5 Motion Waste

UNDERSTANDING MOTION WASTE

Go to Gemba & Standardize Work

Mike Dixon, PhD

In the pursuit of operational excellence, identifying and eliminating waste is crucial. Among the eight wastes recognized in Lean methodology, motion waste is often overlooked but has significant impacts on productivity, efficiency, and employee well-being. This reading aims to provide a clear understanding of what motion waste is, how it differs from transportation waste, and why minimizing motion waste is essential for operational success. Additionally, we will introduce the concept of standardized work and “go and see ”as frameworks for identifying and reducing motion waste.

Definition of Motion Waste

Motion waste refers to the unnecessary movements made by employees during work processes that do not add value to the product or service. These movements can include:

• Excessive Reaching: Stretching beyond a comfortable range to access tools or materials.
• Bending and Twisting: Frequent bending over or twisting the body awkwardly to perform tasks.
• Walking: Unnecessary trips to retrieve tools, materials, or information.
• Searching: Spending time looking for misplaced tools, documents, or equipment.
• Overexertion: Applying more physical effort than necessary due to inefficient work methods.

Goal: The primary goal of reducing motion waste is to make work easier and safer for employees. By properly managing and minimizing unnecessary movements, organizations provide employees with the tools and environment they need to succeed. This not only enhances productivity but also contributes to employee satisfaction and reduces the risk of injury.

Difference Between Motion Waste and Transportation Waste

While both motion and transportation waste involve movement, they pertain to different aspects of operations and have distinct implications.

Motion Waste

Motion waste involves the movement of people within a workspace. It encompasses unnecessary employee actions during the execution of tasks that do not add value to the product or service. For example, a worker might repeatedly bend to pick up components from a low bin, or an office employee might spend time searching through disorganized files to find a document. These actions increase the time to complete tasks, lead to fatigue, and can result in injuries.

Transportation Waste

Transportation waste, on the other hand, involves the unnecessary movement of products, materials, information, or customers between processes. It is often associated with logistics and supply chain inefficiencies. Examples include moving parts back and forth between departments due to poor layout planning or shipping products to multiple warehouses before reaching the customer. Transportation waste increases handling costs, delays delivery, and can potentially damage materials.

Overlap and Related Tools

In our previous discussions, we covered tools and principles that address both transportation and motion waste due to their intertwined nature. These include:

• Process Mapping and Flow Charting: Visualizing processes to identify inefficiencies.
• Layout Design: Organizing physical spaces for optimal flow.
• Spaghetti Diagrams: Tracking movements to highlight unnecessary paths.
• Work Cell and Flow-Oriented Layouts: Designing work areas to streamline processes.

While we won’t repeat these tools in this module, it’s essential to consider them when thinking about motion waste, as they provide valuable insights into movement within operations.

Impact of Motion Waste on Productivity

Understanding the consequences of motion waste underscores the importance of addressing it.

1. Increased Time to Complete Tasks

Unnecessary movements extend the time required to perform tasks. Each extra step, reach, or search adds up, causing delays in the overall workflow. Over time, this accumulates into significant productivity losses, affecting the organization’s ability to meet deadlines and customer demands.

2. Employee Fatigue and Potential Injuries

Repetitive or awkward movements can cause physical strain, leading to fatigue and discomfort. Prolonged exposure to such conditions increases the risk of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)and other injuries. This not only impacts the health and well-being of employees but also leads to increased absenteeism and healthcare costs.

3. Reduced Overall Efficiency and Operational Effectiveness

Motion waste detracts from productive work. Time spent on non-value-adding movements means less time dedicated to activities that contribute to the organization’s goals. This inefficiency can lower output quality, decrease customer satisfaction, and erode competitive advantage.

Identifying Motion Waste

Effectively tackling motion waste begins with recognizing its presence in the workplace. A fundamental approach to this is the principle of “Go to Gemba” or “Go and See,” which emphasizes the importance of observing work processes firsthand in their actual environment.

Observing Work Processes Through Go to Gemba

Go to Gemba is a Japanese term where “Gemba” means “the real place” or “where the action happens.” In the context of operations management, it refers to the practice of leaders and managers physically going to the place where value is created to observe processes, engage with employees, and identify opportunities for improvement.

Key Principles of Go to Gemba:

1. Direct Observation

• • Seeing Things as They Really Are: By being present on the work floor, managers can witness the actual workflow, methods, and challenges faced by employees.
  • Unfiltered Information: Direct observation avoids the distortion that can occur when information is relayed through reports or intermediaries.

2. Engagement with Employees

• • Building Relationships: Interacting with employees fosters trust and open communication.
  • Gaining Insights: Employees often have deep knowledge about their tasks and can highlight issues and suggest improvements that may not be apparent to outsiders.

3. Asking the Right Questions

• • The “Five Whys” Technique: Continuously asking “why” to drill down to the root cause of a problem.
  • Open-ended Inquiries: Encouraging employees to share their perspectives without leading or biasing their responses.

4. Respectful Approach

• • Non-judgmental Observation: The purpose is to understand and improve processes, not to assign blame.
  • Appreciating Employee Efforts: Recognizing the hard work and expertise of employees contributes to morale and cooperation.

5. Identifying Waste in Real Time

• • Spotting Motion Waste: Observing unnecessary movements such as excessive reaching, bending, or walking.
  • Noting Environmental Factors: Identifying layout issues, tool placement, or other environmental factors contributing to motion waste.

6. Continuous Improvement Mindset

• • Kaizen Philosophy: Embracing ongoing, incremental improvements based on observations.
  • Feedback Loops: Implementing changes and monitoring their effectiveness through regular Gemba walks.

Applying Go to Gemba to Identify Motion Waste:

Conduct Regular Gemba Walks

Managers and supervisors should schedule regular visits to the work areas to observe processes. These walks should be planned but also flexible to capture different times and conditions.

Document Observations

Taking notes, sketches, or even photographs (where appropriate) helps in analyzing motion waste. Visual documentation can reveal patterns and specific areas needing attention.

Collaborate with Employees

Engaging in open dialogue with employees during Gemba walks allows for real-time feedback. Asking employees about the challenges they face can uncover hidden sources of motion waste.

Focus on Specific Processes

While a general overview is helpful, focusing on specific tasks or processes during each Gemba walk can lead to more detailed observations and targeted improvements.

Use Checklists or Guidelines

Having a structured approach to what to observe can ensure consistency. Checklists might include:

• Are tools and materials within easy reach?
• Is the workstation arranged to minimize movement?
• Are there obstacles causing unnecessary walking or reaching?
• Do employees exhibit signs of discomfort or strain?

Common Areas Where Motion Waste Occurs

Through the Go to Gemba approach, several common sources of motion waste can be identified:

1. