With the new rhythm and the internationalization of the markets, many companies in Medellin have seen the need to assume continuous improvement and its different Production Tools as an organizational culture, in order to be able to compete with better products and with a lower cost. One of the industries that in Medellin has used to a certain degree, all these types of administrative practices, is the Metal-mechanical industry. This article shows the results of a study carried out in different companies of this industry in the year 2001, with the objective of evaluating the degree of local use of the manufacturing practices that are widely used around the world, and to know the critical success factors and the difficulties of these experiences.