The Design & Engineering team at Clarke Energy took part in an event this week as part of a lean continuous improvement approach to driving positive change, something we plan to roll out throughout the business.
Continuous Improvement Event – Brown paper Process Mapping Event (Value Stream Map).
Team Involved – Design & Engineering Department.
First Objective – To illustrate and document a process or work flow on a large sheet of paper of what the team currently do, understanding of the inputs, outputs, interactions (internal / external), tasks and sequencing of work.
Second Objective – To Understand the accuracy of the process flow mapping vs the actual written process, to also gain an understanding of all of the steps involved in the process, identify/detect problems & concerns, such as areas of miscommunication, blockades, missing steps, none added value steps, risks, opportunities for Improvement.
Third Objective & Deliverable – To map out the future state, fix all of the problems, implement the improvement goals, mitigate risks, plan and agree new metrics, communicate the LEAN transformation to the department and wider audience. At the end of the project, the, new process map, process documents, standard work instructions, ancillary templates and forms, and training documents will be captured to reflect the new state. The new process state will be monitored for effectiveness periodically, consistent with our continuous improvement practices.
Benefits – Fostering collaboration and shared understanding of problem solving and identifying new opportunities, encourages teams to work together, Inspires teams to embrace positive changes, sense of achievement – great motivator.
