VSM glossary of terms
This reference defines the value stream mapping (VSM) data points and timeline metrics, and how the derived values are calculated.
Diagram-defined custom properties with entered values
Name | Custom Data Type | Definition |
|---|---|---|
Availability % | Percent | The percentage of time operators are available for this step in the process. |
Changeover Time | Duration | The time taken to change from producing one type of product to another type of product. Assumed to be the average accumulated Change Over (C/O) time per shift. |
Defect % | Percent | The percentage of flawed products discarded at a step. Used to calculate Timeline data type Rolled Throughput Yield. |
Inventory time | Duration | The amount of time spent in inventory. Combined with Inventory Amount on the Timeline if Inventory Amount is also entered. |
Non-value Add Time | Duration | The time in a process step that a customer is not willing to pay for. Usually defined for steps that do work. |
Operators | Number | The number of workers per shift, working in parallel at a step. |
Percent Complete and Accurate | Percent | The percent of products completed with perfect quality in a process step. |
Pieces (Inventory Amount) | Number | The number of pieces (for example, a part) between or at a process step. |
Processing Time | Duration | The time for one product to move through a process step. The sum of Value Add Time and Non-value Add Time at the step. |
Uptime % | Percent | The percentage of time that needed equipment is available for this step in the process. |
Value Add Time | Duration | Time in a process step that a customer is willing to pay for. |
VSM diagram settings
Name | Custom Data Type | Description | Calculation |
|---|---|---|---|
Available work time | Numbers | Multiple field entries for the following:
Used to calculate fields like Takt Time or Lead Time | |
Takt Time | Duration | A concept used to synchronize production or service delivery with customer demand. It represents the available time divided by the customer demand rate, setting the pace at which products or services need to be produced or delivered to meet customer requirements. | Based on Diagram Settings. Calculated as Available Time / Customer Demand. |
Timeline custom properties
Name | Custom Data Type | Description | Calculation |
|---|---|---|---|
Total Processing Time (This is also known as lead time) | Duration | The total amount of time needed to produce one piece of work through the value stream | The sum of all processing time and inventory time |
Rolled Throughput Yield (This is also known as Percent complete and accurate (% C&A)) | Percent | Product of Yield at each step. % C&A: The percent of products completed with perfect quality in a process step. | The product (multiplication) of Yield (100% - Defect %) for all steps The product of % C&A for all steps. This takes priority over Defect % if both are entered |
Total Value Add Time | Duration | The total time that a customer is willing to pay for. | The sum of all Value Add Time |
Value-Added Ratio | Percent | The percentage of total lead time that was spent in value-added work. | (Value Add / Lead Time) * 100 |
VSM shapes
What the shapes of the VSM All library represent, grouped by role. Which shapes appear on the timeline — and as what — is controlled per shape; see Value stream mapping.
| Shapes | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Process, Process With Operator, Process With Cross Dock | A process step (operation box); the variantsVariant A unique trace pattern in an event log. Variant analysis ranks how often each path is taken and is the fastest way to spot process deviation. include an operator, or combine the step with a cross dock — goods transferred without being stored. |
| Outside Sources | The external parties at the ends of the stream — the customer and the suppliers. |
| Inventory, Inventory 2 | Material accumulating between steps, the classic warning triangle. |
| Buffer, Single Buffer | Stock held deliberately to absorb variation in demand. |
| Super Market, Super Market Single Entry | A controlled store of parts that downstream steps withdraw from and upstream production replenishes — the heart of a pull system. |
| Warehouse | A storage location. |
| Truck Shipment, Truck Shipment 2, Airplane, Ship, Train, Train 2 | Movement of material by that mode of transport. |
| Withdrawal, FIFO Sequence Flow | Pull connections: withdrawal of material from a supermarket, and a first-in-first-out lane that preserves the order of work between steps. |
| Production Kanban, Withdrawal Kanban, Signal Kanban, Kanban Arriving in Batches, Kanban Withdrawal Arriving in Batches, Kanban Post, Kanban Post 2, Sequenced-Pull Ball | The kanban signals of a pull system: instructions to produce, to withdraw, to produce a batch (signal kanban), kanban cards traveling in batches, the posts where cards collect, and the sequenced-pull ball for direct sequencing. |
| Information, Information 2, Control Center, Go See, Load Leveling, Phone, Inbox | Information flow and production control: manual information, the production-control function, go-see scheduling (observing rather than relying on reports), load leveling (heijunka), and channels such as phone or inbox. |
| Kaizen Lightning Burst, Kaizen Lightning Burst 2 | A marked improvement opportunity — where a kaizen effort should focus. |
| Operator, Person, Workbench, Batch, Tombstone | Annotation icons for people, workplaces, and material batches. |