21th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction - Fortaleza, Brazil - 2013

Weekly tracking of stability of the flow of conversations into the subprocesses of last planner system

Omar Zegarra1, Luis Fernando Alarcón2, Pedro Pereira3 & Nuno Cachadinha4

1PhD Candidate and Graduate Researcher at Centro de Excelencia en Gestión de Producción (GEPUC) at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. E-mail:[email protected], (56 2) 354-4244
2PhD, Head Professor, Dep. of Construction Management Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, E-mail: [email protected], (56 2) 354-4201, (56 2) 354 4244.
3Graduate Researcher, Dep. de Eng. Civil, Dept of Science and Technology, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, 351 212 948 557 E-mail: [email protected]
4PhD, Asst Professor, Civil Engineering Dept, Dept of Science and Technology Fac. de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa,E-mail: 351 212 948 557, [email protected]

Abstract

The reliability of a Production Control System impacts productivity; research suggests that Last Planner System - reliability could be improved with a variability analysis and control of its subprocesses. The variability ratio of those subprocesses, known as the Bullwhip Effect of Conversations, helps to quantify the conversation flow between the Last Planner System subprocesses. We assessed if the first stages of the Bullwhip Effect of Conversations evaluation methodology could be used as a weekly tool, to measure the proper application of Production Control System - subprocesses. This paper reports the analysis of conversations trends, statistical controls and the impact of the Production Control System subprocesses using two case studies: one carried out in South America which used the Last Planner System, and one in Europe which used the Traditional Production Control System. We found production control subprocesses which were under statistical control, and that impact one another as well as the PPC. With this methodology, it is possible to evaluate the stability of the coordination flows into each Production Control System - subprocesses. Both cases were stable, predictable and free of external causes of variation. We consider that this method could be valuable for tracking and tuning the application of Last Planner System subprocesses.

Keywords

Last Planner, Production Planning, Control, Variability, Language Action Perspective.

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Reference

Zegarra, O. , Alarcón, L. F. , Pereira, P. & Cachadinha, N. 2013. Weekly tracking of stability of the flow of conversations into the subprocesses of last planner system, 21th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction , 629-638. doi.org/

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