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Value Engineering Around the World (saa pages 2. 7 and 16)

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VALUE WORLD Oct./Nov./Dec. 1993

E D I T O R I N C H I E F and A D V E R T I S I N G M A N A G E R O. James Vogl, CVS, FSAVE

ASSOCIATE E D I T O R Jack Michaels, Ph.D., CVS

P H O T O G R A P H Y James Rayball

O. James Vogl, CVS, FSAVE

P U B L I S H E R Society of American Value Engineers A D V E R T I S I N G and P R O D U C T I O N O F F I C E 4909 via el Sereno Torrance, CA 90505 Phone (310) 378-1803 Fax (310) 378-0246

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Contents Value Engineering Applications in India

2 by Vipul K. Gupta, Deborah }. Fisher & Alok K. Ghosal

A n Analysis of the Characteristics of "Function" / by Huanwen Jia

Dean Quixote, Sancho Panza and the Quest for Quality

10 by Augustus Shackelford, M.A.

Follow Your Hunch - Wild Card Creativity

12 by Theodore C. Fowler

Function Analysis

16 by Dennis Betts, CVS

"Letter to the Editor" — FAST Diagram Discussion Continued by Richard J. Park, PE, CVS, FSAVE

22 & Paul Frusti, CVS, FSAVE

"Thunder" — Don't Let A Shark See You Bleed

24 by Tom King, CVS, FSAVE

EDITORIAL POLICY: To provide informative, timely

and interesting communications pertaining to Value Engineering I Value

Analysis and related disciplines. VALUE WORLD enables contributors

to express themselves professionally in advancing the art. VALUE

WORLD is dedicated to the establishment of a mutual bond among

those seeking to better the quality of working life and establish a

communications network through which participants can interact for

mutual benefit.

The views expressed in VALUE WORLD are neither approved or

disapproved by the Society. They are the expressions of the author(s).

All papers have been edited — frequently condensed — by the editor.

Value Engineering Applications in India

Vipul K. Gupta is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Houston. He is a member of the American Association of Cost Engineers, the Institute of Industrial Engineers, the Operations Research Society of America, and the Institute of Management Sciences.

Deborah J. Fisher is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Houston and is the Director of the Engineering Management Program.

Alok K. Ghosal is the manager of the Value Engineering Group in the Industrial Engineering Division of the Tata Steel Company, Jamshedpur, India. Prior to joining the VE group, he worked for 13 years in Engineering Design, Development and Project Engineering groups of the steel company.

" In all the world there is no more striking a case of opportunity squandered than in India. For decades a breathtakingly inept approach to economic policy - one that contrived to make even less sense than communist central planning, separated the country from the world economy, held back growth and defeated progress on almost every measure. Dogged by memories of the foreign investor that brought in the British Raj, India has turned away many foreign investors since independence in 1947. With this kind of approach, the government also closed its door to advanced technology, fresh ideas, and management principles f rom which industries all over the wor ld benefited. And although economic reforms have now brought foreign giants such as IBM, Coca-cola, General Electric, Siemens, Procter and Gamble to the country, worker productivity remains among the lowest in the world; and high taxes and export tariffs contribute tp the h i g h cost of I n d i a n goods abroad". W.K. , Yalamanchili, S., "India: Searching for Riches in the As ian Cont inent , " Construct ion Business Review, November/December 1992, pg 22.

In all the world there is no more striking a case of opportunity squandered than in India.

"To stay competit ive i n a global economy, more companies worldwide are discovering the importance of VE as a powerfu l and dynamic tool, saving industry b i l l ions of dollars and becoming an indispensable, mult i -purpose and mul t i -d isc ip l inary instrument." Basha, I . M . , Gab-Allah, A . A . , "Value Engineering in Egyptian Bridge Construction," Journal of Construction

Engineering and Management , Vol.117, N o . 3, September 1991. The v i s i b i l i t y of VE is increasing internationally. This article describes the practical application of VE undertaken by some companies i n India to become more competitive in an increasingly hostile environment. We briefly discuss some of the VE projects and savings generated i n the state-owned engineering & const ruct ion sector and the privately-owned electronics industry in India.

The state-owned Central Public Works Department (CPWD) took advantage of mult i-disciplinary talent when called upon to construct a pathology laboratory for the Indian Council of Medical Research. CPWD convened a week-long workshop where doctors, architects and civil engineers discussed the util i ty and efficiency of each part of the building. This VE exercise saved 13.7 percent of the total project cost, roughly a savings of seventy thousand dollars. Jain, Sunil: "More for Less, Ind ia Today", The Engineer ing and Cons t ruc t ion Industry 30 September, 1992, pgs 70-71. In addition to the savings, the owners received additional features in the building without increasing the cost.

Jobs in state-owned companies in India are generally secure, therefore these companies are now looking for new ways to motivate their employees to cut costs. These companies are moving away from traditional cost reduction methods such as reducing their energy consumption and retrenching their workforce . For example, engineers at the Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited redesigned a part of its 210 and 510 Mega Watt boilers. Working backwards, engineers looked at the productive life of the boiler, and came up wi th the most cost-effective material to last that productive life. This new material cut the weight of some of the parts by a tenth. Total savings to the corporation due to these changes - about $4.5 million dollars.

2 Value World, Oct./Nov./Dec, 1993

fobs in state-owned companies in India are generally secure, therefore these companies are now looking for new ways to motivate their employees to cut costs.

Modi Xerox Limited is a joint venture between Xerox of the U.S. and the Modi Group of India. Two years ago, this photocopier company adopted VE to compete wi th low priced domestic suppliers, part icularly when a depreciating Indian rupee made imports increasingly costlier. The machine imported by Modi Xerox f rom the U.S. had several extra features. For example, it had a built-in heating system that had little utility in a hot and dry country like India. The company saved $125 on each copier by redesigning the electronic controls eliminating the heating system. The heating system is now provided as an add-on feature. However, the big savings came when VE resulted in a change in design of the paper holding trays. The imported version had three trays for different paper sizes, but the company designed a single adjustable paper tray that could hold all sizes of paper. The improved copier costs $1000 less to produce.

VE resulted i n s imi la r cost benefits at a major refrigerator manufacturer i n India. Kelvinator of India L i m i t e d redesigned the lock on its refr igerators , reducing the number of parts required to produce it. The cost of each lock came d o w n f r o m $2.15 to $0.15, resulting i n the overall savings of over $100,000. To increase the use of VE to even larger applications, the company hired a US consultant to conduct a one-week, in-house VE workshop in 1991.

As top management of Tata Steel decided to close its Heavy Structural M i l l in 1990, the problem of meeting the requirements of the heavy structural steel sections needed for modernization, expansion and maintenance programs of the company cropped up. One alternative was to go for outside sourcing of sections. However, the high cost of the material, the problem of bulk handling and also uncertain availability made this idea infeasible. Tata Steel took up a VE study to generate new ideas. A multidisciplinary team was formed of four representatives f r o m Production Control, Design Engineering, Qual i ty Assurance and VE. A p p l y i n g a methodical approach to VE, the team presented a proposal by which heavy sections could be fabricated out of internally generated steel sections.

Information Phase

Annual requirements of heavy structural members (beams and channels) for repair and maintenance jobs as well as 5-year rolling program jobs, is about 4,000 tons. During modernization of the facilities, an additional requirement of 3,500 tons/year was expected. Therefore, the VE team had to look for ways to meet a combined

demand of 7,500 tons/year of structural members wi thin the steel plant. The VE team also identified three basic functions and eight secondary functions for the heavy structural members. These functions along w i t h their relative weights assigned to each function (as governed by design criterion) are given in Exhibit #1.

Functions Basic (B) Relative or Weight

(Verb) (Noun) Secondary (%) ( S )

Resist Bending B 25 Resist Buckling B 25 Resist Combined bending &

axial loads B 25

Resist Shearing S 20 Resist Twisting S 20 Resist Web Crippling S 20 Resist Flange Curling S 20 Resist Bearing failure S 20 Resist Failure (Due to the

combination of any two or three of above secondary reasons)

S 20

Facilitate Simple connection S 5 Resist Connection failure s 5

Exhibit #1

Functions Basic (B): Resist failure (Due to the combination of any two or three of above secondary reasons).

