As part of the innovative product implementation,  a new system  (LIMS)  needed to be implemented to support the quality insurance department .   The system should meet the specific requirements of an innovative product but  also in future replace about 60 local LIMS solutions for conventional products.  All in one platform, modern, user friendly , connected to the laboratory  instruments and other systems in the company.   The true challenge was not to  build the system but align or define the  business  processes. All in the very limited timeframe, as the first commercial production  run of this innovative product was scheduled in 8 months, and system was  expected to be in place .

Challenge

Selection

Learning Launch

The project team, composed by the business and IT experts,  has selected the  out-of-shelf tool  and originally was planning to use the expertise of the 3  business analysts to build integrated business processes and define the  necessary system adaptation. After design thinking session a learning launches  were proposed  as the preparatory phase and input for the project team before  any execution.

Application  The approach for learning divided  by phases:

 Phase 1:   leverage on the existing experience of the conventional

product to design the processes  and common tool

 Phase 2:  understand the specific  innovative  product needs

For the very first learning launch, the R&D central  laboratory (the biggest,  closest location)  and 8 factory laboratories were selected for interviewing  about the current processes and LIMS solutions: current process, , designed  workflows, pain points , etc.  The data were collected  in 3 stages:  questionnaires filled by laboratory supervisors ,   interviewing the laboratory  staff , to finish with web conference showing the result and opening further  discussions and alignment between participants.       Based on the input the aligned business process and new system was developed  and successfully implemented in the R&D central laboratory for conventional  products, as a proof of concept.

PAGE 2  LERANING LAUNCH

Insight

For the second learning launch, with the R&D central  laboratory the processes  for the innovative product were defined  and implemented in the new LIMS  solution.  After the successful prototype the  solution was copied to the factory laboratory  of innovative product. And the tool was rejected by local team  as unusable in  the factory environment.     The third learning launch was immediately triggered in the factory laboratory to  understand the issues.

In the first phase, by applying the learning launch tool, the team could verify the  team assumptions with the feedbacks of the laboratories, understand the real  needs of the users and re-design the current conventional processes to reflect  the reality in the labs.     In the second phase, the assumption that new products are not much different  than for conventional products were confirmed. What was different was  the  steps in quality controls and the instruments used for the measurements. This  allowed to leverage on the existing expertise in the company and quickly build a  prototype.       The third learning launch allowed a confirmation that the tool is not a problem,  but the procedures defined by R&D were not possible to implement in factory  realities. As the result the dedicated team was assembled to build the set of  procedures applicable for central and local laboratories.

The tool selection and approach to build the prototype was correct.   Anyhow , despite in the first launch the team was selected correctly (mix of the  central and local laboratories  representatives), in a second learning launch only  central laboratory was interviewed.    If the representatives of both types of  laboratories were present, the first prototype for innovative product will be in  use in the factory as of first version and allow to save 3 months on  implementation .

Approach

