Cycle time stuck despite full crew
−31%
cycle time, same crew
- Found
- VSM showed about 40% of steps added no value.
- Done
- Line layout redesigned, motion waste removed.
Lean operations
The waste is already there.
We make it visible.
Delays, double handling, rework nobody logs. None of it appears in the financial report, all of it costs money. We find it on the floor, price it, and remove it without stopping production.
Where it comes from
Lean grew out of the Toyota Production System: remove everything the customer doesn't pay for, from the line to the back office.
Where it applies
Anywhere work moves through steps: production, warehouse, purchasing, admin. If there is a queue, there is waste.
How it's measured
Cycle time, throughput, defect rate and cost per unit, before and after. Impact is counted, not estimated.
The 8 wastes: TIMWOODS
Eight places margin hides.
We find out which two or three dominate your process, and start there.
T
Transport
Moving material or information more than needed.
I
Inventory
Stock that ties up cash and hides problems.
M
Motion
Reaching, walking, searching, by people or on screens.
W
Waiting
Idle time for material, approval or a machine.
O
Overproduction
Making more, or earlier, than the next step needs.
O
Over-processing
More checks or detail than the customer asks for.
D
Defects
Rework, sorting and scrap.
S
Skills
People's knowledge left unused.
The seven classic muda come from Taiichi Ohno; "unused skills" was added later. Alongside muda we also look at mura (unevenness) and muri (overburden).
How a Lean engagement runs
Map. Price. Remove. Hold.
01
Map
Value stream map built from gemba walks, not from the SOP binder.
02
Price
Each waste converted into minutes, capacity and rupiah.
03
Remove
Kaizen with the operators: new layout, new flow, fewer steps.
04
Hold
Standard work, visual control and a daily check.
Tools
Chosen for the problem,
not the other way round.
Process analysis
Value Stream Mapping
End-to-end view of material and information flow, showing where work waits.
Workplace
5S Seiri · Seiton · Seiso · Seiketsu · Shitsuke
A workplace where anything missing or out of place is obvious at a glance.
Improvement
Kaizen
Focused 3–5 day events with your team to fix one problem completely.
Standardisation
Standard Work
The best known method, written down: less variation, faster training.
Flow
Kanban & SMED
Pull signals to stop overproduction; quick changeover to run smaller lots.
Equipment
OEE
Availability × performance × quality. Exposes hidden downtime and speed loss.
Selected cases
Measured by outcome.
Approvals averaging four days
<24hours
approval cycle
- Found
- Redundant sign-offs, no clear authority limits.
- Done
- Approval chain mapped and cut; authority matrix defined.
Rework eating labour and material
8→2%
rework rate, within 60 days
- Found
- Root causes clustered at a few control points.
- Done
- Root cause analysis and standard work at those points.
Results from specific engagements; outcomes depend on context.