Function- Cost- Worth Analysis

One of the most important aspects of a VE study, part of the information phase, is the determination of the cost vs. worth of an item or system. This is sometimes called the value index of an i tem or system. Benator, B . I . , "Microcomputer Applications in Value Engineering," Value Wor ld , Vol 14, No . 1, 1991. For the func t ion -cost-worth analysis, three basic functions were merged into one single function named "CARRY LOADS" and the eight secondary functions were merged into one function named "TRANSFER LOADS". A new function named "FACILITATE O P T I M U M D E S I G N " was introduced to represent the availability factor of the structural sections due to the closer of the company mills. Exhibit #2 summarizes the f ina l F U N C T I O N -COST-WORTH Analysis. A value index of one usually implies that a func t ion is a strong candidate fo r a successful VE al ternat ive , and here a l l three functions received a value index above one. Basis for worth: Actual material cost @53% + Fabrication cost @18%. Permissible scrap and devia t ion cost @6%. Fabrication cost is considered less in the calculation of wor th because of savings due to supply in specific design length. Exhibit #2: Function Cost-Worth Analysis. A break-up of scrap and deviation costs and worth is given in Exhibit #3.

Creativity Phase

The VE team started this phase with brainstorming sessions, resulting in 33 different ideas. Twenty of these ideas were dropped in view of their non-compliance

Value World, Oct.INov.IDec., 1993 3

No. Function Cost(C)* Worth(W)** Value Gap (C - W) Value Index Verb Noun ($/ton) ($/ton) ($/ton) (CAV)

1. 2. 3.

Carry Transfer Facilitate

Loads Loads Optimum Design

450 400 50 1.125 150 135 15 1.111 150 52 98 2.885

*

**

Basis for cost: Purchased material cost @60% + Fabrication cost @20% + Scrap and deviation costs @20%. Basis for worth: Actual material cost @53% + Fabrication cost @ 18%*** + Permissible scrap and deviation cost @7%. Fabrication cost is considered less in the calculation of worth because of savings due to supply in specific design length.

Exhibit #2: Function Cost-Worth Analysis

w i t h the function requirements. Detailed screening of the remaining 13 ideas was undertaken i n the second stage. A t this stage, the main factors for the selection cf the alternatives were 1) the applicability to the steel plant context and 2) potential for wider application within the steel plant. This screening resulted in the five ideas for the final evaluation. These five alternatives are:

1) Use of Laced members

2) Use of Reinforced Cement Concrete in place of steel

3) Use of Pre-stressed Concrete in place of steel

4) Use of Sheet Bar for web and use of Angles for flanges

5) Use of Sheet Bar for both web and flanges

Rolled Fabricated No. Description Section Section

1. Cost due to substitution with heavier sections in case of nonavailability of sections specified in the design. 8% 2%

2. Cost due to scrap and burning losses 8% 2% 3. Cost of additional dead load effects 2% 1% 4. Cost due to construction delays

because of non-availability 2% 1%

Exhibit #3: Break-up of Scrap and Deviation Costs and Worth

Analytical and Evaluation Phase

Ten cr i ter ia were selected to describe the three functions given in Exhibit #2. A 4-point preference weighting was used to calculate the criteria weightings. The description of the criteria and the classical criteria weighting matrix are given in Exhibits 4 and 5.

Identity Criteria Score Rank

A Strength 16 I I I B Geometry 4 V I C Availability 21 I I D Cost 8 IV E Extent of Fabrication 5 V F Handling 2 VI I I G Mamtainability 3 v n

H Storage 4 VI I Time 8 IV J Safety 25 i

Exhibit #4: Description of the Criteria

B C D E F G H I J

Sum of Scores

A2 C3 Al A2 A3 A3 A3 A2 J3 A 16

C3 DI E3 B2 B2 H I 12- J3 B 4

C3 C3 C3 C3 C3 CO Jl C 21

DI D2 Gl D2 D2 J3 D 8

El El H I 10 J3 E 5

F2 H2 12 J3 F 2

Preference Weiphtines G2 12 J3 G 3

Preference Weiphtines

0 - No Difference 12 J3 H 4

1 - Minor Difference

2 - Medium Difference J3 I 8

1 - Minor Difference

2 - Medium Difference

3 - Major Difference J 25

Exhibit #5: Criteria Weighting

Description of the Criteria

A matrix analysis was performed to rank the importance of the five alternatives. A decision matrix using a 5-point scale resulted in a top score given to alternate # 4 which is: Fabricated section using sheet bar as web and medium-light structural angles as flanges (Exhibit #6).

For experimentation, joist and channel beams 6 m. long were fabricated to conduct load tests. The end views of fabricated structural members are shown in Exhibit #7. The third point load test on simply supported beam was conducted using f u l l design load. Test set-up w i t h f u l l design load is shown in Exhibit #8 and test results are presented in Exhibit #9. The excessive actual deflections compared to theoretical values can be attributed to excess of load of ingot stickers. Continuous w e l d i n g as w e l l as in te rmi t ten t manual metal arc welding was used for fabrication of the t r ia l beams. Intermittent welding gave the lowest consumption of consumables such as electrodes, power, gas and paint. Sheet bar, being a new material for structural use, was tested both along the rolling direction and perpendicular to the rolling direction. The sheet bar was found to be of comparable behavior w i t h mi ld steel used for rolled steel sections. The inspection Department of the steel plant ver i f ied that the tolerances of the fabricated section were within specified limits of equivalent rolled sections.

4 Value World, Oct./Nov./Dec., 1993

Desired Criteria

Weightage

Alternates

1. Laced Members

2. Use of R.C.C. in place of steel

3. Use of P.S.C. in place of steel

4. Use of sheet bar web and angle flanges

5. Use of sheet bar for both web and flanges

Stren

-Kth

16

64

48

64

64

64

Geo

metry

16

12

Avail

ability

21

84

84

62

105

105

Cost

D

32

40

32

32

24

Extent

of

Fabric

ation

10

15

10

20

15

Han

dling

Main

taina

bility

12

15

15

15

15

Stor

age

H

12

12

16

16

Time

21

32

24

Safe

ty

25

75

75

75

100

75

Total

Score

320

305

286

408

356

Excellent - 5 ; Very Good - 4 ; Good - 3 ; Fair - 2 ; Poor - 1

Exhibit #6: Decision Matrix

Exhibit #7: End Views of Fabricated Joist and Channel Beams

Exhibit #8: Test Set-up with Full Design Load

Recommendation Phase

The VE team prepared a detailed cost-benefit analysis before putt ing up the recommendations for management's approval. The cost breakdown for consumables is summarized i n Exhib i t #10. The cost analysis f o r fabricated section and savings achieved over the purchased rolled sections is described in Exhibit #11.

The successful VE appl ica t ion discussed above resulted in a savings of $ 67/ton of steel members used, which equates to about 13% of the cost of outside sourcing. The VE proposal was implemented i n the modernization and expansion jobs of the steel plant, and the total audited savings were roughly $545,000 in the financial year 1990-91.

"For a business to remain competitive w i t h quality goods and services, i t must have an environment that cultivates and harvests the creative ideas of all of its employees." Anderson, W. O., Releasing Creative Ideas to Meet Today's Business Challenges, 1990 IEEE International Engineering Management Conference Proceedings, pgs 293-298.

The spirit of creativity i n VE is best summed up in the following phrase by Luis M . Venegasa, L.M., "Dare We Think Differently," Value World, Vol. 14, No. 4,1992.

"We engineers of today and especially of tomorrow, must DARE TO T H I N K DIFFERENTLY! Dare to be: creative, imaginative, curious and ingenious. But most importantly, in our stress-filled, task-oriented world, we must stop and "pick more daisies" for when you VE a dream, don't let anything d im it , keep hoping, keep trying - the sky is the limit!!".

Value World, Oct./Nov./Dec., 1993 5

Section Beam - 380 (0.0467 X W) Channel - 380 (0.0721 X W)

Theoretical Actual Theoretical Actual

I I I I I I

Load (W) (cm) (cm) (cm) (cm) (cm) (cm) 15 Tons 30 Tons 45 Tons

0.7 1.4 2.1

1.0 0.64 1.8 1.88 2.7 2.72

1.08 2.16 3.24

1.2 1.1 2.4 2.7 N/A N/A

I - Fabrication Using Continuous Welding I I - Fabrication Using Intermittent Welding

Exhibit #9: Beam Loading Test Results - Deflection at Midspan

Average consumption of welding electrodes/t = 21.25 kg.

