Rankings
Lean Champions Rankings
Annual and quarterly Lean Champions rankings based on the published 5S, Kaizen and participant-assessment results.
The rankings document progress in 5S, Kaizen and the participant assessment recorded by the Lean Champions initiative. The figures below reproduce the published source data.
A dash means that the source table did not contain a result for that period.
Annual Ranking — 2025
| Company | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Average (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. 🥇 | 94.9% | 91.0% | 90.4% | 89.7% | 91.5% |
| NIKI Ltd. 🥈 | 93.3% | 87.0% | 88.1% | 86.6% | 88.8% |
| APS Trading Ltd. 🥉 | 93.3% | 87.0% | 90.4% | 83.8% | 88.6% |
| TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 90.3% | 87.0% | 91.2% | 84.9% | 88.3% |
| Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 85.6% | 91.0% | 93.1% | 82.1% | 87.9% |
| Alcomet AD — Automotive Team | 83.9% | 89.0% | 89.7% | 87.4% | 87.5% |
| Alcomet AD — Press Shop | 85.7% | 86.0% | 85.7% | 85.3% | 85.7% |
| LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 91.1% | 67.0% | 90.4% | 85.7% | 83.6% |
Lean Champion 2025 — Final Annual Result
| Lean Champions | Average Q1–Q4 2025 result (50%) | Jury assessment (25%) | Participant vote (25%) | Final result 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NIKI Ltd. 🥇 | 44.38% | 23.33% | 16.07% | 83.78% |
| Alcomet AD — Automotive Team 🥈 | 43.75% | 22.50% | 15.48% | 81.72% |
| Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. 🥉 | 45.75% | 20.42% | 14.29% | 80.45% |
| TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 44.17% | 20.42% | 14.29% | 78.87% |
| Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 43.97% | 22.08% | 11.90% | 77.96% |
| Alcomet AD — Press Shop | 42.83% | 20.83% | 15.00% | 78.67% |
| LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 41.78% | 25.00% | 11.31% | 78.09% |
| APS Trading Ltd. | 44.32% | 20.42% | 11.31% | 76.04% |
Participants’ Award — 2025
| No. | Lean Champions | Rating 1 | Rating 2 | Rating 3 | Rating 4 | Rating 5 | Rating 6 | Rating 7 | Rating 8 | Average rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. 🥇 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2.88 |
| 2 | NIKI Ltd. 🥈 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2.75 |
| 3 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. 🥉 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2.50 |
| 4 | Alcomet AD — Automotive Shop | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2.25 |
| 5 | APS Trading Ltd. | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2.00 |
| 6 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1.88 |
| 7 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1.88 |
| 8 | Alcomet AD — Press Shop | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1.38 |
Lean Champions — Rankings — Q1 2025
| No. | Lean Champions | 5S audit 1 | 5S audit 2 | 5S target | 5S result | Kaizen KPI | Before quarter | After quarter | Kaizen target | Kaizen result | Voting score | Voting result | Final result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. | 94% | 96% | 96% | 100% | Efficiency | 89.7% | 99.8% | 99.8% | 100% | 5.2 | 84.6% | 94.9% 🥇 |
| 2 | APS Trading Ltd. | 25% | 81% | 45% | 100% | Labour hours per unit | 0.57 | 0.35 | 0.51 | 100% | 5.0 | 80.0% | 93.3% 🥈 |
| 3 | NIKI Ltd. | 23% | 68% | 60% | 100% | AM plan completion | 0.0% | 37.0% | 37.0% | 100% | 5.0 | 80.0% | 93.3% 🥈 |
| 4 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 88% | 92% | 92% | 100% | AM plan completion | 0.0% | 20.0% | 20.0% | 100% | 4.7 | 73.3% | 91.1% 🥉 |
