Lessons from the Beer Game: Macro-Level Flow in an End-to-End Supply Chain

Industry: All Industries

Keywords: Simulation, Supply Chain, Lean Flow

Level: Intermediate

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/j-chris-white-4417b61/

Many of us have heard of the Beer Game and many have even played the Beer Game in person. If you have played the Beer Game, then you know how it feels to have the pressure to meet customer demand and hold inventory while trying to minimize costs. All the while, everyone else in your supply chain is trying to do the same, although it does not always look or feel that way! Among other lessons, the Beer Game shows how variability in customer demand can wreak havoc in a supply chain, such as the bullwhip effect.

Even with the best intentions, it is still difficult to control the situation in the Beer Game. Lean projects focus on the various flows of material, products, information, and resources within a single company to ensure smooth and synchronous flow of a product through its process. However, what does it look like when these same principles of balanced flow and synchronicity are applied across multiple companies in a supply chain? Is it even possible or desirable? In many situations, problems arise when companies are not holding enough inventory or producing enough materials to keep up with a steady, straightforward demand pattern. This only gets worse as the demand pattern begins to fluctuate, even just a little bit. Imagine how bad it gets when large disruptions occur! Remember the toilet paper supply chain during the height of Covid, or the obstruction of the Suez Canal by the Ever Given container ship that ran aground?

Come learn how to apply lean techniques to end-to-end supply chains to gain the best performance across the entire supply chain. The free simulation tool, Beer Game on Steroids, will be used to demonstrate concepts.

J. Chris White

President, Twilight Training LLC, Rockwall, TX, USA

Mr. White holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a M.S. in Engineering Management from the University of Michigan.

His recent publications include: Leadershit: Understanding and Avoiding Poor Leadership, CRC Press, upcoming 2024. Structured for Success: What Leaders Need to Know to Build and Sustain Effective Organizations, CRC Press, 2018.The Dynamic Progress Method: Using Advanced Simulation to Improve Project Planning and Management, CRC Press, 2016. Project Pain Reliever: A Just-in-Time Handbook for Anyone Managing Projects, contributed 10 chapters, David Garrett editor, J. Ross Publishing, 2012. Strategic Quality Management, Cengage Learning, 2007. He holds the following professional certifications: Lean Sensei, Six Sigma Master Black Belt (MBB), Certified Manager of Quality / Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE), Project Management Professional (PMP), and Certified Scrum Master (CSM).