Chapter 3.4 Flashcards
Name the two key ways to review and enhance specifications
- mandating the use of standardised products or services wherever possible
- Using techniques such as value analysis and value engineering to ensure that users receive the highest levels of value and cost
Name the three levels that standardisation in product manufacture can occur
- Individual parts and components
- End products they are used in
- Processes used to make them
Name 4 benefits of standardisation
- Cost reduction
- Quality
- Flexibility
- Responsiveness
Name the 5 ways the manufacturing process changes with increased volume and variety of parts used in production
- Job shop
- Production cells
- Flexible manufacturing systems
- Mixed lines
- Dedicated lines
Explain a job shop
When a wide range of end-products each call for a different range of materials and the possible number of the end products means they are made to order as it is uneconomic to store all of them in inventory
Explain production cells
The manufacturing process is divided into small groups that make sub-assemblies that are similar in terms of the parts or equipment used
Flexible manufacturing system
Method for procuring goods that is readily adaptable to changes in the product being manufactured or the quantity being produced
Explain mixed lines
Production lines in which small quantities of different products are made with quick changeover in set-up between production runs
What three things are often referred to as batch production
Production cells
Flexible manufacturing system
Mixed lines
Explain dedicated lines
Only a small number of products are made as the set-up costs for the production line are high
What is often referred to as mass production
Dedicated lines
Name an advantage of mixed lines
It increases efficiency and reduces the amount of inventory needed to meet demand
Name a main advantage of dedicated lines
It gives a low unit cost
Name an advantage of standardising products, materials and components
Allows a larger quantity of a product to be made at a time. This has the effect of reducing the unit cost
What concept may you use when utilising standardisation in a service company
Lean
Are the concepts of lean also applicable to manufacturing organisations?
Yes
What is the Lean design about
Maximising the value that a customer receives and at the same time minimising waste in delivering that value
Name the 5 elements of lean
- identify value
- Recognise the value stream
- Create flow
- Establish pull
- Seek perfection
Name the 6 concepts of Lean
- Lead time and process speed
- Work in progress
- Delays
- Value-add and non-value add
- Process efficiency
- Waste
Define lead time
The time it takes to deliver the product or service once the order is placed
What formula shows the relationship between lead time and the drivers of lead time (Little’s law)
Lead time = amount of work in process / average completion rate
What does process efficiency measure?
The percentage of time that work spends in value-adding activities and is a key measure of any process
What is the formula for process efficiency
Process efficiency = value-add time / total lead time
What is likely if the process efficiency is less than 10%
There is a lot of waste in the process
How to define waste
Anything that adds no value in the eyes of the customer
What is the amount of waste for an activity proportional to?
The delay that it causes
What are you likely to find if a process has not been through a lean assessment?
At least 50% of the work is non-value added
Name 3 factors that contribute to the importance of a requisition
- Value
- Complexity
- Importance to the organisation or the originating department
What is the purpose of lean
To make processes faster by eliminating non-value-add activities often referred to as waste
Name the 8 types of waste
- Over-production
- Unnecessary motion
- Waiting
- Transport and handling
- Over-processing
- Inventory
- Defects
- Skills
What is the acronym for the 8 types of waste
TIMWOODS
What does TIMWOODS stand for
Transport and handling
Inventory
Motion
Waiting
Over production
Over processing
Defects
Skills
What will eliminating waste help with
Standardising processes in any service industry
Explain what a standardised product is
One for which the organisation produces no variation
What do smaller production runs create
Higher unit costs for items produced
What does standardisation help to achieve
A consistent level of quality
Define learning curve
A graphical representation of how unit costs reduce the greater the number of those items produced
Define logarithmic scale
A scale in which the distance of a point from the scales zero is proportional to the logarithm of the number rather than the number itself
What effect does standardisation have on the learning curve?
Advantages
The time required to provide a service reduces the more times that it is delivered by the same group of workers
What does standardisation reduce the complexity of?
Operations in terms of production processes for products and delivery processes for services
What is the third level of standardisation?
Simplifying the range of parts or materials used
Explain the zero based approach
Removing everything from a production order and only putting back in what you actually need
Name 3 benefits to suppliers for standardising parts
- Reduced costs of manufacturing and logistics which allows suppliers to be more price competitive
- Increased flexibility of manufacturing operations, which improves delivery times to customers
- Freeing up of people to focus on more value-added activities rather than spending time on activities such as inventory management
Define value analysis
A systematic process for improving the value of a product, service or project
Name 2 ways that a value analysis is typically used
- To determine the value of each component used
- To find cost reduction opportunities by optimising the components used
What questions does a value analysis raise?
- What function does it perform and how much does it cost
Name 8 questions that you should ask when conducting a value analysis
- Is there a standard part?
- Can we simplify it
- Who else buys it for less
- Is there a cheaper supplier
- Is there anything better
- Is there a substitute
- Can we cut it out all together
- Can we use a cheaper process
Name the 4 steps of target costing
- Decide on the selling price the market will accept
- Decide the minimum profit level that is acceptable
- Take the profit from the selling price to arrive at the target cost
- Start a project to identify ways to reduce the current actual costs to the target level
What is a common way to identify costs?
