Whether its Lean Six Sigma, just in time or a pull system, flow is the term used to refer to a production or service environment that continuously moves value through the value stream without interruptions.  An environment that has flow would have very low levels of muda, muri and mura.  Flow can also be described as the progression of tasks involved in creating products and information minus stoppages, delays, scrap, rework, reversals and backflows.  Flow applies to both materials and information.

  A forecast is a prediction of something to come or in the future.  A forecast would take place before any type of action or activity happens.  Forecasts are almost always wrong but they can be used to define a hope-for, goal, target or condition that you believe is attainable based on analysis and assessment.

    ​First time yield is a metric used to determine how a process is performing in relation to the number of good parts or services it produces.  In other words FTY measures the percent of non-defective units that are successfully produced from a process the first time through.  The metric is more specifically used to measure the ratio of parts made correctly the first time through.  First time through yield can help gauge whether or not a cell is making parts correctly the first time through.

  The future state is a reference to the aim of an individual, team or organization.  It can be seen as technical, organizational or philosophical. 

  Formally defined, a fill rate is the percentage of customer orders that a company can ship or, “fill”, immediately from the inventory you have on hand without placing backorders, running out of stock or missing sales.

 First in First out is a method used in inventory valuation for accounting purposes.  The method advocates the practice of using the oldest inventory item first, hence the name "first in" "first out." The principle is also applicable in maintaining precise sequence during and through the production of items because it ensures that the first part into a process or inventory location is also the first part to be used.  The FIFO lane is one method of controlling and regulating a pull system that is between two disconnected (decoupled) processes.  

  Finished goods are products or end items that are sold as a complete item or unit.  These items are commonly subject to a customer order, sales order or purchase order that is linked directly to a customer.  Finished goods and products are an extension of your inventory. They are materials or products that have reached a point in either the manufacturing or transformative process where they are available for consumption. You can calculate finished goods using a formula that will also help create an inventory ratio which determines the value of your goods for sale.  Finished goods inventory is generally considered a short term asset.  Short term assets are expected to sell in less than a year as opposed to long term assets which are typically investments that will be kept for longer than a year.  Let’s look at an example of finished goods.

The fault tree analysis is a top-down method used to analyze failures.  It uses Boolean logic to combine a sequence of lower-level occurrences.  In many cases a fault tree is used to analyze the reliability, maintainability and safety of a system.

  ​A function check or functional test will help you measure the ability of your equipment to perform and work as it should.

  ​A function check or functional test will help you measure the ability of your equipment to perform and work as it is intended to or should.

  The 5S system is a visual workplace management system that promotes safety, efficiency and teamwork while making abnormalities visible. 

  The fishbone diagram is a structured analysis tool used to organize potential causes associated with a specific effect.  

Other names:

1. Cause and Effect Diagram
2. Ishikawa Diagram

Related Blogs:

• Listen to the Gemba - The fishbone diagram (7 basic quality tools).

Creator:

• Kaoru Ishikawa​

  A fiscal year usually refers to an accounting year that does not end on December 31. (The accounting year of January 1 thrugh December 31 is usually referred to as a calendar year.) Some examples of the fiscal years used by U.S. corporations include:

• The 12 months of February 1 through January 31
• The 12 months of October 1 through September 30
• The 12 months of June 1 through May 31
• The 52 weeks (four 13-week quarters) ending on the Saturday closest to January 31 (This will require an occasional fiscal year of 53 weeks since 52 weeks X 7 days = 364 days vs. 365 days per year.)

  One reason a business or other organization will have its accounting year end on a date other than December 31 is to fit its natural business year. For example, school districts will use fiscal years of July 1 through June 30. Retailers often end their fiscal years near the end of January.

Reference: Accounting Coach - Fiscal Year.

  The image shown above is used on a value stream map to show finished goods to a customer.

  Failure mode and effects analysis or FMEA is a tool used to identify possible failure modes of a process, product or design.  FMEA also helps determine the overall impact of the failures on sub-items.  The FMEA process establishes a measurement risk priority number that is often used in continuous improvement initiatives.