(With 10% provision for wastage and considering

intermittent manual metal arc welding)

Cost of electrodes = $17.00

(@ $0.8/kg., 4mm size)

Cost of other consumables, such as power, gas, water = $ 8.00

and Red-oxide paint

Total Cost of Consumables = $ 25.00

Exhibit #10: Cost of Consumables/Ton of Fabricated Section

This article discusses some creative applications of VE i n Ind ia . The returns are obvious, and many companies have become aware of the potential. But there s t i l l remains a problem: as yet, there are not enough certified value engineers in the country - maybe ten. W i t h low capital investments required for VE, companies merely need to spend resources on the right kind of talent and time. It has more to do with the lack of awareness and management approval. Whether VE w i l l catch on in developing countries such as India is a question that w i l l be answered in the future. But for now, the signs are encouraging: at least people are practicing the art.

References

1. Miles, L.D. Techniques of Value Analysis and Engineering, 2nd edition, New York: Mcgraw Hill, Inc., 1972.

2. Kaufman, J.J. Value Engineering for the Practitioner, Engineering Extention Education, North Carolina State University, 1985.

3. VE Case Studies from Tata Steel, Vol II, Value Engineering Group, Tata Steel, Jamshedpur, India, 1991. ^

1. Material cost (Sheet bar + Medium Light Structural Angles)

2. Total material cost taking actual yield into account

3. Less scrap recovered

$287

$318

$ 12

$306

4. Loss of Profit on internally produced Sheet bar + Angles $ 26

$332

5. A) Cost of fabrication per ton

Fabrication

Consumables

Inspection

B) Cost of Sheet bar reject

Total cost/t

Purchase cost/t

Savings/t

$40

$25

$10

$75

$ 7

$82

$ 82

$414

$481

$ 67

Exhibit #11: Cost of Fabricated Structural Members and Savings Generated


An Analysis of the Characteristics of "Function"

Mr. Huanwen Jia, a senior engineer, is the chief editor of the magazine "Value Engineering in the People's Republic of China." He designs and produces engines and tractors. Mr. Jia also works in the development and application of VE. He has written "The Gateway of Value Engineers," "The Principle and. Method of Value Engineers," "Value Engineers," "The Theory and Application of Value Engineers" and "Worker's Guide in Value Engineers" etc.

W h y should we analyse the characteristics of "Function"? As Miles said, "the language of function is the heart of the problem", when we work w i t h VE. When people apply VE techniques, some feel that the analysis of function is vague, abstract and unfathomable; the "Diagraming of Function Analysis System" is difficult to apply, its merits are not so clear, people do it as a formality, some of the people do not know how to use the analysis of function to solve the problems they face, how to l ink them together;...these problems are principally raised because these people do not know distinctly the characteristics of "Function." "Function" comprises two groups of basic properties: that of the technical phase and that of the economic phase.

TheTechnical Phase

The technical phase deals w i t h the functions the customers require. The customers require two types of functions: Use functions and functions of attraction.

I —Use functions

Basic Function I

I —Attraction Functions

The lat ter type is of ten named as "Aesthetic functions", which are important, but the term does not cover all the other functions besides those of aesthetic phase. The term "Attraction Functions" has a broader sense; i t i n d u e s a l l the func t ions w h i c h attract customers, such as attractive shape, color, aroma, texture, sound or a famous brand.

With these basic functions, VE workers should work systematically to f i n d how to provide these basic func t ions , i n other words , f i n d out the secondary functions. Take a truck as an example: its basic function is "to move load ". By what means are we able to move the load? The means constitute the secondary functions as shown in the following diagram:

Basic Function Secondary Functions

I —Power provision

I — I —Control of the vehicle

I I—Safety

To move load I

I I —Smart Model

I — I —Beautiful Colour

I —Factory Name

With the secondary functions, the VE workers can search further to see how these functions work. For instance, in providing power, one may f i n d a subsystem, which consists of keeping pressure, igni t ing and providing fuel. Just as one works further on to search for the means of p r o v i d i n g every f u n c t i o n , easily one can f i n d subsystems. It is not difficult to illustrate the systematic relations between these various systems and subsystems. There are many ways of d r awing a FAST diagram. The simplest one is to f ind out the definition of the involved function, put the basic function on the left of the diagram and put the use f u n c t i o n and the at t ract ion f u n c t i o n on i ts r i g h t and the re la t ive secondary funct ions fur ther r igh t , and i f there are functions of th i rd order, put them st i l l fur ther r ight , and so on. In simple cases it is not necessary to draw FAST diagrams.

There are many ways of drawing a FAST diagram

The evaluation of Function: In general the customers need two types of functions, the use function and the attraction function. But i n some cases, the customers require only the use function and in others they require only attraction function. In most instances the customers require both types in varying degrees. For instance, in

Value World, Oct./Nov./Dec, 1993 7

clothing, protection of body, comfort and elegance are three principal functions. To older people comfort is the most important while to the young elegance is the most important. Evaluation of the importance of functions w i l l help the clothing maker in designing and manufacturing. The relative importance of different functions of a product can be best obtained by asking the customers to express their opinions, for example: 1st elegance, 2nd comfort and last protection of body. You may analyse these f i r s t -hand data by using the func t ion rat ing gr id /or matrix evaluation chart, the function wi th the highest score is the most important and the rest are graded accordingly.

The performance of a function is also required to f ind whether or not any unnecessary function exists. The comparison can be easily made i f there is a standard table of performance like the one below:

Comparison table of standard performance of bicycles and that of the present-designed one

Items Standard Data Data of the Designed Vehicle

Conclusion

l.Riding Energy 0.1 to 0.2 Hp. 0.1 to 0.2 Hp. Satisfied

2.Speed 15 Km/hr. 15Km/hr. Satisfied

3.Clutches 1.48 m. 1.48 m. Satisfied

4.Safety Supporters wouldn't fall

(single supporter unstable

)

deficient

5-Luggage Carrying Slip

77.5 kg. f cm. 42.5/ 37.5 kg. f cm. deficient

6.Life 5 yrs. (injapan,2yrs.)

8 yrs. too much

By comparison, the present design is deficient in the function of safety and the luggage carrying clip while the new design provides too long a life for the bicycle.

The economical phase of "Function"

The economical phase deals wi th the costs which are to be paid by the customers for the commodities or services to meet their needs. On one hand, costs should be the lowest, and on the other there should be profits reaped f r o m the cost. Only when an enterprise reaps profits does the industry get prosperity, and the society as a whole gets improvement. It seems that these two requirements are contradictory, but experience of VE workers tells us that they are not, as long as one uses VE techniques in designing and manufac tur ing the products.

The economical phase deals with the costs which are to be paid by the customers for the commodities or services to meet their needs.

When we speak of the cost, we emphasize not only the first cost, which occurs when the customers buy the product, but also the lowest expenses the customers have to pay when they use the products or apparatus, such as f u e l , electricity, maintenance and repairing expenses, etc. In calculating the cost, we should keep the life cost in mind.

To determine the cost of a f u n c t i o n , we should eliminate any cost which is unnecessary, and increase the cost where the f u n c t i o n is def ic ient . I n some instances, manufacturers, for safety purposes, prefer designing parts bigger or heavier than necessary, and sometimes, due to bad materials p rocured , poor workmanship or poor management, there are lots of scrapped parts, scrapped products. We should elimnate such unnecessary costs. We should have the net cost in mind.

H o w to calculate the V in the formula V = F / C

The aim of analysis made above about the technical phase and the economical phase is two-fold: one is to f ind the best value of the function which the customers need, and the other is to f ind the lowest cost to provide such a funct ion. No matter whether you proceed to evaluate the function, or to select a better solution, you have to abide by these two principles.

To evaluate the V in the formula V=F/C, you have to quantify F and C first.

(1) How to quantify function F?

A. Use the technical Unit: To quantify the load of a t ruck, we use " ton" , to quan t i fy the capacity of a refrigerator, "litre", to quantify the power of a motor, and we use "watt" or "ki lowat t" , etc. to express the performance of function. By using technical unit, we can f i nd the most suitable value. For example, a certain machine is equipped by a 10 kw. motor. Investigation shows that most of the machines run at 7 to 8 K W instead of f u l l capacity. Eight K W power is most suitable. After that finding, the factory made a change in design to 8 KW. motors, as the extra 2KW is unnecessary.

B. Use monetary uni ts : when the f u n c t i o n is evaluated in monetary units, i t can serve as the target cost, which of course is the lowest. By investigation of the market, a manufacturer of 180 litre refrigerators found that there are 50 manufacturers producing the 180 litre refrigerators and among them a certain firm's cost is the lowest. He took that lowest cost as his target cost.

