MULTI-LEVEL INFORMATION VALUE STREAM MAPPING

Digitalization and automation of the production according to Industry 4.0 opens new opportunities for companies to develop more efficient value chains. In the context of mass customization, it is promising to examine more closely the complete internal value chain of companies, from the first customer contact to the delivery of the finished product, prior to provide digital configurations for customized products. A critical aspect for internal inefficiencies and complication of an aspired automation are the interfaces of departments due to inconsistent and non-uniform information transfer.
This article presents a versatile approach to visualize the internal information flow at inter-departmental level as well as at intra-departmental level. The described multilevel information value stream mapping method perfectly suits as prerequisite for a digitalization or automation of internal information flows. As framework for the time capturing and visualization, ISO 22468 is used, and an industrial use case exemplifies the research findings.