Value Stream Mappin' in Engineering

Note: This was the longest event that i have run to date. The team met for approximately 3 weeks in 1 month - after work, before work, etc.) because everyone understands the importance of breaking down our bottleneck process into something more managable and with less of a lead time. We went through arguments, good times, bad times - it was a struggle - but in the end Lean and our people's minds prevailed.

WHY WAS IT DONE?

• There is a long lead time in engineering which needs understanding
• To implement takt, flow and pull
• To understand the process of engineering
• To develop 30/60/90 day action plan

WHAT WAS DONE?

• Created a SIPOC diagram depicting the scope of the engineering process
• Developed a Swim Lane diagram to show the many handoffs between the players
• Current state mapped the engineering process, calculated takt
• Differentiated between value-add and non-value added processes
• Constructed a 90 day future state map and a 30/60/90 day action plan

LESSONS LEARNED

• It is worth shutting down Engineering for 6hrs in a day to focus and keep focus on the current and future state.
• Team buy in is key to successful implementation of lean changes.
• 30/60/90 days actions must be concise and measurable.
• Defining value added and non value added work within Engineering environment must be done carefully as people do not really grasp the idea.

WHAT WERE THE RESULTS

• Developed a 30/60/90 day action plan• Reduced the process from a 20-step to a 16-step
• Potential cycle-time reduction of 8hrs
• Reduced WIP in the system from unlimited to less than 5 pieces of work per engineer, thus reducing the queue time by approximately 50% (will be revisited in approximately 1 month to document the reduction in lead time)
• Reduction in lead time is expected, however not verified yet
• Training on the various tools used, with special focus on takt, flow and pull

VISUAL CONTROLS AND METRICS

• WIP boards were created which show what job is on who’s desk and at what stepof the process with one glance; work priorities are set during each team’s shift start meeting
• KPI boards for each team within engineering – with metrics that make sense to the teams – will begin measuring utilization
• A prototype pull system to be implemented 12/06/06

TEAM THOUGHTS/COMMENTS

• Value stream map was an eye opener for the team. Looking at number of steps, work checking, number of defects and inventories at each desk were invisible in the past.
• Future state discussions led to focused attention on areas of concerns and requiring immediate improvement.

Introducing Takt, Flow & Pull into Assembly

Note: we held this event in July of 2006 - It was my first event as the certified Lean Champion for our site. It was definitely grueling running 3 events concurrently, however i do have to admit that: 1. We had great team members who were energized to get started and make some big changes and 2. We had the opportunity to work with a great leader from Japan who knows lean like I've never seen and who has such amazing spirit it's hard not to contract it.

WHY IT WAS DONE

• To introduce takt, flow & pull in assembly
• To create/install assembly streams to promote takt, flow and pull for the assembling of pumps
• To make the separate streams cross-functional (where possible) as to keep up with ever changing customer demand

WHAT WAS DONE

• Training in Takt, Flow and Pull
• Process mapping of the current state of “flow” through assembly
• Defining and setting new boundaries (yellow walk lines) throughout assembly promoting flow as well as, and more importantly, safety.
• Setup 5 assembly cells: four of the cells are located within an area that 4 operators can communicate without leaving the area (the 5th is an M Pump assembly cell)
• Created a QUICK SHIP cell with one table to assist in our new VCM quick ship program
• Created an Andon lighting system to highlight when there are problems
• Developed base TAKT times for assembly/Test/Clean/Paint/Final assembly.
• Developed cell boards to help communicate TAKT time
• A test run which illustrated that we can meet the TAKT times and have designated skilled assembler times (80%) and assembly times for assemblers with less product familiarization (100%)

LESSONS LEARNED

• Team work, team work, team work!!
• Safety NEVER takes a back door in Burlington!Make a prototype first and once proven to work, then make your investment
• Make a prototype first and once proven to work, then make your investment

AND THE RESULTS PLEASE...

• At the new 80% TAKT time and (#) VCMs per year the cost savings will be big bucks
• Created a more centralized assembly area reducing the area from 1350sqft to 1240sqft – 110sqft of real estate that Burlington can use for something else
• Increased capacity by adding 2 more tables and improved shop space utilization
• Developed pull signal to tell stores when to release another kit, and designated a place to park those kits.

VISUAL CONTROLS AND METRICS

• Created Andon lighting for assembly with a functional visual control board for pump information including TAKT times
• Put arrows on the floor to show the FLOW through the shop, as well as labelled all cellsDefined and set walkway line through shop to promote FLOW, as well as safety.

TEAM THOUGHTS

• You can get a lot done in only 1 week if you pull together as a team!
• Integration between each team and department is very integral to the success of our activities.
• Good communication between all departments is essential if we want to build more safely, with greater quality and shorter lead times.

Want to see some pictures? Let me know.