Evolution of a Process flow Diagram

Evolution of a Process Flow Diagram

Some examples for Production Agriculture

Click your mouse throughout this slide show to advance the slides and animations

Overview

What is a Process Flow Diagram (PFD)?

Why do you need a PFD? The ISO 9001:2000 requirements.

Varying degrees of PFD complexity It depends on what you do!

Getting Started: Define your business processes.

Categorizing your business processes:

Management Responsibility

Resource Management

Product Realization

Measure-Analyze-Improve.

The ISO 9001 Process Model.

How to build your own PFD.

The evolution of your PFD. Some examples of PFD for production agriculture.

What is a PFD? Process flow diagrams are illustrations of key business processes and their interactions.

Planting

Crop Management

Harvest

This simple PFD contains 3 general Processes

The interaction between the processes is the sequence, or order, in which they occur.

The output of one process is often an input to the next. You could also think of a PFD in terms of material flow throughout the production line.

Young crop (with weeds)

Mature, healthy crop

out

in

out

in

Why do you need a PFD?

Reason #1: The ISO 9001:2000 standard requires you to identify all of your business processes and their interactions.

Reason #2: By creating a PFD for your operations you must actively think about each of your business processes individually, and as part of a system. This is often referred to as process evaluation

ISO 9001:2000 Clause 4.1 - GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

The organization shall establish, document, implement, and maintain a quality management system (QMS) and continually improve its effectiveness in accordance with the requirements of this International Standard. The organization shall:

a) identify the processes needed for the quality management system and their application throughout the organization (see 1.2);

b) determine the sequence and interaction of these processes;

determine criteria and methods needed to ensure that both the operation and control of these processes are effective;

d) ensure the availability of resources and information necessary to support the operation and monitoring of these processes;

e) monitor, measure and analyze these processes; and

f) implement actions necessary to achieve planned results and continual improvement of these processes.

Reason #3: A PFD is also an organizational tool. It may be used as a checklist to ensure that you have all of the human and material resources your need to produce your products.

Reason #4: A PFD is your road map to continual improvement. With all of your business processes and interactions in plan view you should be able to see where measurement and analysis will most likely lead to improvements in your system.

The Bottom Line

Your PFD is a roadmap of your business and QMS. It will help you to meet all of the general requirements of ISO 9001:2000.

PFDs for Production Agriculture: We are going to build on the previous example by adding some pre-planting and post-harvest processes.

Processing

Storage

Packaging

Planting

Crop Management

Harvest and conveyance

Tillage

SHIPPING TO CUSTOMER

The complexity of the PFD depends on WHAT YOU DO!!!

In this example the color coded arrows distinguish product that is shipped:

Immediately after harvest, OR click

Following a period of storage, OR click

Following processing (and possibly packaging and/or storage)

Following packaging (and possibly storage), OR click

Slow Down?!?! Dont worry, you are going to start with the basics Lets get rid of the fancy stuff for now

Processing

Storage

Packaging

Tillage

Planting

Crop Management

Harvest and conveyance

SHIPPING TO CUSTOMER

Storage and/or processing and/or packaging.

Thats better. This looks like a good starting point, but there are a few things missing

Tillage

Planting

Crop Management

Harvest and conveyance

SHIPPING TO CUSTOMER

Storage and/or processing and/or packaging.

Crop planning

Equipment Maintenance

Seed Purchases

Financials

Hiring seasonal staff

What about

Just to name a few. You are very busy. Take some time to make a list all of the things that you do as part of your farming operations.

YOUR list may include some of the processes shown below. Your processes may then be grouped into categories

tillage

planting

fertilizer application

pest control

Harvest and conveyance

Processing and packaging

storage and shipping

purchasing

infrastructure

Equipment maintenance

Staff training

hiring seasonal staff

crop planning

financials

customer communication

product quality analysis

Product Realization

Management Responsibilities

Resource Management

Measurement and Analysis

Look Familiar? These categories are also illustrated in the ISO Process Model for a QMS.

Management Responsibility

Customer communication

Crop planning

Resource Management

Purchases

Equipment/infrastructure maintenance

hiring staff/training

Measurement and Analysis

product quality analysis

financials

yield/profit maps

Product Realization

tillage

planting

apply fertilizer/pesticide

harvest and conveyance

process and package

storage and shipping

Building your own PFD: Our first example PFD included only Product Realization Processes. What do you do before your start farming?

Crop Planning

You need a plan!

But wait How do you decide what to produce? You will need to gather this information before planning your crop.

Determine your customers product requirements

Identify legal requirements with respect to the product and/or production processes

Good Now that you know what you are working towards, you probably have some objectives in mind with respect to your cropping season (e.g., yields, profits). Remember, ISO requires you to establish and document measurable objectives.

