Process

Question 1

What is a SOP?

Answer 1

What is a SOP?

A document describing standardised way of working known as Standard Operating Procedure

Question 2

What is a Failure Stream?

Answer 2

What is a Failure Stream?

Process for resolving incidents.

Question 3

A process consists of:

Answer 3

A process consists of:

input that is transformed to output through a series of actions.

Input can be information, machinery, materials and labor or a combination of these inputs.

Work is then done to create the desired output, being a product, service or information.

Question 4

At an abstract level, each organization has three processes:

Answer 4

At an abstract level, each organization has three processes:

Design, Delivery and Support.

Question 5

What is the delivery process?

Answer 5

What is the delivery process?

Covers the activities from an order intake to the delivery of the product to the customer.

Question 6

What is the support process?

Answer 6

What is the support process?

Ensures that the customer continues to benefit from the value of the product or service.

Question 7

What is the design process?

Answer 7

What is the design process?

takes an idea from concept to the launch of a product or service.

Question 8

IT organisations obviously also have three similar processes:

Answer 8

IT organisations obviously also have three similar processes:
- Product & service development process
Is concerned with the design of an IT service
- Production and Delivery Process
Is all about ensuring the IT service is created and deployed.
- The Service and Support Process
Is concerned with operating and supporting the deployed IT service.

Question 9

What is a push system?

Answer 9

What is a push system?

Produces a product or service before the customer has actually ordered the product of service.

Question 10

Push systems use a mechanism called:

Answer 10

Push systems use a mechanism called:

• Batch
• Queue

Question 11

What is a pull system?

Answer 11

The value stream starts when the customer places an order.

The ideal situation is that a single product is pulled through the process as and when the customer needs it. This is known as a Single Piece Flow.

Question 12

How can we analyse value streams?

Answer 12

How can we analyse value streams?

Value Stream Mapping.

Question 13

Value Stream Mapping consists of 2 tools:

Answer 13

Value Stream Mapping consists of 2 tools:

• SIPOC
• VSM

Question 14

What does SIPOC stands for:

Answer 14

What does SIPOC stands for:

• Supplier
• Input
• Process
• Output
• Customer

Question 15

SIPOC is a method for:

Answer 15

SIPOC is a method for:
Scoping a value stream that needs to be improved Assuming the CTQ and Voice of the Customer require us to improve the value stream, we can first identify the Output of the process and the Customer who receives the output.

Question 16

Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is an exercise to understand

Answer 16

Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is an exercise to understand waste and improvement potential in a value stream. We use it to visualize the current and future states of a particular value stream.

Question 17

The most important output of the Value Stream Map is to determine

Answer 17

The most important output of the Value Stream Map is to determine

which improvement actions need to be implemented to achieve the desired future state.

Question 18

How can you identify if there are issues of flow and waste in the process?

Answer 18

How can you identify if there are issues of flow and waste in the process?

In the Value stream map, we calculate the waiting and cycle time of each step as well as perform a Value/ Non Value Analysis on each step. In this way, we can identify where there are issues of flow and waste in the process. This contributes to achieving flow.

Question 19

The goal of Value Stream Mapping is to

And how do we build it?

Answer 19

The goal of Value Stream Mapping is to

visualize a process in such a way that the process can
be analyzed.

We build the Value Stream Map:

by taking the SIPOC and detailing the flow of the process steps.
- We start by adding basic information so that the Value Stream Map is easily understood by anyone who wishes to review it.

This means giving insight into the input and output of the process. The key activity is to draw in the process steps.

The SIPOC has given us a broad insight into the activities.

In the VSM, we need to be more specific. The key reason for being specific is that we will be trying to quantify as much of the process as possible. This means creating logical and measurable process steps.

Question 20

What I takt time?

Answer 20

Takt time is defined as the pace the process much keep in order to keep up with the pace of incoming customer demand.

Takt time determines the correct pace of the process to ensure that it delivers products to match customer demand.

Question 21

What is lead time?

Answer 21

Lead Time, the time between the moment a customer requests something and the moment that it was delivered. To calculate Lead time, we subtract the time the request was submitted from the time the customer received the requested performance.

Question 22

What is standard time?

Answer 22

Standard Time.

is the time that a particular step should take to carry out by design. We record the standard time in the
block in the right bottom corner of the step. The standard time for the whole process is the sum total of all the standard times of the steps.

The Standard Time help us to design processes that are capable of delivering value at the Takt rate required.

Question 23

The four most importent Time metrics are:

Answer 23

The four most importent Time metrics are:

1. Cycle Time is the time we actually spend on creating the product or service. This includes all time spent on VA, NVA and NNVA activities executed while producing the product or service.
2. Waiting Time is time spent on waiting for the next activity.
3. Machine Time is the time the product is worked on by a machine. In the case of
   IT, we see machine time when database reorganization needs to take place or when a Business Intelligence system needs to load data.
4. Changeover Time is the time needed to reconfigure a device between two units of work. Within IT, we find this kind of time when we need to adjust a development environment between different program changes. Within IT, changeover time also occurs when we go from processing a change to resolving an incident, back to processing the change.
   Machine time and changeover time are really specific forms of waiting time.

Question 24

A key measure of the flow of the process is:

Answer 24

A key measure of the flow of the process is:

Process Cycle Efficiency (PCE). This is the percentage of total lead time spent on value- adding activities and is stated at the end of the timeline.

Question 25

Four possible process metrics are:

Answer 25

Four possible process metrics are:

1. Parallel Lines. This is the number of simultaneously operating lines of work. Having insight into the number of parallel lines can help us to understand whether there are bottlenecks that may be remedied by adding extra processing capacity. This could mean both people and machines are added to increase the capacity of the process step
2. The Capacity is the calculated maximum production volume of a process or process step
3. The Throughput is the actual production volume of a process or process step, taking all constraints into consideration
4. Work-in-Progress is the average volume of work that is in progress at any point in time

Question 26

Once we have produced a Value Stream Map, we need to analyze it. Areas to investigate include:

Answer 26

Once we have produced a Value Stream Map, we need to analyze it. Areas to investigate include:

• Muri: what policy-based waste is associated with the process?
• Mura: where do we find variability and what is it based on?
• Muda: what kind of waste is in the process?

• How can we understand and improve the
flow of the process?

• Do we need a push or pull mechanism for this process? How could pull help us to unburden the process?

• how can we ensure that each step is carried out “first time right”?

Question 27

5s provides us with a set of hygiene rules that help clean up our processes, what are the 5 s?

Answer 27

5s provides us with a set of hygiene rules that help clean up our processes, what are the 5 s?

• Sort
  eliminating all unnecessary tools, parts, and instructions.
• Simplify or Set in order
  everything is in the right place. There should
  be a place for everything and everything should be in its place.
• Shine
  keeping the workspace and all equipment clean, tidy and organized
• Standardize
  Work practices should be consistent and standardized.
• Sustain.
  This means maintaining and reviewing standards.

Question 28

What is Heijunka?

Answer 28

What is Heijunka?
= Production levelling.

To reduce Mura or variability

Heijunka is vital for achieving flow. It means ensuring that each process step can process the same number of units of work per unit of time. The aim is to produce intermediate products and services at a constant rate so that further processing may also be carried out at a constant and predictable rate. One of the ways to achieve Heijunka is through reducing bottlenecks. We can do this by adding parallel lines or other capacity.