Production Preparation Process (3P)

Lean Manufacturing Series

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Contents
•  Introduction
•  Background and History
•  Components and Implementation
•  Knowledge Check

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Introduction
•  Production Preparation Process (3P) is one part of an
overall Lean design approach that includes the rapid
testing of ideas and the embedding of Lean
manufacturing principles into process and product
design.

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Background and History
•  The 3P methodology grew out of the Shingijustsu
consulting company’s analysis of Toyota’s product and
process development system.

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Components and Implementation
•  What is 3P?
•  Why do 3P?
•  The 3P Method
▫  Team Selection
▫  Define Needs
▫  Prototypes
▫  Design Review
▫  Project Plan

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What is 3P?
•  Production Preparation Process (3P) is one part of an
overall Lean design approach that includes QFD, design
reviews, and post-start up monitoring by a cross
functional team to kaizen any bugs in the new system.
•  Benefits of Production Preparation Process:
▫  Cross-functional team approach
▫  Rapid testing of ideas
▫  The embedding of Lean manufacturing principles into process
and product design.
•  3P is one of the most powerful and transformative
advanced manufacturing tools, and it is typically only
used by organizations that have experience
implementing other lean methods.
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What is 3P?
•  Whereas kaizen and other lean methods take a
production process as a given and seek to make
improvements, 3P focuses on eliminating waste through
product and process design.
•  3P seeks to meet customer requirements by starting
with a clean product development slate to rapidly
create and test potential product and process designs
that require the least time, material, and capital
resources.

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What is 3P?
•  This method typically involves a diverse group of
individuals in a multi-day creative process to identify
several alternative ways to meet the customer's needs
using different product or process designs.
•  3P typically results in products that are less complex,
easier to manufacture, and easier to use and maintain.
3P can also design production processes that eliminate
multiple process steps and that utilize homemade,
right-sized equipment that better meet production
needs.

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What is 3P?
•  Ultimately, 3P methods represent a dramatic shift from
the continuous, incremental improvement of existing
processes sought with kaizen events.
•  Instead, 3P offers potential to make "quantum leap"
design improvements that can improve performance
and eliminate waste to a level beyond that which can
be achieved through the continual improvement of
existing processes.

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Why Do 3P?
•  3P to solve one or more difficulties with new product or
process start up. It can be used to minimize equipment
cost or to design processes to enable one-piece flow.
Other opportunities for 3P:
▫  New product development. Educate designers in Lean as early
as possible.
▫  Capital expenditure approval. Do a 3P review first to ensure
the expenditure is appropriate and necessary.
▫  Product design changes. Approve no changes without a 3P
review.
▫  Significant changes in volume. Embed Lean into scaled-up
processes.
▫  Relocation of processes. A good opportunity to use 3P to embed
Lean thinking.
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Why Do 3P?
•  What types of parts or products are most suited for 3P?
▫  Anything that has a lot of complexity in it is a good candidate.
The more components, materials, processes, transactions, etc.
that are required to produce and deliver a part, the more
opportunity there is to make drastic improvements through 3P
by reconsidering alternative methods to do it the Lean way.
▫  The closer you are to "basic science" or a simple process such as
injection molding, the less opportunity you have to consider
new methods. A stamped, machined, painted and welded
assembly on the other hand offers more opportunity to consider
alternative process options and cut out waste. Last but not
least, the best product or process to apply 3P is where there is a
high running cost. Kaizen must make money.

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3P Method
•  With 3P, the teams spend several days working to
develop multiple alternatives for each process step and
evaluating each alternative against manufacturing
criteria (takt time, etc.) and a preferred cost.

•  The 16 core attributes are used as guidelines for

designing processes according to Lean manufacturing
principles of JIT (Takt, Flow, Pull) and Jidoka.

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3P Method: 16 Core Attributes
1.  Production preparation should be lightning fast.
a.  Avoid over planning, use what you have, act now.
2.  Build & layout equipment for smooth material flow.
a.  Flow like a river, not like a dam.
3.  Use additive equipment.
a.  Buy many speedboats instead of one tanker.
4.  Build equipment that is easy to set up.
a.  Design in the separation of internal and external tasks.
5.  Make equipment easy to move.
a.  No roots, no vines, no pits. Put wheels on everything.
6.  Use multi-purpose equipment.
a.  Simple, "just fast enough" machines that perform one function
well.
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3P Method: 16 Core Attributes
7.  Make operator work stations narrow.
a.  Town houses, not ranch houses.
8.  Layout equipment for ease of operator movement.
a.  Remove obstruction to smooth human motion.
9.  Eliminate wasted machine cycle time.
a.  Design out 'air cutting' and minimize machine movements.
10. Build equipment for small, swift flow lines.
a.  Enable Standard Work (Takt, Work Sequence, SWIP).
11. Use short, vertical flow lines.
a.  Vertical = advancing process flow, horizontal = functional.
12. Build equipment for one-piece pull.
a.  Machine level. This is probably the most critical one.

