Lean Manufacturing Techniques - Value Stream Mapping
Only a small proportion of the production process activity in any manufacturing company adds value for the customer. By defining value for a specific product from the customer's perspective, all the non-value (waste) activities can be targeted for progressive removal.
For most production operations, only 5% of activities add value, 35% are necessary non-value adding activities and 60% add no value at all. Removing wasted time and effort represents the biggest opportunity for performance improvement. (Source: Cardiff University).
The value stream map has emerged as a very popular and clear way to illustrate the current and future state of a process. The method maps all the physical and information flows necessary to deliver what the customer requires.
It is called a value stream map because it depicts the value-adding activities necessary to produce a specific customer order, in the sequence in which they happen. The value stream map differs from the process map in that it shows both the physical and information flows on one diagram, thus enabling you to see what the situation is and why this is the case.
Value Stream Mapping Techniques
Value stream mapping can be learnt quickly because it uses simple boxes to indicate process stages, linking in to symbols for plant, equipment, kanbans, transport etc. The process involves identifying the value streams, creating the current state map, analysis of the current state map and creation of the future state map.
Value Stream Mapping Software
Value Stream Mapping (eVSM) software is available from the Lean Enterprise Academy http://www.leanuk.org
eVSM can be used to mechanise the value stream mapping process and to analyse, present and communicate value stream maps. There is a facility for the export of data to MS Excel.
