Eliminating transportation waste using the transportation value stream map

Abstract

The paper reveals how lean instruments and metrics applied in transportation translates the importance of logistic visibility and shared information between shippers, brokers, carriers and customers along the supply chain management. Recreating a new transportation network emphasizes the idea of discovering practical strategies and actions of reducing muda in terms of efficiency and costs. Transportation cost has to be focused on frequency of trips, shipping size, distance travelled, guide routes and deficient rates. One of the objectives of the research was the analysis of the transport efficiency using the Value Stream Mapping as an important lean tool used by many practitioners to identify sources of waste and to propose alternatives of improvement. As a first conclusion of the study, transportation cannot be analyzed like a distinct part of the supply chain, therefore, VSM had to be considered, structured and visualized as linked processes of wasteful activities that need to be measured and improved. The transportation network design reflects the geographic distribution conditions, the frequency and size of the orders, the gaps between the in-transit activities and non-intransit activities. Waste identification research was focused on elaboration of Transportation Visual Map starting with main activities such as: shipment loading, transporting goods to destination, unloading processes, and transportation back to the base and handling the paperwork. MOVE Measure was the new metrics that determined the transportation efficiency in terms of availability, performance and quality, all the factors being expressed in percentage. The results of the research showed the importance of using the VSM tool in transforming the transportation segment of the supply chain from a non-value- adding activity into an optimized value- adding process.