A data sheet for a current-state value stream map, plus a legend of the common symbols to draw it with. Enter each process step and the inventory in front of it, and the sheet works out takt time, inventory days, total lead time, processing time and process cycle efficiency.
New templates, charts and calculators for quality and manufacturing engineers, when they ship.
Manufacturing and industrial engineers, lean leads and supervisors mapping one product family from raw material to shipping, usually as a small cross-functional team walking the floor.
Tip: Draw the first map by hand on a long sheet of paper during the walk. Use the spreadsheet for the numbers, not as a replacement for going to see.
Header
Product family, available working time per day, customer demand per day, mapped by and date
Process steps
Step number, name, cycle time, changeover, uptime and operators
Inventory
Units waiting before each step, converted to days of demand
Takt check
Each cycle time compared with takt time, with steps over takt highlighted
Timeline
Total lead time, total processing time, process cycle efficiency and operators
These are the symbols most value stream maps use. The drawings are simplified; what matters is that everyone on the team reads them the same way.
| Symbol | Name | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Supplier or customer | An outside company: the supplier on the upper left, the customer on the upper right. | |
| Process box | One step where material flows continuously. A new box starts wherever inventory builds up. | |
| Data box | Sits under a process box: cycle time, changeover, uptime, operators. | |
| Inventory | Material waiting between steps, with the count and the days it represents. | |
| Push arrow | Material moved to the next step on a schedule, whether the next step needs it or not. | |
| Supermarket | A controlled stock the downstream step pulls from, refilled by the upstream step. | |
| FIFO lane | A capped queue between steps, worked first in, first out. | |
| Shipment | A truck delivery to or from the plant, with its frequency. | |
| Manual information flow | A paper schedule, traveler or verbal instruction. | |
| Electronic information flow | Orders, forecasts or schedules sent through a system or EDI. | |
| Operator | People at a step; write the head count next to it. | |
| Kaizen burst | An improvement idea placed where the problem is on the map. | |
| Timeline | The ladder along the bottom: waiting time in days on the upper rungs, processing time in seconds on the lower ones. |
Example Current-state data for a turned pin family at Example Precision Co., a fictional machine shop. One shift with 27,000 s (7.5 h) of available time and a demand of 600 pins per day. Every figure is invented for illustration.
| # | Step | C/T (s) | C/O (min) | Uptime | Inventory before | Inventory days | vs takt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saw cut | 18 | 15 | 95% | 1,800 | 3.0 | Within takt |
| 2 | CNC turning | 48 | 45 | 85% | 1,200 | 2.0 | Over takt |
| 3 | Deburr | 30 | 0 | 100% | 900 | 1.5 | Within takt |
| 4 | Inspect and pack | 25 | 0 | 100% | 600 | 1.0 | Within takt |
| 5 | Ship (finished goods) | — | — | — | 1,500 | 2.5 | — |
| Takt time | 45 s |
|---|---|
| Total lead time | 10.0 days |
| Total processing time | 121 s |
| Process cycle efficiency | 0.045% |
| Steps over takt | 1 (CNC turning) |
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Available working time per day (s) | Shift time minus breaks and planned stops, in seconds, for all shifts that run. | 27000 |
| Customer demand per day | Average daily demand for the whole product family over the planning period. | 600 |
| Cycle time (s) | Observed time between parts leaving the step, timed on the floor. | 48 |
| Changeover (min) | Time from the last good part of one job to the first good part of the next. | 45 |
| Uptime (%) | Share of available time the step can actually run. | 85 |
| Inventory before step | Units counted waiting in front of the step on the day of the walk. Count, do not estimate from the system. | 1200 |
| Inventory days (calculated) | Inventory ÷ daily demand: how long a new part waits there. | 2.0 |
| vs takt (calculated) | Flags steps whose cycle time is longer than takt. These limit flow. | Over takt |
A one-page picture of how material and information flow for one product family, from supplier to customer, with a timeline that separates waiting time from processing time.
Because parts spend days waiting and only seconds being worked on. Values well under 1% are common in batch production. The low figure shows where to look, not that the plant is failing.
Divide the units waiting by the daily customer demand. 1,200 parts with a demand of 600 per day is 2 days of waiting for a new part.
Current state first, from the floor. The future state is designed from what the current-state map reveals, then turned into an action plan.
No. Paper and pencil on the walk, then this sheet for the numbers, is enough for most maps. Software helps when you maintain many maps.
COPLAIN AI PLATFORM
Coplain writes the standard work for your future-state value stream, so the improvements from the map stick on the floor.
Generate yours automatically with Coplain →