Set Objectives

Hmmm There may be another interaction between these processes. You may set some of your objectives based on your customer requirements (e.g., delivery dates).

What category from the ISO Process Model of a QMS do these processes belong to? Hint: Who is responsible for each step?

Management Responsibility

OK now that you have a plan, what do you still need to do before the growing season?

Tillage

Planting

Crop Management

Harvest and conveyance

SHIPPING TO CUSTOMER

Purchasing (supplies, seed, equipment)

You need to obtain RESOURCES in order to produce your crop according to your plan, your customers requirements, and your objectives. This requires purchasing material resources

and taking care of the equipment/infrastructure that you already have

Equipment and Infrastructure Maintenance

You will also have to manage for HUMAN RESOURCES, which includes hiring and training

Acquire qualified staff

What Section of the ISO Process Model do these processes belong to???

Resource Management

Provide Staff Training

Tillage

Planting

Crop Management

Harvest and conveyance

SHIPPING TO CUSTOMER

Storage and/or processing and/or packaging.

The next Section of the ISO Process Model is the PFD that we started with earlier. What is this section called???

Product Realization

Process Evaluation, Preventive Actions

MANAGEMENT REVIEW

Product quality analysis

Review Customer Feedback

Corrective Actions

At the end of the growing season you should be evaluating the:

Measurement, Analysis, and Improvement

Internal Audit of QMS

c) effectiveness of your QMS.

a) quality of your products

b) efficiency of your processes

What Section of the ISO Process Model do these processes belong to???

At the end of the growing season all of these evaluations should be part of your MANAGEMENT REVIEW. This will help you to plan and IMPROVE your QMS for next year!

Put the whole model together

Crop Planning

customer requirements

legal requirements

Set Objectives

Management Responsibility

Purchasing

Equipment and Infrastructure Maintenance

hiring

Resource Management

Staff Training

Tillage

Planting

Crop Management

Harvest and conveyance

SHIPPING

Storage and/or processing and/or packaging.

Product

Realization

Product quality analysis

Measurement, Analysis, and Improvement

Process Evaluation, Preventive Actions

MANAGEMENT REVIEW

Product quality analysis

Review Customer Feedback

Corrective Actions

Internal Audit of QMS

Or a more complex web of process interactions and multiple products and services

KEY POINTS

The PFD includes processes (boxes) and their interactions (arrows).

Your PFD should be unique to your farm business Make sure you include what you do!

The level of detail is also dependant on your needs:

It may be simpler that our 1st example (i.e., a linear chronological flow of processes

Crop Planning

Set Objectives

Assemble Supplies/Equipment

Tillage and Planting

Harvest

Product and Process Evaluation

Internal Audit of QMS

Hire/Train Staff

Transport

Crop Management

Return to top

Management Review

Customer and Contract establishment

Schedule cropping Services

Purchase seed, supplies and equipment

Crop Plan

Pest management

Hire/Train Staff

Provide contracted service (plant/combine/spray)

Plant Crop

Fertilize

Equipment maintenance

Harvest Crop

yield data

Conveyance

Shipping

Processing

Packaging

Storage

Customer Receipt and feedback

crop production

service provision

Precision Ag data Analysis

Financials

Corrective/Preventive Actions

Internal Audits

Management Review

scrap

XYZ Farms Process Flow Diagram

Or it may be fancy

Product Receipt, Customer Feedback

Product Quality

Measurement, Analysis, Improvement

Internal Audit

Management Review

Process Evaluation and Preventative Action

Corrective Action

Crop Planning (ID mgt zones, variety selection, etc.

Seedbed preparation

Crop management (fertilize, pest control)

Planting

Conveyance

Harvest

Storage

Product Realization

Shipping

Resource Management

Production Resources

Human Resources

Acquire supplies, equipment, materials.

Set-up and maintain equipment

Acquire qualified staff/services

Employee training

Collect the information

Use the information to plan

Management Responsibility

ID Contact and/or Customer Requirements

ID Environmental Aspects

ID Legal Requirements

Objectives and Targets

Alternatives Evaluation

Emergency Preparedness

TIPS for Constructing Your Farms PFD

Write down a list of what you do throughout the year

Categorize the processes under the headings of Management Responsibilities, Resources, Production, and Measurement Analysis - Improvement.

Evaluate your list. Did you leave anything out?

Draft the PFD by putting the processes into order (on scrap paper).

Look for process interactions (other than the chronological sequence that was done in the above step) and draw them in.

Re-examine the examples in this slide show. Is there anything that you could borrow from them?

Complete Exercise #3 in the Ag-ISO Workbook to generate an electronic version of your PFD.

Accept what you have (for now). Your PFD will evolve and improve over time especially when you put it to work!