theory of constraints :: essays research papers

Backgroundeasterly Financial Florida Credit Union is the largest credit union in South Florida. The last three years have been intensive with rates dipping to there lowest in 40 years. Because of this, 92% of mortgage holders had economic reasons to refinance.Eastern exists to achieve goals to improve member service, work performance and increase profitability however, certain factors limit their capacity to manage constraints and they needed help.Eastern Weak colligateEastern needed help because they were faced with a bottleneck/constraint of having more loan applicants than they were able to timely process so they decided that the enigma can be eliminated by implementing Theory of Constraints (TOC) amaze-buffer rope and five focusing steps. Other weak links that need to be addressed areunfitness to commit to closing datesA lot of work in process in the systemLead times too longConstantly shuffling prioritiesToo much expeditingStressful work environment Difficulty in responding to urgent member requestsOvertime doesnt increase profitsOutsourcing doesnt influence the problemTOC is based on the fact that all businesses operate with constraints or bottlenecks, which disable the progress or success of a company. By identifying the bottleneck, the entire military operation is strengthened. Drum, Buffer, Rope (DBR)Eastern uses this view in managing constraint along with the five steps. Using DBR assures that the company is running the right thing at the right time. volt Focusing StepsIdentifyExploitSubordinateElevateInertiaIdentify/DrumSince we just reviewed the weak links, we must seek and destroy the bottleneck. Identifying the drum/constraint is critical to the theory of constraints. Eastern identified the constraint to be in the underwriting department.Exploit/BufferTo exploit the constraint, Eastern puts all efforts toward maximizing the athletic field that is causing the problem, which is underwriting. Eastern provided enough work in process files to pr otect the systems deliverables (closing and delivery dates), which is related to the buffer. The buffer tells two things when too much material is in the buffer and not enough. The system assures that underwriting is protected with work in process files, which is the amount of material in the buffer. This pre-determined amount of work is the rope.SubordinateSubordinating involves grooming others to improve the constraints area Eastern provides the protection for all resources to underwriting and provides cross training and backups to the department this assures that the constraint is operating continuously.