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3P Method: 16 Core Attributes
13. Build in quick changeover.
a.  Design in SMED at the machine level.
14. Link machines for smooth load and unload.
a.  Line stops when WIP on the line is "full work".

15. Use multiple lines & rectified flows.

a.  'Rectified' is an odd term, electrical engineers will get it.
16. Spiral upwards to jidoka.
a.  There are 5 steps to jidoka, which should be pursued a step at
a time.

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3P Method
•  The goal is typically to develop a process or product
design that meets customer requirements best in the
"least waste way". The typical steps in a 3P event are
described below.
1.  Define Product or Process Design Objectives/Needs
2.  Diagramming
3.  Find Alternatives
4.  Build, Present, and Select Process Prototypes
5.  Hold Design Review
6.  Develop Project Implementation plan

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3P Method

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Method: Team Selection
•  Representation from all functions who are stakeholders

•  If necessary use outside experts in Lean

•  Representation from the entire value stream

▫  Suppliers
▫  Customers

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Method: Define Needs
•  The team seeks to understand the core customer needs
that need to be met.

•  If a product or product prototype is available, the

project team breaks it down into component parts and
raw materials to assess the function that each plays.

•  Identify required processes, methods, and

technologies.

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Method: Diagramming
•  A fishbone diagram or other type of illustration is
created to demonstrate the flow from raw material to
finished product.

•  The project team then analyzes each branch of the

diagram (or each illustration) and brainstorms key
words (e.g., roll, rotate, form, bend) to describe the
change (or "transformation") made at each branch.

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Method: Find Alternatives
•  Sub-teams are formed to draw different ways to
accomplish the process in question.

•  Each of the sketches is evaluated and the best is

chosen (along with any good features from the sketches
that are not chosen) for a mock-up.

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Method: Prototypes
•  The team prototypes and then evaluates the chosen
process, spending several days (if necessary) working
with different variations of the mock-up to ensure it
will meet criteria.

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Method: Design Review
•  Once a concept has been selected for additional
refinement, it is presented to a larger group (including
the original product designers) for feedback.

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Method: Project Plan
•  If the project is selected to proceed, the team selects
a project implementation leader who helps determine
the schedule, process, resource requirements, and
distribution of responsibilities for completion.

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 Knowledge Check

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3P typically results in what type of product?
(Mark all that apply)

a)  Less Complex

b)  Easier to Manufacture

c)  Less Expensive to Buy

d)  Easier to Use and Maintain

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What is 3P?
o  A) Production Prevention Process
o  B) Production Preparation Process
o  C) Preparation Prevention Process
o  D) Perfect Production Process

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What pains does 3P help with?
(Mark all that apply)

a)  New Product Development

b)  Capital Expenditure Approval

c)  Product Design Changes

d)  Significant Changes in Volume

e)  Relocation of Processes

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The best product or process to apply 3P is
where there is a low running cost.
o  A) True
o  B) False

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What are some of the benefits of Production
Preparation Process (3P) (Mark all that apply)
a)  Cross-functional team
approach

b)  Rapid testing of ideas

c)  The embedding of Lean

manufacturing principles
into process and product
design.

© 2013 Gemba Academy LLC. All rights reserved. 31

3P focuses on eliminating waste through product
and process design.
o A) True
o B) False

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Match the steps in the 3P method with their
description by dragging the description to the
step.

□ 
•  Step •  Description
E A.  Find Alternatives

□ 
1 B.  Develop Project
D Implementation plan

□ 
2 C.  Hold Design Review
D.  Diagramming
A

□ 
3 E.  Define Product or Process
Design Objectives/Needs
F F.  Build, Present, and Select

□ 
4 Process Prototypes
C

□ 
5
B
6
© 2013 Gemba Academy LLC. All rights reserved. 33
What are some of the core attributes of the 3P
Method? (Mark all that apply)
A.  Production preparation
should be lightning fast.
B.  Do not move equipment
C.  Make operator work stations
narrow.
D.  Link machines for smooth
load and unload
E.  Spiral upwards to jidoka.

© 2013 Gemba Academy LLC. All rights reserved. 34

Congratulations!!!
•  You have completed the course.

•  Please visit Superfactory at www.superfactory.com for

more information on manufacturing excellence.

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