| 5 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 9% | 61% | 45% | 100% | Average monthly output | 8729 | 9997 | 9200 | 100% | 4.5 | 70.8% | 90.3% |
| 6 | Alcomet AD — Press Shop | 22% | 43% | 45% | 96% | Yield | 58% | 65% | 65% | 100% | 4.1 | 61.4% | 85.7% |
| 7 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 68% | 86% | 80% | 100% | FA 7 efficiency | 40.0% | 53.0% | 52.0% | 100% | 3.8 | 56.7% | 85.6% |
| 8 | Alcomet AD — Automotive Shop | 9% | 38% | 45% | 84% | Occupied pallets | 182 | 96 | 98 | 98% | 4.5 | 69.2% | 83.9% |
Lean Champions — Rankings — Q2 2025
| No. | Lean Champions | 5S audit 1 | 5S audit 2 | 5S target | 5S result | Kaizen KPI | Before quarter | After quarter | Kaizen target | Kaizen result | Voting score | Voting result | Final result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. | 98% | 98% | 98% | 100% | Scrap rate | 3.0% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 100% | 2.18 | 73% | 91% 🥇 |
| 2 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 70% | 85% | 80% | 100% | Core-making department efficiency | 47.0% | 50.0% | 48.0% | 100% | 2.18 | 73% | 91% 🥇 |
| 3 | Alcomet AD — Automotive Shop | 25% | 90% | 75% | 100% | AM plan completion (%) | 0 | 8% | 8% | 100% | 2.0 | 67% | 89% 🥈 |
| 4 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 27% | 97% | 60% | 100% | Production lead-time reduction (days) | 29 | 24 | 24 | 100% | 1.82 | 61% | 87% 🥉 |
| 5 | NIKI Ltd. | 57% | 94% | 97% | 97% | AM plan completion | 37.0% | 57.0% | 57.0% | 100% | 1.91 | 64% | 87% 🥉 |
| 6 | APS Trading Ltd. | 31% | 89% | 70% | 100% | Material-preparation time reduction (min.) | 246 | 74 | 20% | 100% | 1.82 | 61% | 87% 🥉 |
| 7 | Alcomet AD — Press Shop | 43% | 88% | 90% | 98% | AM implementation in 3 areas (%) | 0 | 3 | 3 | 100% | 1.83 | 61% | 86% |
| 8 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 30% | 73% | 70% | 100% | AM plan completion | 20.0% | 40.0% | 40.0% | 100% | 0.0 | 0% | 67% |
Lean Champions — Rankings — Q3 2025
| No. | Lean Champions | 5S audit 1 | 5S audit 2 | 5S target | 5S result | Kaizen KPI | Before quarter | After quarter | Kaizen target | Kaizen result | Voting score | Voting result | Final result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 72% | 82% | 80% | 100% | Core-making department efficiency | 50.0% | 49.0% | 51.0% | 96% | 2.50 | 83% | 93.1% 🥇 |
| 2 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 50% | 97% | 80% | 100% | Productivity — average cylinders per month | 45 | 53 | 50 | 100% | 2.21 | 74% | 91.2% 🥈 |
| 3 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. | 98% | 98% | 98% | 100% | Monthly storage-cost reduction by 15% | € 270,000 | € 229,500 | € 229,500 | 100% | 2.14 | 71% | 90.4% 🥉 |
| 3 | APS Trading Ltd. | 44% | 93% | 75% | 100% | TPH line efficiency improvement | 37.50% | 26.70% | 30% | 100% | 2.14 | 71% | 90.4% 🥉 |
| 3 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 95% | 95% | 95% | 100% | AM plan completion | 17.0% | 37.0% | 37.0% | 100% | 2.14 | 71% | 90.4% 🥉 |
| 4 | Alcomet AD — Automotive Shop | 25% | 90% | 75% | 100% | AM plan completion (%) | 8 | 24% | 24% | 100% | 2.07 | 69% | 89.7% |
| 5 | NIKI Ltd. | 53% | 85% | 80% | 100% | AM plan completion | 57.0% | 69.0% | 69.0% | 100% | 1.93 | 64% | 88.1% |
| 6 | Alcomet AD — Press Shop | 43% | 88% | 80% | 100% | AM implementation in 5 areas (%) | 3 | 8 | 5 | 100% | 1.71 | 57% | 85.7% |
Lean Champions — Rankings — Q4 2025
