Q: You have reduced lead-time through theory of constraints scheduling but is there a method for further shortening lead-time?
A: The second method for reducing lead-time is to make lots smaller. One method of reducing lot size is splitting orders further.
The above diagram shows the schedule results when a 1000-item order is divided into two 500-item orders. This reduces lead-time by about 20 percent. Dividing orders in this manner increases the number of times that work in process has to be transported from once to twice. Whether one should reduce lead-time or increase the amount of transport has to be considered. The most desirable policy is to raise efficiency and reduce lead-time even if number of transports is increased.