SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE
point of view, being able to respond quickly, with prompt service and, in general, very high delivery performance. With the bar so high, it is quite clear how neglecting this process and therefore, by extension, forgetting the flow of value after the sale of the original product, can represent a missed business opportunity. The question that thus comes to mind is: how can the lean approach support after-sales processes?
The first step could be to direct efforts towards identifying value for the customer. In such highly intangible and complex processes, it may not be easy to understand what the actual value perceived by the customer involves. One way to refocus attention in this direction is surely to go and speak to them directly and, by doing this, better clarify their needs and desires.
This is the gemba, or (from Japanese) the place where things happen. In this case it may seem more difficult to identify as it is in the production process, where it corresponds to a physical place, and it may not even be restricted to a single company function and may involve different people, however there is always a gemba where these
processes take place.
Through observation we can create a map of these processes to identify the flow by which value is created, and we can understand what the obstacles to this flow are (even intangible
ones). By removing these obstacles, we can improve the process, aligning its performance with what the market demands, with a view to continuing to serve the customer.
Strut
www.acr-news.com
May 2021 25
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