C. To make scores: when i t is d i f f icu l t to evaluate different functions i n terms of money, you can make scores to express the relat ive importance of the individual functions of a product. Take a thermos bottle as an example. Suppose you make the f u l l marks as 10. N o w af ter we igh ing the importance of d i f f e r e n t functions, you can give the function of "keeping warm" 5 marks, support and safety 3 marks and aesthetic 2 marks. You w i l l pay more attention to designing and manufacturing the parts which give the h igh score functions.


D. To express by coefficient: this is a variation of the score method. The score of a function, divided by the f u l l score, gets the coefficient. This example yields the different functions as 0.5,0.3 and 0.2 respectively.

(2) H o w to quant i fy the cost? Since the costs are expressed in monetary value, the answer is simple.

(3) How to calculate the V in the formula V=F/C?

A. When the function is evaluated in technical units, the ratio V w i l l be Kg./yuan, Litre/yuan, etc..

B. When the function is evaluated in monetary terms, V usually < 1, i n most cases, the actual cost is greater

than the target cost. Only in certain cases, the actual cost is less than the target, then V >1.

C. When the f u n c t i o n is expressed i n scores i n accordance wi th the importance of that function, V is expressed in score/yuan.

D. When the function is expressed in coeficient, V w i l l be 0.1/yuan.

In conclusion, it is emphasized that both the technical phase and the economical phase are just two phases of one concrete thing and after they are quantified, you can get the value V, wi th which you can make improvement of the Value or you can select a better solution. A


Dean Quixote, Sancho Panza and the Quest for Quality

Augustus Shackelford has an MA degree in economics from UCLA. He has taught economics at several community colleges and universities in California. He is a professor of economics at El Camino College where he has been for over 20 years. Professor Shackelford serves as a consultant on economics and finance and has written papers on economics and education. He is involved in efforts to secure efficiency in public expenditures used to support education.

In response to my request for his biography he sent me the following:

I n v i e w of the d i f f i c u l t i e s Senator Biden and Reverend Robertson are having w i t h their resume's, I would like to make the record perfectly clear.

I never actually stated that I was nominated for the Nobel prize in economics in 1987.1 only noted that once again this year my name was not considered for the award.

I have degrees from California State University Long Beach and UCLA but my Doctor of Divinity degree is self conferred. M y Harvard Law degree has recently been repudiated.

I worked for the Long Beach Press Telegram. Some have been under the impression that I was a correspondent for the paper. Actual ly I worked for the paper, s imilar to a columnis t , as independent contractor distributing the newspaper to clients. I was honored by them in 1950 for my success in securing new clients.

I was high point man in one game on the JV team in high school and I finished first in a 10K run once.

Editor

Those of us in institutions of higher education believe we affect the corporate community; however, we are seldom aware of the effect the business world has on us. In recent years the administrators at our colleges have been re fe r r ing to themselves as management and adopting the titles of corporate executives to augment their academic rank. Nor have trends in management techniques escaped us either. We adopted TQM, Total Quality Management, three years ago at the community college where I teach.

I was never directly exposed to TQM until yesterday, but I knew about it. As a member of the college budget

committee I even know its cost. The f i r s t year was $65,000; last year it was $35,000. The same improvement was used for t w o years i n a row to j u s t i f y the expenditures on TQM. There was no justification given last year; but we were assured the cost of TQM would continue to decrease. Yesterday I was TQMed.

We have a new Dean of Quality to head TQM. Deans of quality are not cheap, about $70,000. Included in the budget are a new assistant dean and $31,546 for supplies. Clear ly the T Q M expenditures have not decreased.

Yesterday the budget committee met for the first time since the approval of the f inal budget for the current fiscal year. The meeting was to evaluate the performance of the budget committee. Absent was the Chief Financial Officer who normally chairs the committee. Present was the new Dean of Quality, his assistant and the $31,546 worth of supplies. Probably most are familiar wi th what deans look like, even quality ones; but few probably know what quality supplies look like. Well mostly it was note paper w i t h sticky s tuff on the back and signs posted on the wa l l s w i t h c rypt ic messages: SUB COMMITTEE, INPUT, OUTPUT.

We were instructed to write notes on the sticky paper critical of the budget committee and "stick'um" under the appropriate message. The comments could be both good or bad. I had hoped for gold paper for good comments and red for bad. Most discussions were about the notes that kept falling because the stick'um wasn't sticking. Then the vice presidents started leaving the meeting, I always suspected that those at the top did not truly believe in TQM, and so I followed.

Qual i ty can be improved . I t cannot be to ta led , multiplied or divided. Quantities can be totaled, but never quali ty. "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance," a t ruly remarkable book, devoted four


hundred and six pages to explore the concept of quality. Nowhere in the four hundred and six pages is it even suggested that quality involves anonymously wri t ing notes about your job and pinning them to the walls. Clearly not only can quality improve, but also i t can become trivial.

Quality can be improved. It cannot be totaled, multiplied or divided.

A critique of the budget committee that has quality requires individuals to look one another in the eye and exactly state their position. Sticking anonymous notes on the wal l to be collected and ignored is not quality management nor is i t very adult. The review process ' was Total Quality Mismanagement despite how much " was spent.

The philosophy behind T Q M is that decentralized decision making is often more efficient than centralized decision making. I t seems that after three years and considerable financial investment in TQM, at the school where I teach, that we have not progressed toward obtaining this goal. Our top management supports the goals of TQM as a principle and welcomes suggestions. However, the management often seems surprised and hurt when the views they solicited do not support the direction top management was considering. Frequently, management proceeded w i t h the course of action they had already decided. This has tended to cause the f a c u l t y to feel cynica l regarding management's intentions and has lead administrators to feel more misunderstood.

The ph i losophy of T Q M is in terpreted to v iew students as customers. I n pursu ing this v iew, the admin i s t r a t i on has become more in t rus ive i n the academic affairs of the college, not less as the philosophy promotes. I t is more difficult to establish prerequisites

and dismiss students f rom class for nonperformance. Increasingly the faculty perceives i t more d i f f icu l t to maintain the quality of the student performance. The first violent fight among students I ever recall occurred on our campus last week.

In March of last year, "The Wall Street Journal," published two articles relevant to the operations of our schools. "Fire Your Customers!" by Michael Schrage (March 16, 1992) i n the Manager 's Journal co lumn questioned the efficacy of pursuing a policy of serving customers when i t undermines the organization. Earlier in the month , March 3, Jackson Toby wrote i n The Journal, "To Get Pud of Guns in School, Get Rid of Some Students," i n response to the shooting at a high school stated, in different words, that the public schools cannot serve all customers. Allowing students of limited ability to enroll in any course because they have rights as a customer ultimately devalues the educational process.

In struggling to introduce decentralized decision making, managers have learned a set of techniques at TQM workshops incorporating the ideas of W. Edwards Deming. Meanwhile, despite all our efforts to promote T Q M , there is no evidence of i m p r o v e d s tudent performance that is the ultimate test of any management technique. Perhaps at these workshops, managers could devote time to reading the man who knew the most about decentralized systems - F. A. Hayek.

For TQM to work, it must be more than a management slogan.

For TQM to work, i t must be more than a management slogan. We should feel the shame of failing to have true communicat ion, not pr ide i n the side show I witnessed at the budget committee. We could improve qua l i ty by hav ing mature re la t ionships w i t h one another. A

Value World, Oct.iNov.IDec., 1993 U

Follow Your Hunch -Wild Card Creativity

Theodore C. Fowler is the Managing Principal of Fowler & Whitestone of Dayton, Ohio. He has practiced value analysis (VA) since being introduced to the process through an L.D Miles-directed Seminar Workshop in 1955. As a session chairman at the 1965 SAVE National Conference in Boston, Massachusetts, he introduced Charles W. Bytheway to the society. As a session chairman at the 1992 SAVE International Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, he reintroduced Bytheway whose "Fast — An Intuitive Thinking Technique" was the hit of the conference.

This paper describes an empi r ica l ly developed creative problem-solving system. While this new system avoids complex structure, i t is so l id ly based upon previous work by Arthur Koestler, Alex Osborn, and George M . Prince.

The key participant i n the process is the Creative Coach, a person selected for his or her proven fluency and flexibility.

The system makes use of the often-ridiculed power of human intuition, often referred to as "the hunch".

Several examples of the process are described in their entirety.

The Organized Approach

The literature on creativity contains descriptions of hundreds of organized and logical procedures which promise to turn any individual or group into creative problem solvers. These include complete systems such as the highly organized process of Synectics or the play based method called Neologies. They also include "mini-systems"; that is, creative exercise techniques which have proven to enhance the effectiveness of creative problem-so lv ing ef for t s . Some of these "mini-systems" are Brainstorming, Forced Relationships, At t r ibu te Lis t ing , Morphological Synthesis, Check-L i s t i n g , Direct Analogy, Project ion, Sequence-At t r ibu te s /Modi f i ca t ion Matr ix , Gordon Vectoring, Hypothetical Situations, Back to Nature, and Inversion. The list expands daily.

