Lean Process Improvement as an Asset Management Tool
Ben Swain, Senior Engineer II, City of Dayton, Department of Water
John Veatch, Owner/CEO, Lean Concepts, Inc.
Primary goals of the Asset Management Program Systematic and fact-based decision-making Minimizing lifecycle costs Evaluate, understand and manage risk Communication Effective information
transfer and knowledge retention
Dayton Water’s Asset Management Program
Asset Management is built upon data Process to collect data Process to analyze data Process to use data Standard Operating Procedures and training
are key to having good data
Processes are integral to Asset Management
Workshop to discuss issues identified by field staff
Major pain points addressed in work groups
Almost, but not quite Didn’t quite know how to close
the deal Technology became the
obstacle But operations staff was
engaged!
Operations Workshop
Provided by Lean Concepts, Inc. through Sinclair Community College
Scholarships for 33 staff through LeanOhio Division Managers Operations Administrators Field and Plant Supervisors IT Staff
LeanOhio Boot Camp
What is lean?
Lean is the systematic elimination of waste while providing a culture of respect for the worker True North Development of People, Processes, and
Culture How you Act and Think for the rest of your
life
What is lean
The Lean Tool Box
Asset Management is a culture change
Empower Employees
Continuous Improvement
Business Minded
Employee Engagement
Organizational Performance
Process owners identify and initiateGrass roots with buy-in from the top Train people who are key to making it happenMake it easy(relative) for it to happenTemplatesMentorsSuppliesTime
Set targets
Implementation
Dayton Lean ProjectsProcess Issues Outcomes
Plan Review(Water Engineering)
Miscommunication5 people involvedConfusion for customers
Communication gaps closed2-3 peopleFewer people and better education
Building Cleaning(Water Reclamation)
Work not properly performedNo process
Quality AssuranceEstablished process
Purchase Requisitions(Water Reclamation)
29 steps5 Decisions
14 Steps2 Decisions
Sewer Complaints(Water Utility Field Operations)
Lack of consistencyPoor communication
Process definedKey communication points established
Standard for Writing Standards(Water Reclamation)
Lack of consistency in how SOPS are documented
Clear standard that facilities training and shifting of roles
5S of Computer Systems(Water Reclamation)
Documentation difficult to locate in a timely fashion
Still in processGoal of finding any information within X clicks
On-boarding New Staff(Water Reclamation)
No set process for training new staff
Standard process for training new staff
Don’t eat the whole elephant at once Take on easy wins first Don’t do it if you aren’t ready to make it happen Don’t do so much that people can’t do their job
Provide support for making it happen Appropriate level of leadership has to be on board Templates for leaders to use Provide food if you can
Learn what works for staff Amount of time and when
Lessons Learned
It can be hard for people to think outside the box Be prepared to ruffle feathers, and learn how to
handle appropriately Data collection and follow through is the hardest
part Don’t skip steps You may reach the same conclusion that you
would have through traditional decision making processes, but the employee involvement is worth it
Lessons Learned (Cont.)
Expand useMake use of more of the tools Implementation across the entire city
organization
Future Plans
Ben Swain – [email protected] John Veatch – [email protected]
Questions?