PA1 Process

Mapping Tools

OBJECTIVES
Process Analysis
Process Mapping Tools
Process Flow Charts
Swim-Lane Process Charts
Service Blue-Prints
Process Charts

Process Performance Metrics

Other Process Performance Metrics Pertaining to Process Quality

What is Process Analysis?

Process: Is any part of an
organization that takes inputs and
transforms them into outputs.
Process Analysis: The set of
tools used to identify
opportunities for improvement,
document current processes,
evaluate processes to find
performance gaps, redesign
processes, and implement
desired changes.

In More Rigorous Terms

Process Analysis: Seeks to understand the process
performance including:
Output capacity (cycle time & throughput rate)
Resource utilization
Productivity
Efficiency

Process Analysis Steps

Process Mapping
and Its Tools

Process Mapping
Process Mapping is the implementation of a set of tools, which help us

Visually represent the process

Obtain a common understanding of the entire process and specific
roles and contributions of process participants.
Streamlining work activities and telling new people, as well as internal
and external customers, "what we do around here."

We need Process Mapping because

If you want to improve something, first, you should understand it; and process
mapping helps us understand the processes

It enables us to identify problem areas and opportunities for process

improvement
Help our efforts to reduce cycle time, avoid rework, eliminate some
inspections or quality control steps, and prevent errors.

Process Mapping Tools 1:

PROCESS FLOWCHARTING
Process flowcharting is the use of a diagram to present
the major elements of a process. The basic elements
can include tasks or operations, flows of materials or
customers, decision points, and storage areas or queues.
It is an ideal methodology by which to begin analyzing a
process.

Flowchart Symbols
Tasks or operations

Decision Points

Examples: Giving an
admission ticket to a
customer, installing a
engine in a car, etc.
Examples: How much
change should be
given to a customer,
which wrench should
be used, etc.

Flowchart Symbols (Continued)

Storage areas or
queues

Examples: Sheds,
lines of people waiting
for a service, etc.

Flows of
materials or
customers

Examples: Customers
moving to the a seat,
mechanic getting a
tool, etc.

Example: Circored Iron

Processing Plant

Example: Circored Iron

Processing Plant
1.

The first step is the preheating stage where the iron ore is taken from the storage and
heated and dried. The heating is achieved through pressurized air, which fluidizes the
ore up to 850-900 Celcius.

2.

A large bucket elevator transports the ore to the lock hopper. This consists of 3
containers separated by double isolation valves. Their role is to allow the transition of
the ore from an oxygen-rich environment to a hydrogen atmosphere

3.

The ore enters the circulating fluid bed reactor (1st reactor). Here the actual reduction
starts. The ore should stay in the reactor for 15 minutes

4.

Material flows to the stationary fluid bed reactor (2nd reactor). This takes about 4 hours.
The reactor can contain 400 tons of the hot iron ore at any given time.

5.

Reduced iron enters the flash heater, in which a high-velocity hydrogen carries DRI to
the top of the plant while simultaneously reheating it to 685 Celcius.

6.

The DRI enters pressure let-down system (discharger). In the discharger, the hydrogen
atmosphere is gradually replaced by inert nitrogen gas. Sensors here assure that the
leaving material is free of hydrogen for briquetting

7.

Each of the three briquetting machines contains two wheels that turn against each
other, each wheel having the negative one-half of the briquette on its face. The DRI is
poured onto the the wheels and is pressed into briquettes, or iron bars, and moved to
the finished goods inventory

Multistage Process
Iron
ore

briquetting

FG

preheater

discharge

lockhopper

Flash heater

First reactor

Second
reactor

Technical
Supplement
Generic Manufacturing Processes

Types of Manufacturing
Processes
Make to Stock

Make to Order
Hybrid

Make-to-Stock Processes
Process activated to meet expected or forecast
demand.

Customer orders are served from target stocking level.

Examples:

Make-to-Stock
Customer
Order

Raw
Material

Cook

Assemble

Finished
burgers

Deliver

Make-to-order Processes
Only activated in response to an actual order.

Both work-in-process and finished goods inventory kept to a

minimum.

Examples:

Make-to-Order
Customer
Order
Raw
Material

Cook

Assemble

Deliver

Customer
Order
Raw
Material

Cook

Finished
burgers

Assemble

Deliver

Hybrid
Assemble
Custom

Raw
Material

Cook

WIP

Customer
Order

Assemble

Custom
or
Standard?

Deliver
Standard

Finished
burgers

Research Assignment
In contemporary businesses, MTS and MTO have much
further implications than just process types.
The distinction between the two approaches and their
hybrid implementations now govern how corporations
decide their operations strategies and design the
production systems and (even) their supply chains.
Search from the web about this.
You should also find other X-to-Order strategies and their
applications.

Swim Lane Flowchart

Swim Lane Flowchart A visual representation that groups functional areas
responsible for different sub-processes into lanes.

Service Blueprints
Service Blueprint A special flowchart of a service process that shows
which steps have high customer contact.

