What is Value Stream Mapping (VSM)?

Value Stream MappingValue Stream Mapping is a tool derived from the management philosophy Lean Manufacturing. Nowadays, the use of the fundamentals of lean production coupled with the Six Sigma becomes the most innovative current management system: the Lean Six Sigma.

The basic premise of Lean Six Sigma is to increase in a structured and exponential way the performance of an organization at all levels. However, to achieve this, one of the first tools used to improve any industry or process is the Value Stream Map.

So what, after all, is Value Stream Mapping?

The Value Stream Map is a simple diagram of all the steps involved in material and information movements to assist customers in their buying progress. It can be designed in different phases and reveals opportunities for improvement.

The purpose of a value stream map is to identify, from the customer's point of view, which processes add or not value to the marketed product. Eliminating or mitigating these dynamics provides the increased competitive advantage of any business.

Nowadays, customers no longer accept to pay for waste. They want to invest in products that have high utilization.

Lean Six Sigma is a methodology that seeks to increase the profitability of companies through the improvement of their processes.

Thinking about you and your career, we, at Think Lean Six Sigma, created a FREE Yellow Belt training in Lean Six Sigma.In this training, we will introduce you to the DMAIC method and all its 5 steps, namely: "Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control.

With this course, you will be able to develop small improvement projects within your area of expertise and work with Green Belts and Black Belts in support of the Lean Six Sigma program.

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The 5 Reasons for You to Use Value Stream Mapping in Your Process

1. Facilitates identification of key industry and business processes

As we know, industries have different production capacity variations per operation.

Finding out which processes are the most critical and their impact on the final product can provide you the information you need to manage your sector, and even the entire company.

2. Motivates the drastic reduction of the waste found in the process

One of the benefits of adopting the use of the Value Stream Map (MFV) is the possibility of finding more precisely the innumerable activities that do not add value to what is being produced.

Combating these wastes brings greater productivity to the process, which in turn makes the company more flexible and competitive.

3. Helps structuring a system of performance indicators

Have you heard the phrase "only what's managed gets better?" Before applying and developing any improvement in the manufacturing environment, even administrative, it's very important to establish in advance what performance indicators will be used to verify the effect of the applied solutions.

Now imagine all the positive impact that the Value Stream Map can bring to your KPI's management system. Pretty high, isn't it?

4. Promotes effective implementation of improvements

In recent years, effectiveness has been a very well-used concept in the business environment. This, coupled with the result, seeks to measure the accuracy and precision of the improvement actions performed to achieve a certain goal.

To be effective in solving problems and opportunities in your company, knowing where to turn your focus of action is vitally important - and this becomes possible through the value stream map.

5. Increasing levels of business sustainability

With the market increasingly competition, seeking to react to the constant variations in demand and to the impact that technological progress brings to the industrial environment is certainly no longer the ideal solution.

Seeking proactivity with the implementation of programs and methodologies that promote business sustainability is fundamental to ensure the permanence and survival of the company in this scenario.

Do you want to learn more about Lean Six Sigma?

With this kit you will receive 3 templates to

analyse and present the KPI's from your company.

See below which presentation templates

are included in this kit.