Why Should I Learn Six Sigma Processes?
Lean Six Sigma is an altered form of the Six Sigma process. Although it has the basic fundamentals of Six Sigma, Lean has a few differences that set it apart from basic Six Sigma Training. Knowing the difference can prove to add more to your quality improvement projects then you would have ever thought possible.
There are eight elements of waste that Lean Six Sigma focuses on. It has been proven that once these areas are removed from a company, their quality has improved. The following is a list of what the Lean process considers to be waste and examples to each area.
-Wasted Human Talent: Anyone that is without a specific job function or who’s work may be slowing the process down.
-Defects: Any product or process that is not working properly. Before they can be eliminated, however, they will require a fixable solution.
-Inventory: Too much product waiting to be worked. This can also refer to too many patients in a doctors waiting room, for example.
-Overproduction: Having to much of something before it is needed may be harmful to the organization and efficiency of the operation you are working in.
-Wasted time: Waiting on product to arrive, idle time that could be better spent on various processes or activities. Having five employees standing around waiting to unload a truck that hasn’t arrived is a good example.
-Motion: Simply put, too much unnecessary movement by people. For example, a clinic that sends patients to triage when they have booked appointments is wasted movement because they can go straight to the exam room.
-Transportation: Ineffective transportation that moves people and products can be wasteful when it isn’t needed. Imagine a warehouse using a forklift to deliver items across the factory to a truck, when the production line could be streamlined to deliver right into the truck off of the line.
-Process Waste: Things that have to be done, but don’t add value to the process, product, or service at hand. For example, a bank manager has to process a lot of paperwork, but this doesn’t help customers or increase the banks ability to serve those customers in most cases.
Understanding these areas of waste will assist you company with enhancing the quality of the projects you produce.
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