliver them.
Supplier kanban, used between Toyota and its outside suppliers, is a form of withdrawal kanban. The card travels to the supplier as authorization to deliver a specific quantity to a specific receiving dock on a specific schedule.
How It Actually Works
The withdrawal kanban cycle:
- A downstream process consumes parts from containers at its workstation
- When a container is emptied, the withdrawal kanban attached to it is freed
- The mizusumashi (or material handler) collects the freed withdrawal kanban and the empty container
- At the supermarket, the withdrawal kanban is exchanged — the production kanban on a full container is detached and the withdrawal kanban is attached in its place
- The full container (now carrying the withdrawal kanban) is delivered to the downstream process
- The detached production kanban is left at the supermarket collection post to signal the upstream process to replenish
Information on the card typically includes:
- Part number and description
- Quantity per container
- Source location (supermarket address or supplier name)
- Destination (downstream process and delivery point)
- Delivery route or schedule (for supplier kanban)
The critical exchange at the supermarket: This is where the withdrawal and production kanban systems connect. The physical act of swapping cards at the supermarket is the mechanism that links downstream consumption to upstream production authorization.
Common Mistakes
Moving parts without a withdrawal kanban. Any unauthorized movement of parts breaks the pull system and makes inventory levels unpredictable. All material movement must be kanban-authorized.
Not returning empty containers. The withdrawal kanban cycle depends on the return of empty containers. If empties pile up at the downstream process instead of being returned, the upstream process runs out of containers and the kanban loop breaks.
Ignoring the exchange discipline at the supermarket. If withdrawal kanban cards are not properly exchanged for production kanban cards at the supermarket, the production process does not receive accurate signals about what to replenish.