Process Charts
Process Charts - An organized way to document all the
activities performed by a person or group
Activities are typically organized into five categories
Operation,
Transportation,

Inspection,
Delay,
Storage,

Process Charts Example

Step
No.

Time
(min)

Distance
(ft)

0.50

15.0

10.00

0.75

3.00

0.75

1.00

1.00

4.00

5.00

10

2.00

11

3.00

12

2.00

13

3.00

14

2.00

15

1.00

16

4.00

17

2.00

18

4.00

19

1.00

Enter emergency room, approach patient window

Sit down and fill out patient history

Nurse escorts patient to ER triage room

X
40.0

X
40.0

Nurse inspects injury

Return to waiting room

X

60.0

Nurse takes patient to radiology

Technician x-rays patient

X

Return to bed in ER
X

X
60.0
X

Return to emergency entrance area

Check out

X
X

20.0

Wait for doctor to return

Doctor provides diagnosis and advice

180.0

Wait for doctor

Doctor inspects injury and questions patient

200.0

Wait for available bed

Go to ER bed

X
200.0

Step Description

Walk to pharmacy
Pick up prescription

Leave the building

Process Charts Example

Step
No.

Time
(min)

Distance
(ft)

0.50

15.0

10.00

0.75

3.00

0.75

1.00

1.00

4.00

5.00

10

2.00

11

3.00

12

2.00

13

3.00

14

2.00

15

1.00

16

4.00

17

2.00

18

4.00

19

1.00

Enter emergency room, approach patient window

Sit down and fill out patient history

X
40.0

Nurse escorts patient to ER triage room

Nurse inspects injury

X
40.0

Return to waiting room

X
X

60.0

Nurse takes patient to radiology

Technician x-rays patient

Return to bed in ER

X
X

Walk to pharmacy
Pick up prescription

X
20.0

Return to emergency entrance area

Check out

X
180.0

Wait for doctor to return

Doctor provides diagnosis and advice

X
60.0

Wait for doctor

Doctor inspects injury and questions patient

200.0

Wait for available bed

Go to ER bed

200.0

Step Description

Leave the building

Process Charts Example

Summary
Number
of Steps

Activity
Operation

Transport
Inspect
Delay
Store

Time
(min)

23.00

11.00

8.00

8.00

Distance
(ft)

815

Process Charts

The annual cost of an entire process can be estimated

It is the product of
1) Time in hours to perform the process each time

2) Variable costs per hour

3) Number of times the process is performed each year

Annual
labor cost

Time to perform
the process in hours

Variable costs Number of times process

per hour
performed each year

Process Charts Example

If the average time to serve a customer is 4 hours

The variable cost is $25 per hour

And 40 customers are served per year

The total labor cost is

4 hrs/customer $25/hr 40 customers/yr = $4,000

The Simple Input-Process-Output

(IPO) Diagram
A useful tool to learn is the Input Process - Output (IPO)
diagram - a high level snapshot view of what a process looks
like.
The diagram simply lists all
of the transformed and
transforming input
resources on one side of
the chart

All of the output

products or services are
listed on the right hand
side.

Then the process steps are listed or

drawn in the middle.

IPO Exercise
Draw an Input Process Output diagram for an operation
that you are familiar with.
1 The main outputs of

an operation are
easier to determine.

Classify the Input Resources.

Which ones are transforming
resources, and which ones
are transformed?

List the Input

Resources.

Draw or list the high level

steps in the process in the
middle section.

Who Else are Involved In / Affected From

the Process?: Suppliers & Customers
Sometimes we need to look beyond the boundary of our own business
and consider the inputs coming from outside. We should also consider our
customers; how do they experience the end results of the process?

OUTPUTS

PROCESS

INPUTS

SUPPLIERS

Most inputs to a process

originate from external suppliers
beyond the operation.

CUSTOMERS

OPERATIONS ENVIRONMENT

Some outputs from the process

will go to internal customers
and some may go to external
ones.

The SIPOC Diagram

We can extend the IPO diagram to a SIPOC diagram. For
each input we list its origins, and for each output its
customer(s).

Suppliers
The suppliers
are the
individuals,
departments, or
organisations
that provide the
materials,
information, or
other
transformed
resources that
are worked on in
the process.

Inputs
The inputs are
the information
or materials
provided by the
suppliers.
Inputs are
transformed,
consumed, or
otherwise used
by the process.

Process

Outputs

Customer

The process is
the steps or
tasks that
transform the
inputs into
outputs: the
final products or
services.

The outputs are

the products or
services that
result from the
process, and the
important
requirements
that the
customers need.

The customers
are the
individuals,
departments, or
organisations
that receive the
outputs, the
products or
services,
generated by
the process.

Who Else are Involved In / Affected From

the Process?: Suppliers & Customers
Feedback information is used to control the process by adjusting the
timings, quantity, quality or cost of input resources and regulating the
processes that are used to achieve desired outputs.

