ABSTRACT
"Waste" can be categorized as any non-valued-added activity; and a non-value-added activity is any activity that doesn't add direct value to the customer – but more on that a little later. It's widely accepted that there are three forms of waste: muda, muri, and mura. Waste is the usage/consumption of any resources more than the minimum required to produce a product or deliver a service to the expectations of the customer. The chapter talks about seven deadly wastes: transportation; inventory; motion; wait; overproduction; over-processing; and wait. It focuses on eliminating wastes, and waste should be defined as the utilization of any resources beyond the very minimum required to a produce a given part or provide a given service. The category that has consistently seemed to stick is ineffective use of resources, with "resources" expanded to include space, equipment, people, or any resource used to produce a product or provide a service.