Target costing
What framework can target costing provide?
A framework in which the supplier and the buyer agree on how much value a new service has to the buyer and how fair the cost of delivering it might be for both parties
Name 3 things that are recommended when conducting target costing
- targets must be valid
- Targets should be achievable
- The requirement for the functionality of the products and services must be defined unambiguously and stated publically
What does target costing set
Measurable objectives that are based on a logical and transparent process, ensuring suppliers are properly engaged with them
Name the 5 steps in carrying out a value analysis
- gather information
- Carry out functional analysis
- Be creative
- Evaluate
- Develop
Name 4 types of data collected in the gathering information stage of a value analysis
- Visits to see the product being produced or the service delivered
- Product drawings
- Specifications
- Any relevant reports
Name 2 types of functions
- Primary functions
- Secondary functions
Define primary function
The reason for the product/service being in existence
Define secondary function
The things the product can do in addition to its primary functions
Describe functions
A pair of words that consist of a verb and a noun
How many functions are usually identified in a value analysis?
Between 10 and 15
What does the analysis of functions, their importance and their cost result in?
A table that shows each components value index and the action that this suggests
What is an alternative to using a quality function deployment analysis
A pugh analysis
Define pugh analysis
A tool for facilitating a team based approach that converts customer expectations into a number of potential solutions and then evaluates them to choose the best one
Name the 5 step process for carrying out a pugh analysis
- Enter the current base line design
- List alternative concepts
- List key design criteria
- Determine the relative weights of the criteria
- Rank alternative concepts as better, the same or worse than baseline
What is the pugh approach in basic terms
A way to compare multiple and different options against a baseline and answer the question: which solutions are better and which are worse
What does the term creativity refer to
An abundance of ideas that are more than just superficial changes
Name 10 things that get in the way of creativity
- The right answer
- Logic
- Rules
- Being practical
- Play is frivolous
- Not my area
- Avoidance of ambiguity
- Not wanting to appear foolish
- Not wanting to fail
- A persons belief that individuals are not creative
What are the 4Ps (creativity)
- Product perspective
- Planning perspective
- People perspective
- Potential perspective
What is a useful mnemonic for a way of evaluating options
ORAPAPA
What does ORAPAPA stand for?
Opportunities
Risks
Alternatives and improvements
Past experience
Analysis
People
Alignment and ethics
Name 3 things to consider in the development stage of value analysis
- Put enough detail together that the option can be compared against the baseline solution
- Show that the value analysis team have gone into sufficient detail and with sufficient rigour to assure the final decision maker that the comparison with the baseline is valid
- Give the final decision maker the opportunity to question and challenge the detail for each
How does value engineering differ from value analysis
Value analysis is concerned with existing products or services. Value engineering uses the same techniques but is applied to new products or services
What is a useful tool for value engineering
Kano model
What is the Kano model
Simple method of deciding which functions a new product or service should have. A product or service is much more than just functionality. It is also about customers emotions
What 5 types of requirement does the Kano method identify?
- Attractive requirements
- One-dimensional or performance requirements
- Mandatory requirements
- Indifferent requirements
- Reverse requirements
Define indifferent requirements
Functions of a product/service that are of little or no relevance to a customer and so do not influence whether or not that particular company’s product/service is selected
Define reverse requirements
Functions that are perceived negatively by customers and so they have a reverse effect
Name the 4 step process for engaging with stakeholders
- Identify the stakeholders
- Understand and prioritise the stakeholders
- Prepare a stakeholder engagement plan
- Implement the plan
Name 3 ways to identify stakeholders
- Ask the sponsor of the procurement project who they believe the stakeholders are
- Consult with peers to find out who they believe the stakeholders are
- Brainstorm potential stakeholders with the project team
What can be used to summarise the role stakeholders play
RACI
What does RACI stand for
Responsible
Accountable
Consulted
Informed
Name the 3 benefits of carrying out a RACI (what it identifies and clarifies)
- What people think their roles in writing the specification are
- What others think these roles are and who should do them
- What people actually do when they carry out their specification writing tasks
What is a commonly used stakeholder analysis tool?
Stakeholder analysis matrix - mendelow
What does the mendelow stakeholder analysis matrix involve?
Involve, collaborate, inform, consult
Based on level of interest and influence
What else should you prepare to cover the RACI groups?
Communication plan
Name the 10 key steps for implementing a communication plan (Association for project management)
- Understand what people will be engaged with at each stage of the project
- Consult early and often
- Be aware of stakeholder behaviour and what might be causing a particular reaction
- Plan the stakeholder engagement beforehand and talk to colleagues about possible reactions to the engagement
- Build trust with stakeholders
- Use foresight to identify potential problems with communications and engagement and plan a way around them
- Treat stakeholders as a potential source of risk and opportunity for the project and take action accordingly
- If there are multiple stakeholders there is likely to be a difference of opinion between them as to the project’s priorities and outcomes
- Decide what success means for different stakeholders and keep this in mind when preparing communications
- Take responsibility for telling everyone involved what their roles are and what is expected of them
