Critical Chain Experience

8/2/2019 Critical Chain Experience

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today have mil lions of parts and require numerous compa-nies to produce.

Considering the need for continual innovation and col-laboration, many successful organizations heavily dependon their engineering teams to guide their forward pro-pulsion. So when the engineering department at SpiritAercSystems, a company that manufactures airplane parts,regularly struggled to meet its project commitments, themanagement team at the propulsion structures and systemsbusiness segment altered its processes and procedures.

"Any missed commitment erodes our credibility withcustomers. Even more important is the internal cost for lateengineering, which can force high overtime rates, supplierexpediting fees, rework and potential quality issues,' saysSteve Pryor, engineering director of propulsion structuresand systems at Spirit in Wichita, Kansas, USA. "We neededto change the way we performed managing product engi-neering'. We came to a point where we needed to make adrastic change. We had implemented various project man-agement ini tiatives to help improve performance, but thesedid not provide the change we needed.'

In fact, since 1996, the tier-one aerospace componentcontractor had tried a number of approaches to correct itsdeficiencies, including lean, knowledge-based engineering,cycle-time and cost reduction teams, 5$ and FIFO (first in,f irst out) work cells.

"These were all improvement ideas yielding nominalresults. I t was not until we took a critical chain project man-agement approach that we have been able to enjoy signifi-cant advances: says Joseph Zenisek, critical chain projectmanager at Spirit. We now look at critical chain projectmanagement as a true game-changer for us.'

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A ltho ug h e h ad a kittin g p ro cess in p lac e for m anufacturing, our new approach isore stringent in that everything needs to be in place before a w ork package is fullysta ffe d a nd a ctiv ely work ed . T his f ull k ittin g sy stem is n ow b ein g a pp lied to en gin eer in g. -JO SlP H Z EN IS EK

The organization implemented two key strategies:1.Manage resources more effectively according to bufferconsumption. Providing projects with buffers helps avoidany padding during the estimation process and can allowfor faster execution because work does not expand to fillthe time available.

2. Have a resource pool of highly qualified engineers whocan provide short-term support as dictated by the bufferconsumption.The goal of the critical chain process was to reduce work

in progress and create and manage a project buffer to ensurebetter program visibility and resource management.

The new approach also included a comprehensive kittingprocess for each work package, split into high-level groupssuch as structural systems. The completion of the full kit is an

integration point so that the work package can be fully staffedand actively worked.

~Although we had a kitting process in place for mann-facturing, our new approach is more stringent. Everythingneeds to be in place before a work package is fully staffed andactively worked. This full kitt ing system is now being appliedto engineering," Mr. Zenisek explains.

For instance, if the manufacturing project team performsassembly with missing pieces, it eventually has to disassemblesome things to fit in the late arrivals.

Within engineering. using the full ki t process makes surethat data, such as loads, temperatures, pressures and inter-faces, are in place so that project teams can complete analysisand design without interruption, rather than allowing infor-mation to trickle inand prompt costly changes.

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PUTTING THE PROCESS TO THE TESTAn opportunity to prove the mettle of this new approach arose during a projectto manufacture pylons for 11 regional Je t customer, one of the first initiatives toincorporate critical chain processes.

The first key deliverable was 11 pylon assembly needed to perform a fa nblade-off test. During this test, an engine's fa n blade is rigged to fail to see if itremains contained and to ensure that the engine and pylon attachments do notfail. Comprised of a handful of systems and more than 300 parts (not includingfasteners), this task once took 17 months from initiation to delivery, accordingto Mr. Zenisek.

"However, using our project management-focused critical chain approach,we were able to cut three months off of the time allotment," he s ays . ."Ihis wasan 18 percent reduction in cycle time:

That time savings "meant we had figured out how to pIan and manageresources fa r better than ever before," Mr. P ry o r s ay s.

When projects involve so many partners-induding the original equipmentmanufacturer, engine supplier and certification agency~any one component orpiece of information that runs late can cause


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yelling for resources. But now they understand the impor-tance of having full kits before they move forward and of stay-ing focused on fewer work packages. We have become adeptat addressing near-term dellverablesand then moving on tothe next item of importance to develop a more systematicapproach. Completion has taken on a new meaning at Spirit .'

At the same time, the overall sense of urgency has alsoincreased. "The propulsion structures and systems depart-ment has seen the escalation of issues: Mr. Pryor says." Asproblems arise, we are more active in communicating. Whenyou are focusing on fewer work packages, you can morequickly address and focus on the deliverable. Issues no longerpercolate. n

Mr. Zenisek attributes the change in culture to Spirit 'soperational structure enabled by the critical chain approach.

aWe have a steering team that incorporates senior lead-ership, such as program managers, chief engineers and thegeneral manager's leadership team, so that they remainactively engaged inour very visible approach to continuouslyimprove and manage our programs,' he says.

Teams use software that reveals such items as theof the critical chain that has been completed and howof the buffer has been consumed,

This creates an atmosphere where L t ' S possible toand address causes of extensive use of safety .ing the organization to manage the impact ofuncertainty around projects-before problemsimpact completion times, Mr. Zenisek adds,

In embracing the critical chain projectphilosophy, the engineering team had leadershipincluding an endorsement from the vice U"ILJ'lI,L

transformational projects always run intoPryor attests.

"We had to really build upon the strengths of the culturechange as supported by the philosophy. We focused on t-ting leadership and the lead engineers engaged so that thewas an acceptance of the changes associated with our fie.processes," he says. UWe see this as a journey of constantlearning and continual improvement. There is not an end-point or destination. We are constantly addressing areas ofconcern to perfect our approach."

Spirit plans to apply critical chain techniques to new pro-grams for its other customers.

"The division has gone from being a stress on the organi-zation to being able to support program commitments to apoint that it is a best practice within our business segment:Mr. Pryor says. PM

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Critical Chain Experience

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