|
|
|
|
|
|
Subscribe to Our Newsletter &
Get Loads of FREE Lean Content!
|
- Home
- Lean Training System
- Products & Services
- Lean Information
- Key Lean Terms
- About Velaction
|
|
High School Math and Lean |
|
Let’s break out a little high school math and talk about a difference between shop floor cycle times and the time it takes to do work in the office.
Cycle time on the shop floor is fairly straightforward. There is a time that a task takes, plus a little more time for every option that is installed.
In the office, though, cycle time often follows the formula Y=mX + b. For those of you with a sharp memory, that’s the formula for a line.
In this case, ‘b’ is the time it takes to do the standard part of the work unit (filling out shipping and payment information on an order, for example). ‘X’ is the number of time drivers, like line items on an order, accounts to validate on a loan application, or images to add to a piece of marketing collateral. The ‘m’ is the time per item. When you calculate this all out, you get a total time for the specific size of the work unit, or your ‘Y’ value.
Having a good understanding of this formula helps keep you from chasing your tail. If there is a lot of variation on the input to a process, there will also be a lot of variation on the output. Sometimes that variation is not a bad thing, as in the case of more lines on an order. The key is to always be looking at your process to gain a full understanding of what is happening. When you know what is really going on, your continuous improvement efforts will be much more fruitful.
Share Your Thoughts |No comments|
© 2009-2012 by Velaction Continuous Improvement, LLC. All rights reserved.
Other Information You May Be Interested In...
- You worry that the bar is set too high. The concept of continuous improvement is that there is always an opportunity to get better. Sometimes, though, team members question how much better they can get. The truth is that...
- Cycle Time Reduction Cycle time reduction is the strategy of lowering the time it takes to perform a process in order to improve productivity. In addition, cycle time reduction often improves quality. When...
- It’s About Time! Actually, this article really is about time. In Lean operations, there are many, many, many references to time. This is a comprehensive list of time terms you may run across...
- Benchmark Lean: Difficulties Copying the Toyota Production System. Lean TPS Information. To some, Toyota might seem surprisingly open with its Lean TPS information. After all, Lean TPS is the primary reason for Toyota’s success and recent dominance in the auto industry....
- Lead Time In the most common definition, lead time is the time that elapses from when a customer places an order until the order is received. Some variations on the definition of...
- Line Balancing Line balancing is the act of balancing the cycle times of the workers on a production line to the takt time. When everyone has a cycle time that matches the...
Login
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Register to get access to great user only content...
A Downloadable Lean Reference Guide
*Hundreds of Pages*
*Customizable*
Lean Forms and Tools
*25 Free Forms*
User Updates
*New Content Updates*
*User-only specials*
Checking Your Lean Progress
(5/23/2012, 9:10 AM-10:00 AM PDT)
 |
PowerPoint Presentations From $8.99 |
 |
DVDs of Narrated PowerPoint Presentations From $24.99 |
 |
Lean Tutorials From $8.95 |
 |
Lego Exercises From $69.00 |
 |
Improvement Forms FREE |
 |
Webinars FREE and Up |
| Download FREE Lean Training Now! |
|
|
|
NOTE: You will receive a confirmation email with a link that you'll have to click to activate your subscription. Once complete, you'll have access to your free downloads. We promise never to sell, rent, trade, or share your email with any other organization! |
Learn more about what's going on in the Lean community, and right here at Velaction. Plus, check out our special offers.