The Process of Creativity

A l i t t le-noted publicat ion by one of the greatest th inkers and artists and amateur scientists of our century, Arthur Koestler, was published by MacMillan in 1964. I t was called The Act of Creation, and revealed

several fundamental features of the creative process wh ich are misunders tood to this day by most researchers and practitioners i n creative problem-solving.

AH creativity takes place i n the unconscious mind; that is, beyond conscious control.

All creativity takes place in the unconscious mind; that is, beyond conscious control.

Creativity, by def in i t ion , is The generation of new combinations of known data. Such combination cannot be consciously controlled.

The o p t i m u m creative problem-solving process consists of only three steps:

1) Gather great minds. (Effective solutions cannot be developed without the involvement of one or more creatively fluent minds.)

2) Load these minds wi th current and valid data on the subject under study.

3) Establish an environment conducive to the release of solutions from the unconscious mind.

The examples of the validity of these factors throughout the history of scientific discovery are legion, f rom Archimedes' smudges to Nikolai Tesla's AC motor to Jerrold Petroskey's programmed muscles. The three factors appear to be f u l l y as v a l i d i n day- to-day i n d i v i d u a l and group problem-solv ing . The great inventors invariably describe their discoveries i n terms of mind-loading, incubation, and revelation. Their "hunches" are described by them as s ign i f i can t emotional events.


The hundreds of organized and logical creative p rob lem-so lv ing "mini-systems" are attempts to "externalize" this three-step process — to make i t possible to "teach" the process to the masses.

The Wild Card Process

While I have been trained i n Synectics and have applied i t and several dozen other techniques w i t h hundreds of value analysis (VA) teams since the mid 1950s, I have concluded that the classical brainstorming approach provides the best match to the VA Job Plan, fi t t ing well into the concept of "Value Targeting" which is the heart of Customer-Driven VA.

Three modifications have been made to the 1948 Alex Osborn approach:

First, words or phrases which the team lists on the ... flip-chart must not directly relate to the realities of the •' problem-under-study. Make use of George Prince's "in-the-world-of-" technique to maintain the abstract viewpoint so essential to true, far-reaching creativity.

Second, after the generation of a list of w o r d s / phrases, do not delete all of the summarily ridiculous responses before elevating the remaining items into solutions. You see, i f a word/phrase doesn't look like a solut ion to the problem-under-study, one possible reason is that it is creative! In other words, i t is new to the team. Since newness is precisely what we are after, the proper approach is to insist that each word/phrase responds to the forcing question, "How can I USE i t . "

Finally, our fo l low up to a brainstorming session takes an expanded view. Do not regard the words/phrases on the flip-chart as "ideas". They are invariably not! If the participants have complied wi th the rules of brainstorming, they are no more than words or phrases. As such, they are delicate. The leap from a word/phrase to a solution is too great for the human mind to accomplish effectively. I t is essential that each WORD be elevated carefully into an IDEA, each idea elevated to a CONCEPT, and f ina l ly , each concept elevated to a SOLUTION.

Using this system w i t h a client i n the mid-1970s, I was faced w i t h a problem which is not uncommon in VA. The VA team was not really wi l l i ng to "play the game" of brainstorming. They could see no point in writ ing down words and phrases on the flip-chart unless those words and phrases were clearly related to the problem under study. They just couldn't accept the "Wilder-the-Better" rule.

They were asked to perform an experiment. They f i l l ed one flip-chart page w i t h words and were then asked to pick one of the words which they felt was wi ld and pointless and which could never lead to a usable solution to the problem. This was called a "Wild Card", and was written on the top of a new page.

They were challenged to turn this "totally useless" word into a va l id and novel, usable solution to the problem i n under three minutes - and they did! The process involved three steps:

1) The team rapidly listed eight to ten brief responses

to the question: "What does the Wild Card suggest to you."

2) The leader selected one of the responses and asked the team to apply the George Prince method of force-fit t ing i t to the problem-under-study - i n effect, they were to propose a va l id and novel solution "on-the-spot."

3) The team was then led to rapidly "flesh out" the solution, bringing i t up to at least the level of a totally practicable concept.

I was surprised and pleased. I tried i t on the next program - and on dozens of succeeding programs. In nearly every case it worked! The output of teams which undergo this sort of experience commonly reaches closer to the "edge of the envelope." A t first , I didn ' t know why i t worked , but gradually a theory emerged. I t is discussed below, but f i r s t , several examples of the process.

PRODUCT: Deep coal mine Drum Miner with 2 drums, angled forward to overlap the cut in the center, thus removing the "core" of the cut. The function "Cut Core" was identified as a Value Target

RAW DATA: During the brainstorming, one of the team members said "Woogedy Woogedy", his impression of the action of the drums in cutting the core.

RAPID RESPONSE: A 20-second session resulted in:

DISCO

SHAKE BACK AND FORTH

WOBBLY

UNSUPPORTED

UNSTABLE

CRAZY PERSON

FOOLPROOF

FORCE FIT: The phrase "Foolproof" was chosen by the Creative Coach and the following emerged:

"MAKE ALL ADJUSTMENTS SO THAT EVEN WHEN SET TO MAXIMUM, T H E R E IS NEVER DANGER"

The Creative Coach asked for further detail in terms of a specific change to the existing Drum Miner. The following emerged. The whole exercise took 2 1/2 minutes.

"PUT A SHIELDED HOLE I N T H E SIDE OF T H E G E A R B O X W H I C H W I L L S P I L L ANY O V E R F I L L T O A B S O L U T E L Y P R E V E N T T H E DANGEROUS CONDITION OF O V E R F I L L I N G WITH LUBE"

Spilling excess lube totally eUminated a major operational defect When the gearbox lube heated up, it could blow out the shaft seals, a nearly impossible problem to correct in a 50 ton machine several hundred feet underground, operating in a vertical space of four feet.

Example 1


PRODUCT: Air mover fan, 6-foot diameter, comprised of six cast aluminum blades attached to a hub with U-bolts. The function "Relieve Stress" was identified as a Value Target, based on the failure of the Function Cost to match the User Desire data. The stress-relieving in the manufacturing process related to a heat treatment of the sand-cast aluminum blades.

RAW DATA: One of the team responses listed on the flip-chart was "Hit Frank." The reason for this clearly off-base response was that Frank Swisshelm, the VA Coordinator, had arranged for an insipid lunch. They felt that they could "Relieve Stress" by Hitting Frank.

RAPID RESPONSE: The following words or phrases resulted from a 15 second session:

RELIEVE STRESS BASEBALL BAT

HICKORY HANK AARON

ALUMINUM

FORCE FIT: The words "Aluminum Bat" were selected by the Creative Coach and written at the top of a blank sheet. The team was asked to turn these words into a practical solution. The following concept emerged in about 60 seconds of rapid-fire team design:

"MAKE THE FAN BLADES FROM THIN-WALL ALUMINUM TUBING. TAPER WITH HYDRO-FORMING AND FORM INTO BLADES USING MATCHED DIES. ATTACH A CAST BASE END AND A CAST TIP USING MAGNEFORMING"

The team agreed that the concept was practical, novel, and could probably be implemented with a significant improvement in the function and cost of the product.

Example 2

PRODUCT: Drier for newspaper coming off a press at 25 MPH. The function "Add Strength" cost nearly $1,600 and was of particular importance to the users. It was identified as a Value Target.

RAW DATA: One of the words on the brainstorming flip-chart was "Oxen." It was agreed that this was pretty far afield for a paper drier. It was placed at the top of a new sheet.

RAPID RESPONSE: The following words or phrases were recorded in 25 seconds:

STRONG BOLD

SLOW, BUT LOTS OF FORCE PULLS THINGS

PLOW DRAG

FORCE FIT: The word "Plow" was selected by the leader, not because he could visualize that it might lead directly to a valid solution, but simply because he felt that it was totally unconstrained in its creative potential. Tlie team quickly responded with the following:

"ADD AN AIR DEFLECTOR TO PLOW THE AIR DOWNWARD. THIS TURNING VANE' PERMITS THE NARROWER, TALLER DRIER WHICH THE CUSTOMER DEMANDS."

The total time was slightly over 3 minutes.

