Page 327 - The Handbook for Quality Management a Complete Guide to Operational Excellence

314 C o n t i n u o u s I m p r o v e m e n t A n a l y z e S t a g e 315

His motto, “any color you want, so long as it’s black,” exempli-
fied the notion of standardization. The modern approach to
standardiza tion is not that we need to limit options, but rather
that we need to recognize the advantages of simplified processes,
and seek to remove “special cases” where they provide little
value at the cost of increased cycle times. Decision points and
subsequent parallel paths on flowcharts provide indication of
process complexities that can sometimes be avoided. By group-
ing parts or services into families, we can recognize that there are
common methods that can be applied, thus simplifying pro-
cesses and reducing overall cycle times.
• The 5S tools of sorting and straightening also help to reduce
movement and wait times.
• Location tasks are those associated with positioning or placement
during setup. Examples include setting temperature profiles for
heating, adjusting cutoff length for specific product, and placing
the chunk of deli meat in the slicer. Actions to reduce the time asso-
ciated with location include:
• Poka yoke (mistake proofing the process), as discussed in Chap. 16
• Commonality of setups as previously mentioned (the 5S
tool of standardization)
• Adjustment refers to tasks associated with ensuring correct pro-
cess settings. Examples include monitoring the temperature of a
furnace, checking cutoff length, and proofing copy before print-
ing. A suitable action to reduce adjustment time is process control.
If we can improve the repeatability of the process, then the adjust-
ments will not be necessary. Often this is achieved through robust
design methods, as discussed in Chap. 16.

Although it may be your initial tendency, don’t limit your value stream
to the walls of your organization. Fantastic sums of money have been
saved by evaluating value streams as they move from supplier to customer,
often because of discovering mistaken concepts of value or attempts to
achieve operational sav ings that diminish the customer value.

Analyze Sources of Process Variation
The sources of process variation (SPC) control charts from the Measure
stage provide evidence of either a stable (i.e., in control) or unstable
(i.e., out of control) process. It is critical to first differentiate between these
two types of variation, as the improvement strategies are necessarily dif-
ferent for each. For stable processes, the common cause variation built
into the process can only be reduced through a fundamental change to
the system. When the process is out of control, the special cause creating

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