Waste Identification & Process Improvement Flashcards

A Lean practitioner discovers that 40% of a team's daily effort is spent correcting errors found downstream. Which category of waste is most prominently driving total lead time?

Answer: Defects

Defects require rework or scrap, consuming resources and extending lead time without adding value to the customer.

In lean process improvement, 'Takt Time' is calculated as:

Answer: Available production time divided by customer demand rate

Takt Time = Available Production Time ÷ Customer Demand, setting the rhythm at which products must be completed to meet demand.

Which of the following is NOT one of the original 7 wastes (Muda) identified by Taiichi Ohno?

Answer: Non-Utilized Talent

Non-Utilized Talent was added later (making 8 wastes total); Ohno's original 7 did not include it.

A process improvement team uses a spaghetti diagram during a gemba walk. What specific waste are they most likely trying to quantify?

Answer: Motion

A spaghetti diagram traces the physical movement paths of people or materials to measure and visualize motion waste.

Which Lean concept refers to the practice of stopping production immediately when a defect is detected, preventing it from moving downstream?

Answer: Jidoka

Jidoka (autonomation) empowers workers or machines to stop the line the moment a defect occurs, building quality at the source.

In the DMAIC improvement cycle, at which phase would a team primarily use a fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram?

Answer: Analyze

The Analyze phase uses tools like fishbone diagrams to identify root causes of defects or process problems.

A team reduces batch size from 100 units to 10 units. Which immediate improvement in waste reduction is most likely to occur?

Answer: Reduced work-in-process (WIP) inventory

Smaller batches reduce the amount of work-in-process sitting between operations, lowering inventory waste and shortening lead time.