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Lean Thinking, Muda, and the Four Ls • 179

possible. As you know, the setup of a new or improved manufacturing
line is a project. The ongoing running of the manufacturing line is an
operation. As the pieces of major manufacturing equipment started to
arrive, they were installed at the most convenient location available at
that time. The location of the machines themselves was not considered
part of the original project, and handover to operations occurred. At
the time, the team was considering applying Lean thinking to revise
their manufacturing process. Lean thinking design called for the
equipment to be relocated for reduced waste and improved efficiency
and throughput. Had the project delivery considered this up front, the
savings could have been instituted a year earlier at minimum.
This case helps illustrate the importance of connecting the project
team’s thinking with the long-term operation of the deliverable of the
product, in this case, a manufacturing line.

Wastes
What are these wastes? The idea of the importance of eliminating waste
was popularized as part of the Toyota Production System (TPS), and the
identification of “The Seven Wastes.” Muda is Japanese for waste—you will
sometimes find this information referred to as the Seven Mudas.
Here, in general, are the Seven Wastes.

1. Overproduction: Simply put, overproduction means producing an
item for a process before it is actually required. Overproduction is
highly costly to a process because it prohibits the smooth flow of
materials or services and will tend to degrade quality and produc-
tivity. This is why the Toyota Production System is referred to as
“just in time” (JIT), because every item is made just as it is needed.
Overproduction is sometimes referred to as “just in case.” Working
on a just-in-case basis creates unnecessarily long lead times, results
in unneeded storage costs, and makes it more difficult for the process
to detect defects. One way to find out where overproduction is “hid-
ing” is to turn off the supply to the system and see where the inven-
tory is built up.
2. Waiting: If goods are not moving or being processed by the system,
the waste of waiting occurs. Amazingly, the vast majority of a prod-
uct’s life in traditional batch-and-queue manufacture will be spent