Lean Consultancy Case
Study -
Value Stream Mapping
Glen Electric
– Value Stream Mapping
Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is an essential element to a well
co-ordinated improvement strategy. In the case of Glen
Electric it was important that all managers understood
the nature of the changes required to meet the cost
down targets imposed by their largest customer – B&Q.
After initial training in VSM techniques,
the management team were divided into small sub-groups
and asked to walk the process in order to understand
the current flow of materials through the system as
well as the processing times at each stage of manufacture.
 Once
the current situation was mapped the team went on to
identify the current lead-time to be approx. 4 weeks
from receipt of order to dispatch of goods. In contrast,
the time for processing was a mere 10 mins!
This clearly was an untenable situation and from the
customers perspective an expectation of daily deliveries
of every variety with an increasingly shortening of
lead time provided the catalyst for change.
One of the most significant observations
was the large amount of inventory stored at each point
in the value chain. This was clearly adding no value
to the customer and could only serve to create confusion
as each stage often struggled to locate the materials
it needed.
 With
the requirements of the customer in mind, the team set
out to overhaul the complete manufacturing system starting
with the order processing moving through each stage
of manufacture until distribution. This was articulated
in the form of a vision/future state map.
Once this stage was complete, the team prepared and
delivered a series of briefings to the whole workforce
before commencing. This ensured that all staff were
aware of what was happening and why.
The main aim of the programme now is
to significantly re duce inventories by combining as
many of the processes as possible. This will enable
them to continuously add value to the product without
unnecessary delays due to storage and transportation.
A lead time of <1 week is their goal with daily shipments
of each product type to their major customers.
The
involvement of the staff at all levels is seen as a
crucial element of this programme. A series on kaizen
events have been planned throughout 2005 to begin the
job of implementing lean within all business areas.
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