Value Stream Map (VSM)

Value Stream Mapping Steps

The first step in value stream mapping is to create a current state map. This map can help identify waste such as delays, restrictions, inefficiencies, and excess inventories. These are then eliminated in the ideal state map, which gives the organization a working plan to achieve lean efficiency.

Value stream maps are most commonly used in lean manufacturing, but identifying the value stream—the sequence of activities required to design, produce, or provide goods and services to customers—is a beneficial practice for any company in any industry. Value stream maps are used in healthcare, software development, supply chain logistics, even government and service industries. Regardless of industry, the main goal of a value stream map is to visually record information such as:

• Work and wait times along each step in a process
• Labor needs at individual work steps, including the identification of overtime, if necessary
• Error rates at individual work steps
• Downtime at individual work steps
• Inventory excess or shortfall
• Production or process delays

How to Make a Value Stream Map

Start by mapping the current state. This map illustrates working on and completing a specific product (or project). View it as a high-level look at the flow of work for that project. Value stream maps do not consider the amount of time people are working on different projects outside of the one focused within the value stream map. With that in mind, there is no single way to create a value stream map but there are generally six steps to follow. What we are after is current information, not historical data.

1. Identify the product or process. That is, what is it that you wish to map? If multiple products are involved, you may want to start with those with the highest value, volume, or potential.
2. Define the scope of the mapping project. Most value stream maps follow the production process from supplier to customer. Some map the supply chain, which would continue upstream to raw materials.
3. Map the process steps. This may take some time and will certainly require "working the floor." Some document the process from customer back to supplier, others go from start to finish. We are not breaking down tasks; these are the major steps in the operations performed on the product.
4. Include information flow. How does communication flow during the order, production, and delivery steps?
5. Collect process data. This will require some effort to develop a clear understanding of important aspects of each step in the process. Some of the data needed may include:
   • Inventory
   • Cycle time (how long it takes to make one unit of product)
   • Actual work time versus unused/wait time (including number of operators, shifts, etc.)
   • Machine uptime and downtime
   • Unnecessary movement (of items, material, and workers), scrap rate, etc.
6. Create a time line. This information tells us about total process time, inventory demands, and total lead time. This usually shows how lead times may be considerably longer than processing times, indicating how much waste exists in the system.

Learn more about creating value stream maps with SmartDraw.