Published by:
Harvard Business Publishing
Length: 2 pages
Topics:
Business processes; Process analysis
Abstract
When you are trying to improve a manufacturing or service process, don''t rely on your intuition. Instead, use process analytics--the study of the processes used in manufacturing or services--to construct a workflow for the first several units produced. The key metrics to watch: 1) the bottleneck, or the most time-consuming step in the process; 2) the cycle time or time elapsed between completion of successive units; 3) the utilization; and 4) the start-to-finish time, or throughput. Then test alternate scenarios to determine maximum efficiency.
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Abstract
When you are trying to improve a manufacturing or service process, don''t rely on your intuition. Instead, use process analytics--the study of the processes used in manufacturing or services--to construct a workflow for the first several units produced. The key metrics to watch: 1) the bottleneck, or the most time-consuming step in the process; 2) the cycle time or time elapsed between completion of successive units; 3) the utilization; and 4) the start-to-finish time, or throughput. Then test alternate scenarios to determine maximum efficiency.