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70 The PCB Magazine • October 2014 key takeaway of this scenario is that the exces- sive lead time has created enough customer dis- satisfaction that the business is in jeopardy. Step 2: Create a Current State Value Stream Map Now let's turn this diagram into a current state value stream map. The original working session for developing a VSM is very manual, and as I mentioned earlier, is best done on a white board or with Post-it Notes. As the name implies, the goal is to find out how the process- ing is currently operating today, not how the SOP says things should be or how it was de- signed to be. The goal is to capture reality onto a piece of paper—the current state. Use a stop- watch for the time studies and determine the actual times where practical. While the VSM will eventually be finalized with software, the initial map should be created with Post-it Notes because there will be frequent changes as the team goes through this process. Once the pro- cess has been defined, the Post-it Notes map can be digitized with flowcharting software. Value stream maps use a variety of unique symbols that are not used in traditional flowcharts and diagrams, as shown in Figure 2. Word and Ex- cel can be used for flowcharting, but for ease of use, professional flowcharting software like Visio should be used. Step 3: Create a Future State Value Stream Map Once the current state of the process has been established, which by the way, is usually the second "Ah-ha!" moment for the company, the next step is to picture the desired state of the process—the future state. This is the point where waste identified in the current state is tar- geted for elimination. Find the areas of waste and problem areas and try to eliminate them by looking for low-effort, high-benefit types of activities. Examples of these include: 1. Reducing unnecessary inventory 2. Pulling materials through visual controls 3. Using 5S to make materials and tools available at the point-of-use 4. Eliminating unnecessary step 5. Cross training personnel 6. Standardizing work 7. Reducing setup time 8. Balancing the work flow (Takt time analysis). BEST PRACTICES 101, PART 3 continues figure 2: Value stream map symbols.