Example 3


PRODUCT: Forty foot trailer for use with Class 8 tractor. The FAST diagram contained the function "Promote Safety." There was little cost in this function though the customers indicated that it was a major factor in their buying decision. It was selected as one of the Value Targets.

RAW DATA: The team quickly responded with two thoughts which were triggered by the function "Promote Safety":

SEAT BELTS AIR BAGS

FORCE FIT: The team grabbed the entry "Air Bags" before the Creative Coach could react. They defined the following new product to be sold by them as an accessory.

" S E L L A LOW PRESSURE AIR B A G TO BE USED AS AN E M E R G E N C Y J A C K FOR T H E TRAILER OR THE TRACTOR. IT WILL RECEIVE ITS AIR FROM THE EXISTING BRAKE SYSTEM."

Example 4

PRODUCT: Rock Crushing machine. While the team was brainstorming a Value Targeted function, a spider crawled over the flip-chart. Someone called out, "Spider on Board." Following the procedure, the leader wrote the phrase on the flip-chart. RAW DATA: The team produced the following items under the heading, "Spider on Board."

OMINOUS MULTIPLE ARMS

UGLY

RAPID RESPONSE: The Creative Coach chose "Multiple Arms" because of the obvious relationship to the multi-hammer crusher mechanism. The team then produced the following:

SPIDER GEAR MORE HAMMERS

The Coach chose "More Hammers" and the following resulted:

SUN RADIAL CRUSHING

HEAT POP HAMMER OUT BOTTOM

FORCE FIT: The Coach took the last entry and led the team to define a new method of maintaining the machine:

"MODIFY THE BOTTOM OF THE MACHINE SO THAT T H E HAMMERS C A N BE DROPPED OUT OF THE BOTTOM FOR REPLACEMENT OR REPAIR BY PULLING OUT A PIN AND LOWERING THE HAMMER."

Example 5

Analysis

Common features of these examples include:

1) The cross-functional teams were made up of the experts on the problem, including the responsible Project Engineer. A l l were key decision-makers.

2) The teams had recently undergone the following

rigorous mind loading, all relating specifically to the functions of the product-under-study:

> 6 hours of FAST Kagramrning

> 10 hours of allocating costs to functions

> 4 hours of allocating user attitudes to functions

3) The teams were functioning under the classical rules of brainstorming; that is:

NO CRITICISM

THE WILDER THE BETTER

STRIVE FOR QUANTITY

COMBINE & IMPROVE

A l l par t ic ipants were thus p r imed as w e l l as motivated. I n addit ion, they were pressured by the 3-minute limit and the clear cut goal.

A l l these factors permitted teams to reach beyond present reality - permitted them to reach a solution to a gearbox problem from the words "Woogedy Woogedy" -permitted them to reach a new fan blade concept from the words "Hi t Frank" - permitted them to reach a paper drier w i t h a new aspect ratio f rom the word "Oxen" -permitted them to reach a new truck accessory from the words "Air Bag" - permitted them to reach a solution to crusher maintenance from the words "Spider on Board."

Conclusion

I t is m y conv ic t ion that most of the organized techniques of c rea t iv i ty are a r t i f i c i a l l y and non-functionally complicated. It is merely sufficient to load qualified, intelligent minds and then remove constraints and listen to their hunches.

It is my conviction that most of the organized techniques of creativity are artificially and non-functionally complicated.

The m i n d - l o a d i n g can take any f o r m , but the three-day Information Phase used in Customer-Driven VA has proven ideal.

The removal of constraints is a bit more complex, but function based brainstorming of Value Targets appears to have the ideal combination of factors.

Reflections

One possible conclusion is that all we have to do is develop an arbitrary list of pointless words and then force-f i t them to the problem under study. Indeed, several experiments were performed using just that format. They failed. I t would appear that key elements

were missing. We feel that these missing elements are provided in the attitude, viewpoint, and commitment of the part ic ipants i n a we l l -gu ided p rog ram of Customer-Driven VA.

VA practitioners are urged to take the challenge. Promise team members that you w i l l turn their most ridiculous word or phrase into a practical, novel solution in under three minutes. It usually works, and can help to turn around a team and prevent the all-too-common degeneration of a VA s tudy in to a non-creative cost-reduction effort.

Epilogue

The process of Wild-Card Creativity takes this general form:

1) Use decision-makers w h o are experts on the problem-under- study. Include the source of design authority, effectively the Project Engineer.

2) Convince participants that the process is valid and that it w i l l lead to practical solutions.

3) Load their minds wi th massive, valid data on the problem-under-study, expressed in terms of that powerful VA catalyst, the two-word function.

4) Lead the participants through a brainstorming session controlled by the four classical rules and directed toward the functions which are identified as Value Targets. The resulting words/phrases should not reflect the reali t ies of the product-under-study.

Note: Steps one th rough f o u r are present i n a well-ordered VA study.

5) The Creative Coach w i l l guide the team for up to 3 minutes in the application of the fol lowing steps on all responses which are judged by the team to be wi ld and pointless:

> Rapidly list 8 to 10 responses.

> Select one for force-fitting to the problem-under-study.

> Flesh out the force-fit until i t constitutes a practical solution to the problem-under-study.

References

1. Fowler, Theodore C. Value Analysis in Design. NYC: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 19^0

2. Koestler, Arthur. The Act of Creation. NYC: MacMillan, 1964

3. Osborn, Alex F. Applied Imagination. N Y C : Charles

Scribner's Sons, 1953

4 Prince, George M. The Practice of Creativity. N Y C : MacMillan, 1970 A


Function Analysis

Dennis Betts, CVS, earned a graduate degree in VE from the University of Wisconsin in 1989. Dennis has worked for Northrop Corporation for eight years and has trained over 700 employees in VE methods. He has facilitated many workshops and in the BAT Program alone, over one billion dollars in program cost reduction/avoidance was identified.

An abridgement of "Kino Bunseki" by Kaneo Akayama

Preface:

Compressing the 241 page Japanese VE textbook Kino Bunseki1 by Kaneo Ak iyama 2 into 2,000 words squeezes out all but a few vital ideas presented by the author. M y objective for the American reader is to succinctly show how the Japanese underdstand and use "function analysis".

The evolution of Function Analysis in Japan

Function analysis arrived in Japan around 1955, about eight years after Larry Miles made his ideas public. Function Analysis System Technique (FAST) developed by Bytheway is well known throughout the Japanese VE commmunity. So are Ruggles' and Snodgrass' FAST diagramming techniques. However, none of these are the methods of first choice for the Japanese. This is due, in part, to Masatosi Tamai's 1967 article "How to Build Function Family Trees" and, in part, to the different l inguis t ics and t h i n k i n g styles of Japanese and Americans.

Professor Tamai explained Bytheway's FAST method and Mudge ' s VE f u n c t i o n charts f r o m a Japanese perspective. He made it easier for the Japanese reader to understand what the Americans were talking about. Professor Tamai originated the expression "function family tree."

A function family tree is a logic diagram that results from an analysis of functions. Since its introduction in 1967, the function family tree has been preferred by VE practitioners i n Japan by a two-to-one margin over American techniques.

The Differences Between the Japanese "Function Family Tree" and the American Technical F A S T and Task F A S T Diagrams

The three logic diagrams shown in the body of this paper are for the same product, a pocket flashlight. The

formats are; Technical FAST, Task FAST and Function Family Tree. Notice that the funciton family tree chart is essentially the same as a FAST diagram except that i t is displayed differently.

Using Function Analysis for Quality Control

Customers buy products and services because they want the functions those products and services provide. A qua l i ty cont ro l (QC) system that encompasses functions, accurately targets quality as conceived by users and demanded by customers is:

(1) Functions enable a clear iden t i f i ca t ion of the customers' view of quality.

(2) Functions make i t possible to apply QC at the planning and design stages.

(3) Functions open the way to "life cycle" QC, linking together the planning, design and manufacturing stages.

(4) Functions make QC possible for parameters other than physical properties and take QC out of its preeminence in the manufacturing stage.

The use of function analysis makes possible goal-oriented qua l i ty cont ro l centered on users and customers. Traditional QC methods are data oriented.

Design and Function

The design process consists of perce iv ing the purposes for a design, creating the means to achieve those purposes and then evaluating the results. Function definition gives a clear understanding of both the design elements and the user demands.

Function definition has four goals:

(1) Identify the functions of the product (or service).

(2) Evaluate the re la t ionship between cost and functions.


