The aim of the LeanStock Production Dice Game is to introduce the trainees to the concepts of flow in a business and to give them hands-on experience of how constraints and non-constraints affect the flow of activities within a business process. The Dice Game demonstrates the principles introducd by Goldratt in The Goal.
The dice game provides a Business Simulation education tool built into an Excel spreadsheet to simulate the process flow through a typical company. They show how different ways of running the company affect throughput, lead time and inventory.
The various dice games model the business processes of buying materials, processing through the business operations and shipping finished product to the market.
The basic game set up represents a team of 6-8 players seated along the side of a table. Players can play along by throwing dice and moving counters as in the traditional physical version of the game, or by using the internal random throw simulation built into the game if insufficient people are involved. We would recommend using the physical dice and counters in conjunction with this game as a recording and visual medium, this participation enhances the learning and fun. However, if running the education session online then using the game only is still a practical aid to learning.
The first player would act as the raw materials supplier, and the last player ships product to the market. The remaining players, between the two, represent internal business resources.
The game is setup with a framework of 6 simulations each representing alternate ways of managing flow in the business, these are:
| Game | |
| 1 | Balanced Capacity |
| 2 | Moving Capacity |
| 3 | Resource Constrained (Unbalanced Capacity) |
| 4 | Market Constrained |
| 5 | Supply Constrained |
| 6 | Drum, Buffer, Rope |
The performance of the team is measured in terms of Throughput and Inventory. Throughput is the number of discs sold by the team over say 20 days, this is shown in the system as Finished Goods (FG). Inventory is the number of discs in the system after 20 days shown as Total WIP.
A summary dashboard is also provided so that results (saved for each scenario) for WIP levels and throughput can be compared across the different business scenarios for discussion on the merits and benefits to the business.
Contact us to discuss your requirements either as a consultant or education establishment using the Dice Game as an external education tool, within a company implementing Lean or TOC, or as an individual learning the principles of manufacturing.
