Time as a critical aspect of lean improvement

Lean Nation,

As a I travel around the world and watch lean thinking applied,  I see a theme developing.  As more and more improvement facilitators, engineers, and quality improvement scope out improvement activity and apply various tools a key aspect of the Toyota Production System is being lost. In the big picture,  every organization is trying to shrink the timeline between a customer having a need and that need being met.  Let's look at a few examples:

1. A customer has a need for a new cell phone.  a lean organization will aspire to:

• shrink the timeline from customer (market) need to product available on the market
• shrink the timeline from the moment a customer walks in a store until the time the phone is purchased and the service is activated
• shrink the timeline from the moment a support call comes into the service center until the customer issues is resolved.

    2.  A customer needs a surgery.  A lean organization will aspire to:

• shrink the timeline from appointment needed until the clinic visit is complete
• shrink the timeline from decision to operate until patient leaves the surgical center
• shrink the timeline from service to collection of cash

The single leading indicator of competitiveness is time.  World class organizations provide products and services in shorter time lines than their competitors.  There have been some studies done that show that those that can do that repeatedly have shown the ability to grow 4 times faster than their competitors. 

In a lean improvement project (event), time is used repeatedly.  Time is used to calculate takt time,  to determine manual cycle times, to calculate value added and non value added times,  to determine the loading diagram and staffing models, to calculate work in process space requirements and space requirements in general.   So time is a pretty important piece of data.

So now to get to the point of this blog. I have dozens of teams and organizations that run improvement events without a measure of time.   The goal is to create standard work, or improve the customer experience.  To be clear, there are events that focus on quality and safety  improvement.  These activities might not have a time measurement.  ( Although in the big picture, higher quality and safety will ultimately reduce lead times)  

However,  I would encourage you to always have a time measurement in your discrete improvement events.  Shrinking the time from customer need to customer need met through the elimination of wasted time and activity is the end game of lean improvement. Not everyone in management or staff likes the direct accountability of a time measure.  Also capturing time observation data can be time consuming, boring, labor intensive, etc. These are only excuses.  Some dimension of time should accompany every improvement project.

Lean blessings,

Ron

Ron Bercaw

President and Sensei

Breakthrough Horizons Ltd

www.breakthroughhorizons.com

Shingo Award Winning Author

Which Lean Tool is Appropriate?

Lean Nation,

During my workshop this week, I was asked the question, "How do you know what tool to use and when?"  This is a very common question asked by new lean practitioners.   Having done a quick scan on the number and types of quality improvement  tools, I quit counting at 240.   Yes , there are over 240 discrete quality improvement tools.   When you consider that there are dozens of applications and techniques of  these tools, picking the right one, at the right time,  can be a daunting task. 

By application of the tool,  I mean that the use of takt time in a process that repeats every 50 seconds is entirely different than a process that repeats every 14 weeks.  Time observation on a repetitive process is different than time observation on process that occurs annually.

Fortunately,  for lean thinkers there is some great news!  There are a core group of tools that can be mastered (or at least we can become competent with) that will carry us a very long ways.  Some of the tools help us to see waste and some of the tools help us to eliminate waste.  The following table lists the tools and their purpose.

I refer to these tools as the common tools used to see and eliminate waste. Over the coming weeks, I will publish thoughts on some of the applications and techniques of these various tools individually. 

In my years as a Sensei, I virtually always stay within this tool set when initially trying to understand a problem.   For more complex problems there are some other tools and techniques that will come into play,  but mastering these will enable 10 years of probelm solving within virtually any organization.

Lean Blessings,

Ron

Ron Bercaw
President and Sensei
Shingo Prize Winning Author
www.breakthroughhorizons.com

The Power of Time Observation

Lean Nation,

One of the common tools used to see and eliminate waste in a lean environment is time observation. There is no better way to see waste than through direct observation. You can spin work and processes many different ways, but when we go to Gemba, the place where work is done, and observe, waste is seen everywhere.

As a refresher, waste is any activate that takes time, space, or resources, but fails to deliver value directly to a customer. When we watch work being done, we can quickly observe that 95 to 99% of the time, no value is being added.

So what does time observation have to do with direct observation? Great question! Waste can be quantified in time. as we observe we can document in the waste in increments of time. This is extraordinarily helpful because it allows us to determine the cost of non-value added activity. It also allows us to predict the improvement potential when the waste is eliminated. In effect, time observation is a tool used to help both "see" and "eliminate" waste.

Most team members fail to document the time associated with waste. Team members find it easier to use interview techniques and approximate the time or use averages from computer reports. This is actually sloppy work and should be avoided if possible. We want to use direct observation to see the waste and time observation to quantify the waste if at all possible.

When combined with takt time, the data from the time observation can be used to build a loading diagram (see earlier blogs for this topic), that enables the team to calculate staffing levels and create one item flow. This is the key to productivity.

Lean Blessings,

Ron

Ron Bercaw
www.breakthroughhorizons.com