Supply Chain/Value Stream Map

In the context of the theory of constraints, John and Richard at HMC have determined that the subassembly area within its plant is the bottleneck or constraint that is affecting its ability to deliver the quantities being ordered by the customer. The subassembly area process requires 24 hours to supply the parts. Depending on the mix of products scheduled to be built in the main assembly area, if the required parts are not available from the suppliers or molding department, production interruptions begin to occur in as little as 18 hours. Create a value stream map of the process and submit it with a report (900 words) with suggestions for removing the constraint.

The following are the process steps for the subassembly area:

1.Orders from main assembly area are received at 8:00 a.m.

2.Subassembly supervisors translate orders into a subassembly area schedule (2 hours).

3.After creating the schedule, components are ordered from the warehouse. It usually takes 2 hours to send the faxes and e-mails. The components arrive at the subassembly area 4 hours after the order is placed.

4.After receiving the order from the warehouse, the on-hand components are shipped to the subassembly area (4 hours), any shortages are noted, and any missing parts from the order are expedited from the appropriate supplier and usually arrive within 12 hours.

5.After ordering parts from the warehouse, the supervisor orders the molded parts required from the molding department. It takes the molding department 4 hours to put the correct tools in the machines and then 8 hours to produce the required parts and move them to the subassembly area.

6.After receiving and verifying all of the required molded parts and supplier components, the subassembly process begins (2 hours). Completed subassemblies are then sent to the main assembly area within 4 hours.