value engineering article

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Mechanical Engineering C 1ZA 6 1

An Introduction to

VALUE ANALYSIS AND VALUE ENGINEERINGfor Industries Services and Governmental Agencies

Thomas J SnodgrassFaculty AssociateDepartment of Engineering Professional DevelopmentUniversity of Wisconsin Madison

Ronald E. ThomsonLecturerDepartment of Engineering MechanicsUniversity of Wisconsin Madison

Prepared under the supervision ofDepartment of Engineering Professional DevelopmentUniversity of Wisconsin Madison

University of Wisconsin ExtensionLILE> Jndependent Study


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Copyright 199 by oard of Regen ts of the University of Wisconsin SystemAll Rights Reserved

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Manufactured in the United States of America

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CONTENTS

ntroduction 1

ow to Do the Work of the Course 2

SECTION 1

AN ORGANIZED APPROACH TO GOOD VALUE

Why Value Engineering? 7

The Value Analysis Job Plan 9

Information Gathering 14

Identifying Functions ~ 1 16

Technical FAST Diagramming 23

Technical FAST Case Histories 32

TaskFAST 35

Function Costs 40

Function Attitudes and Value Mismatch 55

0 Function Analysis and Creativity 58

1 Evaluation 61

SECTION 2

THE MANAGEMENT OF VALUE ANALYSIS ACTNITIES

2 The Role of the Engineering Value Specialist 73

3 Interaction of theorganizat ion withValueEngineering

4 Management s Role in Value Engineering 9

5 Value Engineering as a Career-Some Do s and Don ts 81

equest for Final Examination 84a

equest for Transcript 84b

equest for Certificate of Completion 84c


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INTRODUCTION

Value analysis is a relatively new system which traces its origins back to the late1940 s. The concept was conceived by ~ i Miles, the author of Teclzniquesof ValueAnalysis and Engineering It is a system developed for the elimination of unnecessarycosts.

This course in value analysis has four major objectives. It is designed to h p youunderstand the unique techniques of value analysis. 7

learn the value analysis job plan.appreciate the major factors in value analysis andunderstand the role of the value specialist in relation to the rest of an organization.


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HOW TO DO THE WOR K OF THE OUR S E

This is the Study Guide for Mechanical Engineering C612-A361 An Introduction toValue Analysis and Value Engineering for Industries, Services, and G overnm entalAgencies. It is designed to provide you with the instruction and information givenin a classroom situation with reading and written assignments and comments by theinstructor. The course is divided into fifteen units.

TEXTBOOKS

Function Analysis: The Stepping Stones to Goo d Value,Thomas J Snodgrass and. Muthiah Kasi 1986 The University of Wisconsin System Madison Wisconsin.

Excerpts @om Tecltniqueso f Value Analys is a nd Engineering, L D . Miles.From the 2nd ed. 1972 originally published by McGraw-Hill New York.

M TERI LS

Mutual No. 20 three-hole punch or its current variation is supplied for you to use inthe course as a concrete example for value analysis. It provides a project which givesyou an opportunity to actually put into practice the various techniques presented in thecourse.

A forms packet of special forms required for some of the written assignments issupplied with this Study Guide.

You will need to supply paper pen or pencil erasers scratch paper and so forthfor your use.

COURSE ORG NIZ TION

Each unit includes a textbook reading assignment study notes n this Study Guide thatam pl if hd ex pl ai n the reading assignment in the textbooks and a written assignment.Write your answers to the written assignment neatly beginning on one of the specialfirst sheets provided. Continue your assignment on additional paper as needed. Besure your name mailing address the course number course name and unit numberare filled in on the first sheet. Your name anpthe course and unit numbers should alsobe on each added sheet of paper. Then put all the sheets together and insert them inone of the special envelopes provided by UW-Extension. Fill in the blanks on the

envelope put postage on it and mail it.You can now proceed with the next unit in the same manner. Meanwhile your

written assignment will be graded by your course instructor who will also providewritten comment; as appropriate on your work. After your corrected assignment hasbeen returned to you check it carefully and use it to guide any review study you mayneed. For several units you must wait until the graded assignment is returned beforeproceeding to the next written assignment.

