Name That Waste
What is Inventory?
“Storing more raw materials than you need at the moment.”
What is Set in Order?
“This 5S step ensures items are in the correct place for easy access.”
“A product team adds extra features that customers never use, simply to appear ‘cutting-edge.’”
Overprocessing (Extra Processing)
What is Kaizen?
“The Japanese term for continuous improvement.”
“A team removes all outdated documents and broken tools from the office, keeping only what’s truly necessary.”
5s-Sort
What is Motion?
“Unnecessary movement by people, such as reaching across a large work area repeatedly.”
What is Sort?
“Removing unnecessary items from the workspace.”
“An operator stands by a machine for 20 minutes each shift, waiting for the previous station to finish its cycle.”
Waiting
What are Kanban cards (or Kanbans)?
“These visual signals help control the flow or production of products in a pull system.”
“Every workstation now has labeled spots for tools, so items can be quickly found and returned.”
5S-Set in Order?
What is Overproduction?
“Producing more units than the customer demands or earlier than needed.”
What is Sustain?
“The final ‘S’ that involves maintaining improvements and turning them into a habit.”
“The marketing department—full of customer insights—never gets asked for input on product improvements, so their ideas go nowhere.”
Non-Utilized Talent
“Used in the first step of 5S to label items that are unnecessary or out of place, helping decide if they should be kept or removed from the workspace.”
Red Tagging
“Operators schedule a quick, daily cleanup routine to sweep floors, wipe down surfaces, and keep equipment free of debris.”
5S-Shine
What is Defects?
“Defects are any errors, rework, or inaccuracies in a product or service.”
What is Standardize?
"Creating procedures to maintain the first 3S.”
“A factory, worried about fluctuating demand, produces 1,000 extra units in advance even though only 500 are on order.”
Overproduction
“This Lean waste is known as the ‘Mother of All Wastes’ because producing more or sooner than needed leads to excess inventory, extra handling, waiting, and many other forms of waste.”
Overproduction
“Everyone follows the same color-coding and labeling system, with clear checklists for each shift to maintain consistency.”
5S-Standardize
What is Waiting?
“Waiting for the next step in a process, caused by delays or inconsistent workflows.”
What is Shine?
“Keeping the workplace clean and tidy or cleaning to inspect.”
“Subassemblies are shipped from a remote warehouse to the main plant for assembly, and half-finished goods are trucked back for storage before final completion next week.”
Transportation
Where did the methodology of 5S originate?
At Toyota in Japan
“Managers conduct regular audits, and the team continues to follow the rules so the workplace remains organized over the long term.”
5S-Sustain