Production analysis board

A production analysis board is a display, often a large whiteboard, placed beside a process to show actual performance against planned performance. It is used to identify problems: when production does not match the plan, the problem is recorded and its cause is investigated. It is a problem-identification and problem-solving tool, not a production scheduling tool.

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Study notes

The board in the illustration shows process performance on an hourly basis, comparing planned with actual production.
When production does not correspond to the plan, the problem is recorded and a cause is sought.
For a process regulated by pull signals rather than a preset schedule, the board records the amounts requested by the next downstream process, which may vary from plan during a shift or day, and compares them with actual production.
The board can be an important visual management tool, particularly as a firm begins its transformation to lean production.
It is also called a production control board, a progress control board, or a problem-solving board.
The document refers to Plan, Do, Check, Act (PDCA).