After you have completed all the written assignments request the final examina-tion. You will find the directions for the final examination at the back of this StudyGuide.


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How to Do the Work of the Course

You will have completed the course when you have earned a satisfactory gradeon each of the written assignments and the final examination. If you would then like aCertificate of Completion, mail in the form at the back of this Study Guide.

If you have difficulty understanding some concepts or answering questions, pleasefeel free to ask your instructor for help. The more specific your question is, the betteryour instructor can respond. Send any questions you may have in the same envelopewith your written assignment.

We are well aware that individuils may have special question3 not answered inthe reading or difficulties with the written assignments. You may confer directly withthe instructor using the D IN telephone line. In order to use this line, your instructormust call you. Therefore, i you wish a telephone conference at any point during thecourse, inform the instructor on a written assignment sheet. Include your telephonenumber and a time when it would be con enient for the instructor to call you. Do nothesitate to ask for assistance.

HOW TO LEARN

Learning is an ordinary, common, everyday thing. Everybody does it ahqost all thetime. It is impossible to stop learning. There is nothing strange, unusual, or ilficultabout it, even though, quite honestly, no one really understands how or why it happens.

Each person-a student in a class as well as one engaged in self-study-learnsas an individual. And most of the leaming that everyone does takes place outside ofeducational institutions.

To study simply means to direct your learning toward a particular goal. Here aresome general guidelines for studying:

1. Set up a study schedule to suit your situation. Don't make your schedule toodemanding or too rigid, but don't be too lenient with yourself either.

2. Choose a time and place that is convenient and reasonably quiet. Make a choicethat will leave you as free from outside distractions as possible-perhaps late atnight or early in the morning, at home or at a local library.

3. Organize all your study materials and have them at hand before you begin. Al-ways include scratch paper and a pencil.

4. Begin your study of each unit by a quick reading of the entire unit-both theStudy Guide material and the reading assignment. Don't worry about detail ox,,about getting everything to make sense this first time. Then read the unit morethoroughly, studying and learning more detail and thinking things through. Getall the information you can from drawings, charts, and things you find interest-ing, important, or difficult, Use the scratch paper to keep track of questions thatcome to mind, to outline what you're learning, or to make your own notes. Afterthis second reading, you'll probably want to go back over all or part of the unit,perhaps several times.

5. When you are ready, carefully and thoughtfully complete the written assignment.You may want to work it out on scratch paper first. Keep your final written workneat and legible. It's a courtesy to your instructor and your work will be moreuseful to you in reviewing the course.

6. Before you start each unit, you'll probably want to give earlier units a quick re-view. Note that many of the words and terms introduced n the course have pm i s emeaning. An important part of your study consists of enlarging your vocabularywith these new words.


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AN ORGANIZED APPROACH TO GOOD VALUE

v ? \

Section 1 of this course, Units 1 through 11, covers the techniques and toolsof the relatively new discipline called value analysis. The need for this dis-cipline arises out of changing economic conditions and changing customerand consumer attitudes.

L. D. Miles, author of Techniques of Value Analysis and Engineering, spe'aksof value analysis as a system. That is, it is an organized or established pro-cedure. job plan (Unit 2) provides the format for the system. The tools ofthe system (Units 3 through 11 allow the value specialist, as an individual ordirecting a team, to shape and work data to determine that combination whichwarrants the term good value. The use offunctions to define products or ser-vices is a unique part of the value analysis system. The book Function Anal-ysis: The Stepping Stones to Good Value, by Snodgrass and Kasi, presentsthe latest techniques, including those used in customer-oriented value engi-neering.


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WHY VALUE ENGINEERING?

A drive through older communities reveals many vacant factory buildings. The rea-sons can be many, but leading the list are factors which involve the word value. Todaywe are aware of world competition that threatens some o our major industries, andagain, the problem appears to be that the foreign makes represent better value in theeyes of the buyer. This course in value aj)alysis/engineering describes a system whoseobjective is to reverse this situation and assure good value products and services. Itcovers the organized approach and techniques of value analysislengineering and dis-cusses how various individuals and parts of organizations affect value. The training ofvalue specialists and the initiation of value programs is explored. >

Lawrence D. Miles developed the initial value analysis concept and directed theearly training effort. The excerpts from his Tecltniques of Value Ana lysis and E ngi-neering, 2nd ed, furnish an excellent base reference to the main text you will be using,Function Analysis: The Stepping Stones to Go od V alue,by Srkodgrass and Kasi.