| No. | Lean Champions | 5S audit 1 | 5S audit 2 | 5S target | 5S result | Kaizen KPI | Before quarter | After quarter | Kaizen target | Kaizen result | Voting score | Voting result | Final result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. | 98% | 98% | 98% | 100% | FTE optimisation in raw-material delivery | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 2.07 | 69% | 89.7% 🥇 |
| 2 | Alcomet AD — Automotive Shop | 25% | 87% | 85% | 100% | AM plan completion (%) | 24 | 64% | 64% | 100% | 1.87 | 62% | 87.4% 🥈 |
| 3 | NIKI Ltd. | 53% | 90% | 80% | 100% | AM plan completion | 69.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100% | 1.79 | 60% | 86.6% 🥉 |
| 4 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 42% | 87% | 85% | 100% | Production-floor space saved (m²) | 210 m² | 194 m² | 194 m² | 100% | 1.71 | 57% | 85.7% |
| 5 | Alcomet AD — Press Shop | 43% | 79% | 80% | 99% | AM implementation in 5 areas (%) | 8 | 11 | 11 | 100% | 1.71 | 57% | 85.3% |
| 6 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 32% | 95% | 80% | 100% | Future cost avoidance | € 50,000 | € 62,000 | € 50,000 | 100% | 1.64 | 55% | 84.9% |
| 7 | APS Trading Ltd. | 67% | 92% | 88% | 100% | Shift-productivity increase | 625 | 724 | 724 | 100% | 1.54 | 51% | 83.8% |
| 8 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 60% | 79% | 80% | 99% | Core-making department efficiency | 49.0% | 55.0% | 55.0% | 100% | 1.43 | 48% | 82.1% |
Annual Ranking — 2026
| Place | Company | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Average (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ottobock Manufacturing Bulgaria Ltd. 🥇 | 88.89% | 95.14% | – | – | 92.02% |
| 2 | Mebel Stil Ltd. 🥈 | 88.77% | 89.00% | – | – | 88.88% |
| 3 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. 🥉 | 86.69% | 90.74% | – | – | 88.72% |
| 4 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 83.80% | 90.28% | – | – | 87.04% |
| 5 | Südwolle Group Italy — Bulsafil | 85.88% | 82.99% | – | – | 84.44% |
| 6 | APS Trading Ltd. | 82.75% | 84.72% | – | – | 83.73% |
| 7 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. | 83.33% | 83.33% | – | – | 83.33% |
| 8 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 81.21% | 84.26% | – | – | 82.73% |
| 9 | AQ Plastronik AD | 82.52% | 82.75% | – | – | 82.63% |
| 10 | Alcomet AD | 81.60% | 81.94% | – | – | 81.77% |
| 11 | Wegmann Automotive Bulgaria Ltd. | 81.37% | 79.86% | – | – | 80.62% |
| 12 | Jacobs Douwe Egberts BG Ltd. | 83.24% | 77.31% | – | – | 80.28% |
| 13 | NIKI Ltd. | 81.38% | 76.87% | – | – | 79.12% |
Lean Champions — Rankings — Q1 2026
| No. | Lean Champions | 5S audit 1 | 5S audit 2 | 5S target | 5S result | Kaizen KPI | Before quarter | After quarter | Kaizen target | Kaizen result | Voting points | Voting result | Final result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ottobock Manufacturing Bulgaria Ltd. | 57% | 78% | 70% | 100% | Weekly productivity (units per person) | 10.5 | 12.5 | 11.5 | 100% | 192.00 | 66.67% | 88.89% 🥇 |
| 2 | Mebel Stil Ltd. | 38% | 78% | 70% | 100% | Productivity — time per set (sec.) | 114 | 89 | 90 | 100% | 191.00 | 66.32% | 88.77% 🥈 |
| 3 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 72% | 93% | 85% | 100% | AC motor cost optimisation (%) | 47.0% | 19.1% | 25.0% | 100% | 173.00 | 60.07% | 86.69% 🥉 |
| 4 | Südwolle Group Italy — Bulsafil | 52% | 80% | 75% | 100% | Changeover-time reduction (min.) | 60 | 23 | 30 | 100% | 166.00 | 57.64% | 85.88% |
| 5 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 87% | 96% | 90% | 100% | Finished-goods warehouse efficiency (average seconds per export-list row) | 330 | 300 | 300 | 100% | 148.00 | 51.39% | 83.80% |
| 6 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. | 27% | 88% | 60% | 100% | Autonomous-maintenance plan completion (%) | 0% | 5% | 5% | 100% | 144.00 | 50.00% | 83.33% |
