The following sources of non-value-adding wasteful activities, coined the "Seven Deadly Wastes" by Taiichi Ohno of Toyota, are present throughout processes in all organizations yet most employees do not recognize them or realize the impact on operational excellence. The challenge lies in developing employees at all levels of the organization to easily identify and eliminate these wastes while understanding the effect on productivity and efficiency.
Waste of Overproduction Producing more than immediately required in advance of internal/external customer demand. This is considered the worst form of waste due to its impact on the other types and is contrary to the conventional thinking that large batches and long runs are desirable and financially beneficial.
Producing product not yet need by next (downstream) process
Producing in large batches
Producing and storing
Unable to meet current demand as capacity has been dedicated to future needs
Waste of Inventory Any inventory in excess of amount required to meet immediate internal/external customer demand.
Materials and supplies in storage
Raw material in storage
Work in process
Finished goods not shipped
Cash tied up in anticipation of future demand
Waste of Defects Product of inferior quality requiring consumption of additional resources.
Inspecting
Sorting
Reworking
Downgrading
Scrapping
Impact on schedules and customers
Lost capacity
Lost customers
Waste of Waiting Delays between the completion of one process and the beginning of the next activity.
Waiting for people
Waiting for supplies or materials
Waiting for equipment
Waiting for inspection / measurement
Waiting for information
Waiting for approvals
Waste of Unnecessary Transportation The unnecessary movement of materials or products
Moving material to and from warehouse
Movement of material on conveyors
Movement of materials within the process
Equipment purchased for transportation
Waste of Excess Motion Any movement of people, tooling or equipment not adding value to the product
Walking from point-to-point during the work cycle
Multiple handling of materials
Retrieving materials, tools or supplies from outside the work area
Poorly designed processes and ergonomics
Confusing motion with work
Lack of standard work
Waste of Excess Processing Doing more than required to meet customer needs or requirements
Tighter quality standards than required
Accommodating inconsistent, incapable or inefficient processes
Poorly designed operator-to-machine interface
Allowing processes to operate longer than required to meet quality standards
Additional Wastes An awareness of the following wastes and the need to eliminate them from an organizations culture will assist in the pursuit of operational excellence.