It is hoped that you will apply the knowledge gained in this course to assure goodvalue products and services in the future.

RE DING SSIGNMENT

Excerpts,from: Techniquesof Value Analysis and Engineering, L D . MilesPrefaceChapter 1, Sections 1-1 through 1-4 and Sections 1-8 through 1-10

Function Analysis: The Stepping Stones to Goo d Value,Snodgrass and KasiForward and Preface, pages x-xii

STUDY NOTES*

The use of the excerpts from Larry Miles' Techniques of Value Ana lysis an d En gineer-ing and the newer book, Function Analysis: The Stepping Stones to Good ValuebySnodgrass and Kasi, provide an excellent bridge from the beginning of value analy-sis to the present period. Miles describes this relationship very well in the preface hewrote for Function Analysis: The Stepping S tones to Goo d V alue.

Several important points are made n the Miles Excerpts, Chapter 1, concerningvalue analysis and the value analyst or value specialist. The first important conceptis that value analysis is a problem-solving system that has as its objective the identi-fication of unnecessary cost. The concept of the coaching of champions is anothersignificant factor in value analysis. Miles also discusses four types of thinking (eval-uating information, penetrating analysis, creative mental activity, and judgment-typemental activity) that are utilized n the problem-solving technique called value analy-sis.

The term value analysis is often replaced by value engineering, value assurance,value management, or other synonyms. It may also be written as VA, VE, or VA/VE


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8 Unit

A very significant part of value is established by the customer. Today the phrasevoice of the customer is heard more and more in boardrooms and in design sessions.

As Miles points out, a product must meet the customer's expectations in order to beacc6ptable. A product of value must also meet requirements imposed by government

bodies that reflect concerns such as those related to safety or the environment. And, ofcourse, the product must be manufactured at a cost that generates healthy profits whensold at a competitive price. You should be able to discuss various aspects of value andvarious approaches to increasing value.

The obstacles to achieving and maintaining value in products or services relate totime shortages, lack of measuring, human factors, and technical changes. Higher coststhan are necessary for a good value product can be caused by every part of the orga-nization. You have encountered many of these obstacles; just think about industrialexamples with which you are familiar.

An important consideration is the effect of value analysis on the productivity of anorganization. Numerous examples can be cited that show that value analysis providedmore of what customers wanted, and at a lower manufacturing cost, because the VA

*%,process made an organization work as an integrated whole rather than in isolated parts.Note also that public services, such as those provided by a school system, can ben-

efit from value analysis. Many have higher budgets than necessary due to incompleteunderstanding of the voters' desires and the students' needs.

Miles presents five key questions in Section 1-10 that must be asked and answeredin order to select a value analysis project and prepare individuals' minds to accept valueanalysis techniques. You should be able to list the five questions and give an examplefor each.

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT

Complete the following work and send it to the University of Wisconsin-Extensionfor grading. One of the printed first sheets supplied by us should be carefully filled in

and used as the first page of each of your written assignments. We also furnish printedenvelopes that should be used for mailing in your written assignments. Please use aseparate envelope for each assignment.

See complete instructions for preparing your written assignment on page 2 of thisStudy Guide.

a

1. Wh&s value analysis trying to do?

2. What is the definition for value analysis given by L. Miles?3 Why is value analysis needed?

4. What are four roadblocks mentioned d t h e assignment?

5. In what areas of an organization can causes for poor value be found?

6. What are the four types of mental activity involved in value analysis?7. What is the meaning of appropriate performance as used in value engineering?

8. What do the authors say is necessary to obtain the best value?

9. What are the three major aspects of value?

10. Write a short essay telling y ur instructorwhat exposure you have had to VA VE prior to this course.why you are taking this course (or what you hope to learn).what future plans you have that include value analysis.