Criteria

• Use environment: can be used even in the rain

• Special feature: shines with body held stationary

• Operability: easy to use even for women and children

• Product dimensions: about as big as a "Seven Star" cigarette

• Product weight: less than 100 grams

• Appearance: design that appeals to women and children

Illuminate surroundings

Function Family Tree for a Pocket Flashlight

Provide light

Water resistant

House parts

Facilitate holding of body

Hold 100 g

•2.2 V, 0.25 A, TL bulb

Convert electricity to light

Open/close circuit

Send current Form circuit

2 dry cell batteries

Protect bulb Store electrical energy

Hold bulb

Collect light Reflect light

Hold body H

rH Cradle object

Supply force

H Form support

Produce adsorbent force

Hold magnet


(3) Create a valuable product (or service) without the constraint of past assumptions.

(4) Evaluate products (or services) to see i f the functions are satisfactorily carried out.

Setting Criteria for Functions

A function can be rated as to the degree to which it performs as intended. Most functions are satisfied only under certain conditions. Criteria for a function can be determined by asking f ive questions: W H O , WHAT, W H E N , WHERE and H O W M U C H ? Sometimes add i t i ona l factors, such as methods, patents or environment constrain the performance of a function.

Criteria for functions are dependent on the demands of users and should be determined on the basis of specif icat ions and rat ings received f r o m users. Excessively rigid criteria restrict the ideas able to satisfy the functions. Liberal criteria allow a broader range of ideas to f u l f i l l functions but make evaluation of the ideas more difficult.

Criteria and Quality Characteristics

Cri ter ia for funct ions applicable to QC include: demand—qual i ty , demand—characteristics and substitute characteristics. Function analysis identifies condi t ions that constrain func t ions , then these constraints are used as standards for evaluating ideas. In other w o r d s , f u n c t i o n analysis establishes and evaluates what quality control calls "quality," in terms of constraining conditions and makes these constraints a prerequisite to the performance of functions.

The Broad and Narrow Sense of '"Function"

A function may be confined simply to a verb-noun expression. When criteria are added, the meaning of "function" broadens to encompass the degree to which the funct ion performs as intended. Both criteria and verb-noun expressions (functions) are used i n the evaluation of ideas.

When setting criteria, the concept and nature of constraints must be fu l ly understood. For example, the funct ion of a clock is to "indicate t ime." This is the narrow sense of function and it makes a good topic for generating a wide spectrum of ideas. Clocks however, are constrained by margins of error expressed in " n " seconds per month. This margin of error becomes a cr i ter ion by wh ich ideas are evaluated against the f u n c t i o n . This is a broader sense of the f u n c t i o n "indicate t ime" and i t facil i tates evaluating ideas because the alternatives must meet the criterion or they are eliminated without hesitation.

Classes of Functions

The Japanese classify functions into six categories: use functions, esteem functions, basic functions, secondary func t i ons , necessary func t ions and unnecessary functions.

USE func t ions invo lve the purposes for w h i c h products are used. Almost all functions that relate to the

in ternal mechanisms of products , thei r parts , or materials, fal l into the use function category.

ESTEEM functions relate to the sensory satisfaction of the user and include forms and colors of products. In many consumer items esteem func t ions are more important than use functions.

BASIC functions are the reason for existence for a product. Basic functions vary according to the object and scope of function definition.

SECONDARY functions assist i n the realization of basic functions. They too vary according to the object and scope of function definition.

A NECESSARY funct ion is a func t ion wanted by customers. A n UNNECESSARY func t ion is neither wanted by customers nor l inked to demands f r o m customers. These functions can usually be eliminated by changing the current design. ^

Function Systematization

Systematizing functions means drawing relationships between individual functions and then showing these relationships on a chart. Functions are related to one another either by ends/means logic or h o w / w h y logic. A function family tree is a chart that shows relationships based on ends/means logic. A FAST diagram relates functions based on how/why logic.

Ends/means logic - This is a way to analyze things so that previously recognized or established goals can be achieved. A n example is the analysis of people and their behavior i n terms of goals, purposes, values and motivat ions. Ends/means logic does not have the preciseness of the scientific method.

Goals of Function Analysis

Funct ion d e f i n i t i o n is a fundamen ta l f u n c t i o n analysis technique wi th four goals:

1) Identify functions of the product or service to be designed or improved. This lessens miscommuni-cation among sales, design, manufacturing and other departments.

2) Evaluate the relationships between functions and COSTS so the required functions can be done at the lowest possible cost

3) Create valuable products or services f r o m the v i e w p o i n t of the customer and w i t h o u t the constraint of past assumptions.

4) Evaluate improved or newly designed products or services to determine i f the f u n c t i o n s are adequately done from the customers' perspective.

Goals of Function Systematization

Like function definition, function systematization is a basic function analysis technique. I t has three goals:

1) Identify the high-order functions that the product must do.



The Ruggles Version of FAST TECHNICAL

Product weight of

* 1 0 0 g

Cigarette-pack size

i

Can use in rain

Attractive to women

and children t i

i i i i

- i i

Provide light

Convert current into light

Protect bulb

Hold bulb

Focus light

Retain beauty

Facilitate holding of

body

Send current

Store electric power

Make circuit

Open/ close circuit

Value World, Oct./Nov./Dec., 1993

(Task)


The Snodgrass Version of FAST TASK

Provide light

Ensure conven

ience

Convert current into light

Send current

Hold bulb

Focus light

Facilitate holding of body-

Hold body

Value World, Oct./Nov./Dec., 1993

2) Ident i fy the relationships among functions and represent them objectively, thus bringing to light the thinking behind the design.

3) Create high-value alternatives by revealing functions whose satisfaction is essential for any improvement.

Subjects for Function Analysis

Function analysis may be applied to all entities that qualify as systems and that have functions to perform:

1) Products - A product is a system composed of parts. The physical interrelationships among the parts carry out the functions. The functions must all be demand related based on customer wants.

The func t ions of a product are easy to analyze because they involve visible, tangible things, whose behavior is specific and stable. When function analysis is done on a product i t can be applied to the whole product (system) or to one of its subassemblies or even to a component. Either improvement or a new design can be addressed. When the goal is improvement, analysis is done on the basis of the product system or components. When the goal is a new design, funct ion analysis is based on required specifications.

2) Production Systems - A production system exists to make products . I t is made up of people, equipment and the energy necessary to run the equipment. It includes functions that need to be done by people and machines to transform raw materials in to f in i shed goods. A p roduc t ion system is a combination of static, dynamic and control systems.

Function analysis can be applied to processes that make up a product ion system, to equipment, or to human activities for improvement or new design.

3) Management Systems - A management system is made up of the various organizational units within a company. Also included are managerial tasks and off ice procedures, as we l l as in format ion processing devices.

Management system functions involve information processing and decision making, and the means of doing them are not visible as they are for products. This intangibility makes the application of function analysis to management systems d i f f i cu l t , p r imar i ly because different people w i l l have different perspectives on what functions need to be done. Since management systems are aggregates of dynamic, control and response systems they cannot be analyzed as systems w i t h specif ic functions because their behavior changes wi th changing circumstances. Function analysis for improvement is based on current organizational, administrative or task systems. For new systems design, function analysis is based on goals.

4) Service Systems - Services are intangibles whose constituent components are people, information and equipment related to the specific service offered. The functions of services are intangible "purposive concepts." Such functions are difficult to analyze because different people have different outlooks on what functions need to be done.

Function analysis may be applied to service systems that are whole entities such as retail or restaurant services and also to subsystems such as informat ion systems.

Abridged by Dennis J. Betts, CVS, 9/09/93, all rights reserved.

References

1 Published by the Japan Standards Association in 1989. English language edition, Function Analysis - Systematic Improvement of Quality and Performance published in 1991 by The Productivity Press, Cambridge, MA. English translation by Andrew P. Dillo. This condensation is by permission of the publisher.

2 Professor Akiyama is a section chief i n the Value Management Institute of Sanno College, part of Sangyo Noritsu University, Japan. A


"Letter to the Editor" FAST Diagram Discussion Continued

Editor- Value World - Re: Function Analysis from L. D. Miles by way of Charles W. Bytheway, Chronology -Value World, Oct/Nov/Dec 1992

There appears to be a continuing discussion as to the best or proper way to make a FAST diagram. The prob lem is that the cont inued discussion creates confusion among almost everyone.

Charlie Bytheway invented the FAST diagram in the early 60's and presented it to the Society at the 1965 conference. As we understand the process, Bytheway led his group through a project asking the H o w - W h y questions while looking for alternative functions that, in his m i n d , of fered oppor tuni t ies for creative development. His idea was to force thinking to develop new ideas and concepts. I n the Bytheway method he frequently closely interrelates the Information and Creative phases of VE.

