The Eight Wastes
What type of waste occurs when a company produces a faulty product that must be repaired?
Defects.
What is the main aim of Lean Operations?
To reduce waste and increase value for the customer.
Which production approach is most suitable for producing large quantities of identical products?
Mass production
Workers are waiting for materials to arrive before they can continue working. Which type of waste is this?
Waiting
In Lean Operations, what is meant by a value-added activity?
An activity that contributes to what the customer values in a product or service.
What does customisation mean in production?
Adapting a product to meet an individual customer’s requirements.
A warehouse stores far more products than customers currently need. Which type of waste does this represent?
Inventory
A company repeatedly checks the same information, but the checks do not improve the product. What type of waste should it investigate?
Extra Processing
What is mass customisation?
Producing goods efficiently at scale while offering customers different options or configurations.
Employees walk long distances around a factory to collect the tools they need. Which type of waste is this?
Motion
Why can reducing unnecessary waiting improve an organisation’s operations?
It reduces delays and helps work flow more efficiently.
A company needs two unique prototypes with complex shapes. Which production technology could be suitable?
3D printing
A company moves materials between different locations unnecessarily. Which type of waste does this represent?
Transportation
A company wants to reduce waste without reducing the value customers receive. What should it focus on improving?
Its processes, by removing non-value-added activities and unnecessary resource use.
Why might 3D printing be useful for prototypes but not automatically the best choice for producing 50,000 identical parts?
3D printing can support complex designs and small batches, but other production methods may be faster or more cost effective for large quantities.