| Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is a method of visually mapping your
products production path, both material and information, from door to door. This
valuable tool is one of the items within the Lean
Manufacturing Workshop.
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Why develop a Value Stream Map? Here is a list of the benefits
you can expect to receive from a VSM:
VSM Benefits
- Identify sources of waste and eliminates them
- Reduce inventories; raw materials, in-process & finished goods
- Provides a common language for discussing processes
- Improved quality by 100% inspection at the source
- Shows the linkage between information flow and production
- Shows how lean concepts and techniques can be linked together
- Forms the basis of an implementation plan
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| To develop a VSM is to develop a production strategy for the
future. The first step is to know where you are by taking an inventory of all of
the steps your product goes through using your current manufacturing techniques.
This includes everything, even the obvious time wasting steps. Employing an attitude
of continuous improvement, a future VSM is produced to act as a guild to reducing
the wasted time and effort that is identified in your product.
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| With the new VSM in hand, desired changes in the manufacturing
techniques and programs such as JIT, 5S,
Kanban and manufacturing cells can be planned and training
can begin. Changes to the floor layout are finalized and an implementation date
for the first change is established. The speed of the changeover to the new VSM
is entirely up to you. It is not required, and in most cases, not recommended that
the new VSM become reality all at once. Rather, it is best to gradually establish
the new elements of the VSM in a planned and orderly manner over several months
so that your workers will be able to adjust to the new systems and work out any
problems that may occur. This is best handled using Kaizen
events.
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| It is not uncommon to realize 50 - 70% reduction in
processing time. Combine this with labour & material savings and you will
find the VSM process is something that will pay for itself in a very short time.
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