As we see i t , Charlie developed a theory of Logical Function Relationships and several of us took Charlie's concept and developed it to satisfy our particular needs. However, we maintained the How-Why theory. As we see i t the FAST diagram How-Why logic questions accomplish the following:

° Force thinking

° Develop a cause and effect relationship

° Increase project knowledge and understanding

° Create a picture of the project for constant reference

° Develop new ideas and concepts

The resultant FAST diagram is a logic chart that shows the cause and effect relationships of all functions.

We never really complete a diagram but we do work to "close" the system depending on the project. In other words, we work to construct the diagram so it can be entered from either the high order or low order end and by asking the proper questions, w o r k completely through the diagram to the opposite end. This can be very beneficial and often forces the teams into new areas for development. We don't say this completes the diagram because segments of the diagram can always be taken out and expanded in greater detail at a different level of abstraction.

Closing the diagram can be beneficial because:

° It assures that nothing has been overlooked

° It provides an excellent framework for FUNCTION-COST-EVALUATION

° Shows complete function relationships so projects can be productively delineated

° Aids in explaining and selling the project

° Provides a continuous structure for the entire VE process and makes it a practical management system

It is our feeling that Charlie Bytheway invented the FAST diagram and showed us the theory of Logical Function Relationships. He also showed us that this relationship forces thinking to develop new concepts. Constructing a diagram also tends to improve team fo rma t ion and aids i n deve loping the necessary synergistic effect for maximum benefit. The system tends to create a continuous interrelated process.

There are those who feel that a FAST diagram is not a necessary part of a VE s tudy and they are r igh t . However, i f maximum benefit is required, a FAST diagram, properly made, can increase the overall benefit. This benefit is not obtained by simply going through the motions or f i l l i n g i n the blanks. A FAST diagram takes work.

There are those who feel that a FAST diagram is not a necessary part ofaVE study and they are right.

A second aspect of a FAST diagram is p roper ly defined functions. Actions are not functions. Many FAST diagrams we see are made up of actions. A function is a want, need or objective of an action. Use of actions rather than two word functions in a diagram raises the need to warn people that they are not making a before and after f l o w chart. I n a d d i t i o n , actions can be especially confusing in a system or marketing oriented diagram. I f well defined functions are used, neither of those conditions are the case.

The methods used by Bytheway, Ruggles and Park are based on forcing thinking to develop new ideas and concepts that have never been thought about before. The objective is to create a new viewpoint providing a basis to develop new ideas. In construction it is important to remember that changing roles from consumer to user or manufacturer or even the role of the part, may change the function or a group of functions. The want or need of one role may not satisfy another, hence the functions wi l l change.


In the article by T. C. Fowler, "Function Analysis From Lawrence D . Mi les by w a y of Charles W. Bytheway, A Chronology" Value World Oct /Nov/Dec 1992, he says that the Snodgrass System is based on The Func t ion Structure. One of the developers of the Function Structure System was Robert L. Bartlett who says in his excellent paper "Function Value Deployment and Synthesis, A Di f f e r en t M e t h o d of Product Evaluation and Development" Robert L. Bartlett, PE, CPSM, SAVE Proceedings 1989, page 9-25, that the Product Function Structure superficial ly resembles a FAST diagram but is constructed d i f ferent ly and used for purposes not normally associated w i t h the t radi t ional FAST diagram. Fowler says that he and Snodgrass melded the FAST system into the Function Structure, however, i t does not follow the FAST Theory of Logical Function Relationships. Al though i t may answer the How question it does not answer the Why ' , question. It does not show cause and effect. It is a purely hierar ic ia l system. I t is i n real i ty a funct ional ized Cost Model.

So what is the purpose of this letter? I t is not to denigrate other systems but to point out clearly that we have two systems based on different theories. This is important because we have two useful tools. One, FAST to aid understanding and activate creativity. The second,

Snodgrass or Function Structure, which is excellent for comparing different projects. In today's wor ld it is an excellent tool to aid in implementing benchmarking processes.

The VE management system has aided in spawning many systems in use in the world today. However, we have seen none that use Function Analysis as a basis. Function Analysis wi th FAST is a major adjunct to the VE process. The Function Structure as conducted by Bartlett and modified by Fowler and Snodgrass can be an excellent tool i n VE also but is outstanding for benchmarking.

Both the FAST diagram and Function Structure are excellent tools but they are not the same because they are not based on the same theories nor constructed in the same way. We cannot make a giraffe an elephant. Trying to do so only confuses the issue. Black is not white.

As Carlos Fallon has said, "Just k n o w i n g wha t something costs can save five percent. Improvements in material can save 10 percent, but f inding a better way can save 30 percent or more. FAST and the FUNCTION STRUCTURE both can help approach or surpass the 30 percent. Let's face facts and make maximum use of the tools we have available to us rather than expending time to confuse the issue. A


"Thunder" Don't Let A Shark See You Bleed

M A K E S O M E S E N S E O F T H I S

A t a recent conference I chaired a technical session and consequently was privy to the audience's critique of speaker performance. The feedback was elusive to interpret; the opinions were as varied as night and day, A l p h a and Omega, and as d iss imi lar as A r n o l d Schwartzeneger and PeeWee Herman.

Some inputs gave the speaker's performance a perfect ten i n nearly a l l categories; others ranked the performance as "a waste of time," "should have brought a gun," etc. M y experience now leads me to conclude new truisms associated wi th the art of oratory.

Truism 1- Audience reaction to a presentation is as much a matter of a l istener 's a t t i tude as i t is to a l is tener 's perspective on the subject matter; both elements being important; neither of which is f u l l y under a speaker's control.

Case in point: One of our profession's most respected colleagues confided of a personal disappointment i n energizing a particular audience. They appeared i n atrophy. No response. No rapport; a big nothing. Might ag well have conducted the session in Toussard's Wax Museum. The speaker felt like an A l Gore clone. This f rom a person who ordinarily deserves and gets rave reviews for content and delivery.

So, here's a second tip for you. Truism 2- Don ' t be too hard on yourself for an

occasional force majeure. It's bound to happen. Go on to the next adventure. But i f i t happens too often, maybe you would be better off in agriculture.

Now it's confession time. Let me tell you about two of my more memorable,

wish I could forget, experiences in public speaking. I was i n v i t e d to speak and chair a manufac tu r ing technical session in Milwaukee. The sessions were tied into a multi-day trade show, wi th my address beginning in the muggy afternoon. Walking into the auditorium I sensed trouble ahead. Some attendees were already slumped or dozing. Conceivably, many had pounded the cement f loor of the trade show all morning and I surmised had been finding our why Blatz had made

Milwaukee famous, the previous evening. Anyway, the oration deserved better. M y voice was

nasal f r o m a heavy head cold and the audience's reaction was the same; cold, but wi th the added element of snoozing. Cutt ing m y losses, I opted for mutua l mercy; tossing page after page out of my speech notes until I came to the one that began—"and in conclusion."

That experience being my low point—that is, un t i l Senor King went to Mexico, f u l l of al truist ic spir i t . University students from several campuses combined to hold an engineers week in Mexico City and I was the featured guest, speaking on VE. The hou r - long presentation went noticeably well . The students were eager, into it , asked intelligent questions and the air was filled w i th the smell of ambrosia. A standing ovation no less; or perhaps they stood up to leave, I 'm not sure, but I accepted the former thought as plausible. Afterward, several co-eds approached the podium wi th niceties and pleasantries.

Then appeared a professional f rom one of the visiting campuses. I could tell f rom the look in his eyes that i t was unlikely that he would ask me for my autograph. He started; "Mr. King, I know Value Engineering and have taught i t before. You didn't tell us nothing. You're just like a l l the Gringos who come down here. You didn't tell us nothing." Hmmmm!

Wi th that he wh i r l ed and l e f t . I had considered alerting h im that he had used double negatives in his sentences, but these were not English majors to impress. The rescuing students were supportive, suggesting something perhaps about misguided envy. A n d the w a r m Mexican n igh t was k inder as I l is tened to melodious Mariachi singers in sequined dress. And too, Tequila in small doses is a healer.

C'est La Vie! Let me suggest a final thought for you to ponder in

situations such as this. Truism 3- Never let a shark see you bleed. Empathy

is not a shark's strong suit. They feast on your dismay. So, stay composed, confident and within yourself; being sincere and doing the job you know how. Chances are you w i l l do just fine. A

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