Theory of Constraints Handbook - James Cox Iii [638]
TABLE 33-1 Assumptions of the Growth versus Stability Cloud
TABLE 33-2 Potential Injections of the Growth versus Stability Cloud
Breakthrough Injection
The breakthrough injection is selected by finding a single strategic injection that will satisfy all the individual injections and lead to all the needed desirable effects described to this point. A breakthrough injection is defined as everyone in the organization who has a significant impact on Throughput is measured by the same simple measure (that aligns all the actions of the organization with the goals of the organization).
Concepts in Organization Complexity
In order to understand this breakthrough injection and further define it, let’s first review some important concepts associated with organizations as a whole and particularly associated with complex organizations. The four Supply Chain Flow Concepts developed by Henry Ford and Taiichi Ohno and interpreted by Eliyahu M. Goldratt (2009)6 are:
1. Improving flow (or equivalently lead time) is a primary objective of operations.
2. This primary objective should be translated into a practical mechanism that guides the operation when not to produce (prevents overproduction). Ford used space; Ohno used inventory.
3. Local efficiencies must be abolished.
4. A focusing process to balance flow must be in place. Ford used direct observation. Ohno used the gradual reduction in the number of containers and then gradual reduction of parts per container.
In complex organizations, the difficulty of achieving even the first Supply Chain Flow Concept is compounded by the existence of many interdependent specialists, departments, plants, offices, and resource pools. Keeping them synchronized is very difficult. Any optimization effort is short-lived. Before we talk about how the four concepts can be implemented, we need to be clear about two things—the types of activities performed within organizational units and the types of flows across unit boundaries.
Categories of Activities
Each resource or person will perform one or more of the following five types of activities:
Day-to-day production—generally to meet current demand (Current T)
Project activities—work on approved and scheduled projects (generally Future T)
Idea development—work on developing ideas for future projects (Potential Future T)
Support activities—to support the functioning of the unit or organization (very indirect relationship to T)
Idle time—protective capacity (protects Current and Future T)
The mix of activities varies from unit to unit and, within units, from resource to resource. Most employees and machines in a manufacturing plant would have day-to-day activities related to current Throughput but might be called upon occasionally to contribute to projects. A quality control specialist in a manufacturing plant may spend 40 percent of her time on quality monitoring for current production and 40 percent on new product development projects to which her department has committed. Most of the resources of a development department might work entirely on either project activities related to approved projects or developing ideas for future projects, but would not have any day-to-day processing responsibilities related to current Throughput. See Fig. 33-6 for some examples of time allocations for different resources.
In some units or departments, many resources will have a very direct impact on Throughput, while in other departments resources may have a very indirect effect on Throughput at best. We will use this relationship to Throughput later in this chapter to determine how departments should be measured, but for now Table 33-3 shows