Both Value Engineering/Value Analysis (VE/VA) and Lean Manufacturing efforts are all about saving you money and improving the value of whatever it is you do or produce. Using the well known Value formula, Value = Function/Cost, the goal is obviously to reduce cost (the denominator) and increase quality and performance (the numerator).
A typical VE/VA project will yield, on average, 5%-25% immediate cost reduction. The point in the product development and manufacturing cycle at which the study is done defines the difference between VE and VA. Value Analysis studies focus on existing products and/or manufacturing processes.
Because we know that up to 80% of the total product cost is locked in once the design is finalized, Value Engineering studies, done before capital expenditure, give the biggest bang for the buck. Preventing unnecessary costs early on by designing for manufacturing and assembly obviously gives C-Level Execs more options. Of course, every VE/VA study begins with analysis of the current design and processes.
A successful VE/VA study requires engineering, purchasing and manufacturing to work closely together. We’ve often been told that those relationships were permanently improved as a result of our workshops. We not sure how to quantify that, but we are very sure it’s valuable.
Lean Manufacturing is a management philosophy derived mostly from the Toyota Production System which led to Toyota’s growth to the world’s largest automaker.
Lean Manufacturing, Lean Production, Lean Enterprise or simply “Lean” is a production practice that considers the expenditure of resources for any goal other than the creation of value for the end customer to be wasteful, and thus a target for elimination. Working from the perspective of the customer that consumes a product or service, “value” is defined as any action or process that a customer would be willing to pay for. Essentially, Lean is focused on preserving value with less work.
Our Lean Workshop participants are the workers who run machinery, assemble, sort, inspect or distribute parts. Team leaders/supervisors can either attend with their teams, or can attend a more extensive workshop specifically designed for them.
