22 LEAN SIGMA METHODS AND TOOLS FOR SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS

The Dirty Dozen: 12 Forms of Waste

Ways to
Form Description Examples eliminate
Overproduction More than required • E-mailing, • Task time
is made or served faxing the • Proof of need
same document survey
multiple times • Make to order
• Ineffective
meetings
Expertise Under-utilization • Workloads not • Standard work
due to placement being completed • Lean Sigma File
of people into due to lack of System
positions where their cross-training • Business case for
knowledge, skills, • Assigning Lean Sigma
and abilities aren’t employees two • Office quick-starts
used to the fullest jobs due to
understaffing
Transport Any transport of • Delivering • 5S
files, information, or unneeded • Value stream
materials documents mapping
• Updating • Standard work
customer records • Lean Sigma File
in different System
systems • Visual controls
• Colocation of
workers
Inventory Excessive piles of • Files awaiting • 5S
paperwork, computer signatures or • Value stream
files, supplies, and approvals mapping
time spent searching • Keeping multiple • Standard work
for documents copies of reports • Lean Sigma File
System
• Kanbans for office
supplies
• Level
loading-heijunka
Motion Any movement • Hand carrying • Standard work
of people, paper paper to another • New office layout
or electronic process • Kanbans for office
exchanges, or both, • Using an supplies
that does not add excessive number • Pull systems and
value of transaction supermarkets
screens to support
decision making

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 LEAN SIGMA METHODS AND TOOLS—BASIC CONCEPTS 23

Ways to
Form Description Examples eliminate
Corrections All processing • Data entry errors • Standard work
required in creating • Not having • Lean Sigma File
a defect and the integrated IT System
additional work systems • Visual controls
required to correct it • Mistake proofing

Overprocessing Putting more work • Duplicate reports • Standard work

or effort than or information • Lean Sigma File
required into the • Constantly System
work requested by revising • Data collection
internal or external documents techniques
customers • Excessive • Document tagging
approvals
Waiting Waiting for anything • Excessive • Value stream
(people, signatures, signatures or mapping
information, etc.) approvals • 5S
• Delay in feedback • Lean Sigma File
from high-level System
management • Runners
• Waiting for a • Pitch
meeting to make a • Standard work
decision • Scoreboards
Overload Overburdening or • An 18-person bus • Standard work
overloading a work carrying 25 people • One piece flow
system, machine, or • A new contract • Statistical analysis
process requiring 80 • Workload
additional hours balancing
of work and not
enough staff to
complete the work
Unevenness Lack of consistent • Scheduling • 5S
flow of inputs/ all work to be • Value stream
information/ completed at the mapping
scheduled work from end of the month • Standard work
upstream processes and not during • Workload
causing many of the month at even balancing
the other types of intervals
waste previously • Poor office
mentioned processes
for locating
documents when
a staff member is
on leave

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24 LEAN SIGMA METHODS AND TOOLS FOR SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS

(Continued)

Ways to
Form Description Examples eliminate
Environmental Any waste that • Paper or plastic • Reduce, reuse,
is generated by a used in a cafeteria recycle
service organization that isn’t recycled • Sustainability or
that impacts the • Unnecessary use Green metrics
environment, of power when
whether it is heat, machines and
solid, liquid, or gas equipment aren’t
in use
Social Waste from the other • Time spent by • Plan–Do–Check–
areas of society, employees at work Act
such as poverty, socializing • Sustainability
discrimination, • Advertising metrics
malpractice, health products on social • Performance/gap
and injuries, networking sites analysis
nutrition, literacy that are not read
and education, by target audience
and also waste on
account of social
media networking

Larry thought about where these wastes could be present at his cruise line
and made the following notes.

1 of 12: The Waste of Overproduction

Producing some type of work prior to it being required is waste of over-

production. Providing a service above and beyond what is needed is also
considered overproduction. Overproduction is when too much of some-
thing is made or served. This is the greatest of all the wastes. Overproduc-
tion of work or services can cause other wastes. For example, by preparing
extra copies of a report, you are using extra paper, extra time to handle
the reports, and extra motion and transportation to dispose of the reports,
and so on. Activities without direct immediate purpose should be elimi-
nated or reconfigured unless they are already understood as essential to a
perfect process.