OPERATIONS ENVIRONMENT

CUSTOMERS

OUTPUTS

PROCESS

INPUTS

SUPPLIERS

A Good SIPOC Template

A Completed SIPOC Example

Suppliers

Input

Process

Output

Customers

Data Warehouse
Data Extracts
Data Cubes
Reports
Infrastructure
Reporting Software

Senior Management
Business Owners
Report Consumers
Senior IT Management
IT Staff

Process description:
Developing a Data Warehouse
Project Manager
Vendors
IT Staff
Source Systems
Project Manager
Hardware Vendors
Project Manager
Software Vendors
IT Consultants
Source Systems

Flat Files
Project Description
RFP Goal
Requirements
Project Description
RFP Goal
Requirements

Develope
Data
Warehouse

Procure
Hardware

Procure
Software

Metrics
Time to Load
Terabytes Loaded
Cost Goals/Restraints
Time to Load
Terabytes Loaded

Metrics
# of Steps
# of Automated Steps
Time to Complete Process
Time to Complete Process
# of Steps
# of Automated Steps
Time to Complete Process

Metrics
Data Integrity
Report Usage
Cost of Package
Cost of Hardware
Cost of Maintenance
Cost of Packaged
Software
Data Integrity
Report Usage
Cost of Package
Cost of Staff

Steps to Prepare SIPOC Diagram

1

Prepare for the exercise by briefing those involved and by explaining the SIPOC
process to the group members.

Agree the scope and limitations of the study, especially the

starting and ending events for the process.

Begin by drawing in the process steps at high level,

using 10 to 20 steps of your process.

Discuss the output requirements of the process

and determine who your customers are. Add
these to the chart.

Brainstorm the inputs to each step of the process.

Add the suppliers for each of the inputs.

Process
Performance
Metrics

Process Terminology
Bottleneck

Occurs when the limited capacity of a

process causes work to pile up or become
unevenly distributed in the flow of a process
If an employee works too slow in a multi-stage
process, work will begin to pile up in front of
that employee. In this case, the employee
represents the limited capacity causing the
bottleneck.

Process Performance Metrics

Process Capacity: the amount that a process can
produce in a given unit of time.

Important: It is not how much a process produces, it is

how much it CAN produce.

Process Capacity depends on the capacity of each

stage in a process

Process Performance Metrics

Process Capacity = Bottleneck Capacity

Process Performance Metrics

Flow Rate: is the amount that a process
produces in a unit time. A.k.a. the
throughput rate
Cycle Time: inverse of flow rate. The time
between two successive completion of
products. (Meaningful for discrete
processes)

Cycle Time = 1/Flow Rate

 Throughput Time

the time it takes for one product in the process.

Process Performance Metrics

Flow Rate = min{Available Input, Demand,

Process Capacity}

Supply- vs Demand-Constrained
Supply constrained

Demand constrained

Bottleneck

Bottleneck

(Capacity)

Input

(Capacity)

Input

Flow Rate

Flow Rate

Demand
Excess

Excess

capacity

capacity
Demand

Figure: Supply constrained (left) and demand constrained (right) process

Process Performance Metrics

Work In Process Inventory: Inventory
generated during the process. It consists of
finished and unfinished products, parts, and
components.

Other Process
Performance Metrics
Pertaining to Quality

Other Metrics
Process Capability Index (PCI)

Defect Rate
Process Variation

Data Analysis Tools for Measuring

and Ensuring Process Quality
Checklists

Histograms and bar charts

Pareto charts
Scatter diagrams
Cause-and-effect diagrams (Fishbone)
Graphs

An Example to Introduce the

Data Analysis Tools
The operations manager for Checker Board
Airlines at Port Columbus International Airport
noticed an increase in the number of delayed
flight departures.

Draw a Fishbone Diagram to determine the

root cause of the problem of Delayed Flight
Departures.

Fishbone Diagram
Equipment

Other
Weather

Personnel

Aircraft late to gate

Passenger processing at gate

Mechanical failures

Late cabin cleaners

Unavailable cockpit crew

Air traffic delays

Late cabin crew

Delayed
flight
departures

Late baggage to aircraftPoor announcement of departures

Weight/balance sheet late

Late fuel
Late food service

Materials

Delayed check-in procedure

Contractor not
provided with
updated schedule

Waiting for late passengers

Procedures

Further Investigation
The Wellington Fiber Board Company produces
headliners, the fiberglass components that form the inner
roof of passenger cars. Management wanted to identify
which process failures were most prevalent and to find
the cause.

Step 1: Prepare the Checklist For Last Months

Failures and the Pareto Chart

Checklist

Bar Chart

Pareto Chart

Step 2: Prepare a Fishbone Diagram and Bar

Chart

Fishbone Diagram

Bar Chart

An Important Warning For the

Scope of This Course
In this course, we will mainly focus on the analysis and
improvement of processes from the perspective of the
first group of performance metrics such as process
capacity, utilization, costs, and times.
The study of process analysis and improvement for
quality will be covered in other courses.

Questions??