• Main website
  • Case Studies Home
  • Case Studies
    • Green Belt
      • Example Green Belt Projects-Health Care
      • Example Green Belt Projects-Manufacturing
      • Example Green Belt Projects-Services
    • Black Belt
      • Example Black Belt Projects-Health Care
      • Example Black Belt Projects-Manufacturing
      • Example Black Belt Projects-Services
    • Master Black Belt
    • Lean Success Stories
  • Articles
    • LSS topics of common interest
    • Insights for Green Belts
    • Green Belt tool application examples
    • Insights for Black Belts
    • Black Belt Tool Application Examples
    • Lean Insights
    • Lean Six Sigma Leadership
    • For Master Black Belts
    • New to Lean Six Sigma
      • Lean Expert Basics
      • Six Sigma Basics
    • Leisure and Fun
  • Blog

Case Study: Using the 5 Whys to Validate Assumptions

5 whys analysis

To find the solution to a problem, it is necessary to underline the root cause of the issue. 5 whys analysis brings out the true factor that causes the defect. A large West Coast Marina wanted a root cause analysis for the excessive time consumption for processing and collecting the moorage fee. The conventional process included four major steps that took up more than 12 processing hours.

When the Marina decided to invest in an automated system it also involved a third-party company to document the current scenario and should-be processes, write a business case that could justify the investment of $100,000, and to come up with a business requirements document that would help with the implementation.

One of the major arenas that required reconsideration was the sending of invoices to the boaters for moorage usage collection discrepancies. 5 whys analysis was used to come up with the cause and effect of this particular process. It concluded to an assumption that the boaters could get away without paying for the facility, and therefore it was necessary to charge them with the invoices.

This root cause analysis and subsequent validation of the data resulted in the fact that it was not worthwhile to spend $300 a day to catch up to an underpayment of $2.60 a day when most of the moorage users paid voluntarily or overpaid for using the marina.

Therefore, the initial budget decided to implement a technological solution was eliminated, the unnecessary steps of making extra rounds to collect the details of the boat, and sending invoices to users were reduced. The simple 5 whys analysis brought about an extra 10 valuable work hours, and saved the marina not just the $100,000 capital investment amount but also saved them a massive $200,000 on the first year and $100,000 the following years.

To sustain what the root cause analysis had indicated, the consulting firm suggested a monthly audit. This would not only ensure that the moorage users were paying their bills right, but also could call for a reassessment if required.

See full story on isixsigma.com

February 27, 2014   Benchmark Six Sigma
Case Studies, Example Green Belt Projects-Services, Green Belt Qualified
×

  • The Lean System of Motivation
  • A Model for Implementation of a 5S Program

Categories

  • Articles
    • Black Belt Tool Application Examples
    • For Master Black Belts
    • Green Belt tool application examples
    • Insights for Black Belts
    • Insights for Green Belts
    • Lean Insights
    • Lean Six Sigma Leadership
    • Leisure and Fun
    • LSS topics of common interest
    • New to Lean Six Sigma
      • Lean Expert Basics
      • Six Sigma Basics
  • Case Studies
    • Black Belt Qualified
      • Example Black Belt Projects-Health Care
      • Example Black Belt Projects-Manufacturing
      • Example Black Belt Projects-Services
    • Green Belt Qualified
      • Example Green Belt Projects-Health Care
      • Example Green Belt Projects-Manufacturing
      • Example Green Belt Projects-Services
    • Master Black Belt
  • Featured Articles
  • Lean Qualified
    • Lean Success Stories
  • Project Management Articles
  • Uncategorized

Archives

  • April 2021
  • November 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • February 2012
  • March 2011
Copyright © 2023 Benchmark Six Sigma