The document outlines the five steps of the Theory of Constraints for improving a system: 1) Identify the system's constraints, 2) Decide how to exploit the constraints, 3) Subordinate all other decisions to exploiting the constraints, 4) Elevate the constraints, and 5) If elevating breaks a constraint, return to step 1. It provides examples of applying these steps to identify and address bottlenecks in a manufacturing system to maximize throughput.

1. The Theory of Constraints Now that we know the Goal, how do we use it to improve our system? 8/27/04 Paul A. Jensen Operations Research Models and Methods Copyright 2004 - All rights reserved

9. Application in Manufacturing

14. Step 2: Decide how to exploit the system’s constraint(s).

18. Step 3: Subordinate everything else to the decisions of Step 2.