{"id":"value-stream-mapping","model_id":"Value Stream Mapping","name":"Value Stream Mapping","summary":"Value stream mapping is a diagramming method that records all material and information flow steps needed to bring a product from order to delivery. A team first draws a current state map of actual conditions, then a future state map showing the target flow, and uses the maps to locate and remove waste. Toyota developed the tool, which it calls a material and information flow diagram, as part of the Toyota Production System.","study_notes":["A value stream is all the actions, both value-creating and non value-creating, required to bring a product from raw material to the customer.","Mapping begins with a current state map capturing actual material and information flow, followed by a future state map as a target image.","Six guidelines for a lean value stream: produce to takt time; develop continuous flow; use supermarkets where continuous flow cannot extend upstream; send the customer schedule to one production process; level the product mix (heijunka) at the pacemaker; level the production volume.","The pacemaker process is the single point in the value stream that receives the customer schedule and sets the pace for upstream processes.","A paced withdrawal releases a small, consistent amount of production instruction, usually 5-60 minutes worth, at the pacemaker and simultaneously removes an equal amount of finished goods; the pitch is that consistent increment of work.","Pitch is calculated from the packout quantity (number of parts one finished-goods container holds) or a multiple or fraction of it.","Value-stream map zones include information flow, process boxes (one area of material flow, stopping where material flow stops) and process data boxes.","Process data box measures: cycle time (C/T), lead time (L/T), uptime, changeover time (C/O), percent complete and accurate (%C/A), and availability measured in seconds.","Value-stream mapping differs from process mapping by addressing the door-to-door big picture rather than optimizing individual processes.","Synonym: VSM. The Learning to See workbook, a Shingo Research Prize recipient in 1999, is a step-by-step instruction manual for the tool.","Mapping is commonly used in lean manufacturing but can be applied in any industry."],"safety_notes":[],"sources":[{"url":"https://www.lean.org/lexicon-terms/value-stream-mapping/","title":"Value Stream Mapping Overview - Lean Enterprise Institute","accessed":"2026-10-25"}],"verification":{"status":"source_checked","checked_at":"2026-10-25","values":8,"method":"llm_source_check"},"updated_at":"2026-10-25","type":"operational","spec":{"kind":"methodology","origin":"Toyota Production System","formula":{"expression":"pitch = takt_time * packout_quantity","variables":[{"symbol":"takt_time","name":"Takt time","unit":"seconds"},{"symbol":"packout_quantity","name":"Packout quantity","unit":"pieces"}],"output_unit":"seconds","worked_example":{"inputs":{"takt_time":30,"packout_quantity":20},"output":600}},"related":[]},"url":"https://machineschema.com/operational/value-stream-mapping","license":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"}