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TH E VALUE N LYSIS JOB PLAN

Advances in the communication fields and the aerospace industry have emphasized theimportance of good systems. According to Webster, such a system could be definedas a set of rules or principles arranged in a logical order linking all of the variousparts. We all are aware that the absence or failure of any one part of a system cancause severe problems and even failure n the entire process or product. Moreover,cupon reflection, we realize that most products and services in operation today have nooverall system (set of procedures) to assure that they meet the criteria of good value.That is a significant reason why so many of today's products aren't good values. Thisunit discusses the value analysis job plan-the essential steps in the sys)em whichenable us to achieve good value in our products, processes, and services. :

READING SSIGNMENT

Ex cei pts fiom : Techniques of Value Analysis and Engi~zeering, L D . MilesChapter 5 Section 5-3

STUDY NOTESWe in business today are confronted by a paradox. Never have we had so much infor-mation, talent, or technology available for solving problems. Yet we are failing in ourtask to find better solutions. Our companies are struggling in the face of more capablecompetitors, and even, as we are seeing all around us, just closing their doors.

In most cases the essential information and talent are available to us. Our chal-lenge is to learn how to effectively access and utilize these resources to secure bettersolutions. Specifically we must learn how to gather, understand, analyze, and utilizethe information to develop solutions as good as or better than our competition. Thenwe must act decisively on our findings. To assure continued success, this must be anintegral part of how we run our businesses. a

We must adopt methods that utilize the knowledge and talent available to ourorganizations to identify these better answers. Then we must implement these answers.Moreover, to assure that this process continues we must be certain that we function ina cooperative supportive environment where the risk of personal loss is minimized.We want to make our company a winner, thereby making all of us winners. Valueanalysis can help us do just that.

What s Value Analysis? Value analysis enables us to secure the winning answers.V is the organized, disciplined, problem-solving system that's necessary to enable usto efficiently bring information and resources together and solve difficult problems toour company's advantage by giving products and services of really good value toeverybody.

Good Value It is essential in today's volatile, competitive market to provide goodvalue in our products, processes, and services. But we must provide this good valuenot only to our customers but also to ourselves. Really good value describes a product,


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Unit

OVERHE DMATERIALS

Figure 2 1 The Goal-Good Value Balance

process, or service which has high acceptance by the customer at a price he is willingto pay while producing good-to-high profits for the supplier. When we cease providingeither side of this good value balance, our companies will be in trouble. Very seldomdoes good value just happen-we must work to achieve it.

Roadblocks to Good Value It is essential throughout the value analysis process thatwe be sensitive to roadblocks (the barriers to achieving good value) and use the VA

system to help overcome these roadblocks. There are four significant roadblocks thatwe must address to assure that our quest for good value is successful:

1. The difficulty of securing the essential information relating the customer s atti-tudes to the producer s costs.Vque analysis information gathering and analyzing techniques are effective inoverbbming this obstacle.

2. The lack of new ideas.Value analysis is effective in providing new and valuable insights for problemsolving through techniques for getting i ormation and ideas from expert sourcesplus the synergy achieved with team d namics and with specific creativity tech-niques.

3. Honest wrong beliefs-those things that we know to be absolutely true, but arenot true.VA s pursuit and use of high quality information and its structured zero-personal-risk team approach, in which everything is questioned, are significant in over-coming this obstacle.

4. Lack of time.VA demands hard work, attention to details, and a commitment of time-allwith the active support of management. With this commitment, the VA problem-solving system is still the fastest, most efficient way of achieving the good valuesolutions we must have for everyone to win.


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Unit 2 11

Tools of Value Analysis VA deliberately uses a group of techniques, approaches,and actions to assure good value products, services, and systems. First, VA uses ninespecific techniques and concepts:

1 Job Plan

2. Team Dynamics3. Value Engineering Specialist4. Computer Cost and Attitude Support5. Analytical Function Language and FAST6. Function Cost Analysis7. Function Attitude Analysis8. Creating on Function9. Value Standard (PAR)

Each of these will be covered in detail d n g this course.Second, it is recognized that VA initially disrupts an organization because it de-

mands change. Once this is accepted, it is possible to penetrate to really good value.VA usually uses a multi-discipline group from within an organization and impels that

group to work toward common goals to achieve good value.1

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