| 7 | Jacobs Douwe Egberts BG Ltd. | 51% | 80% | 85% | 94.12% | Overall efficiency % (roastery) | 66.0% | 67.8% | 68.0% | 99.7% | 161.00 | 55.90% | 83.24% |
| 8 | APS Trading Ltd. | 96% | --- | 95% | 100% | Supplier lead-time optimisation (days) | 65 | 14 | 20 | 100% | 139.00 | 48.26% | 82.75% |
| 9 | AQ Plastronik AD | 53% | 92% | 80% | 100% | Productivity increase (products per operator) | 120 | 150 | 138 (15%) | 100% | 137.00 | 47.57% | 82.52% |
| 10 | Alcomet AD | 19% | 52% | 50% | 100% | Changeover-time reduction (hours) | 06:15 | 02:15 | 03:00 | 100% | 129.00 | 44.79% | 81.60% |
| 11 | Wegmann Automotive Bulgaria Ltd. | 34% | 60% | 55% | 100% | Lead-casting capacity increase (castings) | 5952 | 7438 | 7400 | 100% | 127.00 | 44.10% | 81.37% |
| 12 | NIKI Ltd. | 0% | 38% | 40% | 93.75% | Annual improvement-plan completion | 0.0% | 40.7% | 41.7% | 97.60% | 152.00 | 52.78% | 81.38% |
| 13 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 82% | --- | 80% | 100% | Quality improvement (%) | 27.0% | 25.9% | 22.0% | 84.94% | 169.00 | 58.68% | 81.21% |
Lean Champions — Rankings — Q2 2026
| No. | Lean Champions | 5S audit 1 | 5S audit 2 | 5S target | 5S result | Kaizen KPI | Before quarter | After quarter | Kaizen target | Kaizen result | Voting points | Voting result | Final result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ottobock Manufacturing Bulgaria Ltd. | 39% | 73% | 65% | 100% | Weekly productivity (units) | 35.0 | 80.0 | 70.0 | 100% | 246 | 85.42% | 95.14% 🥇 |
| 2 | TVH Bulgaria Ltd. | 91% | 92.5% | 92.5% | 100% | DC motor quality improvement % | 60.0% | 24.2% | 25.0% | 100% | 208 | 72.22% | 90.74% 🥈 |
| 3 | LEM Bulgaria Ltd. | 93% | --- | 90% | 100% | DMS management-cost optimisation | 0 | 800 | 800 | 100% | 204 | 70.83% | 90.28% 🥉 |
| 4 | Mebel Stil Ltd. — Plant 1 | 18% | 87% | 55% | 100% | Foam-volume optimisation | 1643 m³ | 1360 m³ | 1360 m³ | 100% | 193 | 67.01% | 89.00% |
| 5 | APS Trading Ltd. | 18% | 83% | 75% | 100% | Order-picking time optimisation — Bravo store (min.) | 07:24 | 04:50 | 05:00 | 100% | 156 | 54.17% | 84.72% |
| 6 | Linamar Light Metals Ruse Ltd. | 53% | 82% | 80% | 100% | Quality improvement (%) | 24.7% | 20.0% | 20.0% | 100.00% | 152 | 52.78% | 84.26% |
| 7 | Kostal Bulgaria Automotive Ltd. | 25% | 60% | 50% | 100% | Autonomous-maintenance plan completion (%) | 5% | 20% | 20% | 100% | 144 | 50.00% | 83.33% |
| 8 | Südwolle Group Italy — Bulsafil | 52% | 75% | 75% | 100% | Changeover-time reduction (min.) | 42 | 23 | 30 | 100% | 141 | 48.96% | 82.99% |
| 9 | AQ Plastronik AD | 64% | 80% | 75% | 100% | Productivity increase % | 36% | 87% | 60% | 100% | 139 | 48.26% | 82.75% |
| 10 | Alcomet AD | 52% | 65% | 60% | 100% | Changeover-time reduction (hours) | 06:39 | 02:27 | 03:30 | 100% | 132 | 45.83% | 81.94% |
| 11 | Wegmann Automotive Bulgaria Ltd. | 77% | 86% | 80% | 100% | Autonomous-maintenance plan completion (%) | 0% | 18.2% | 11% | 100% | 114 | 39.58% | 79.86% |
| 12 | Jacobs Douwe Egberts BG Ltd. | 77% | 91% | 85% | 100% | Overall efficiency % (roastery) | 68.0% | 70.1% | 70.0% | 100% | 92 | 31.94% | 77.31% |
| 13 | NIKI Ltd. | 38% | 40% | 40% | 100% | Annual improvement-plan completion | 40.7% | 87.0% | 93.1% | 93.45% | 107 | 37.15% | 76.87% |
Q3 2026
This ranking has not been published yet.
Q4 2026
This ranking has not been published yet.
Annual ranking 2027
This ranking has not been published yet.
How to read the colour indicators
- Green: above 90%
- Amber: 80–90%
- Red: below 80%
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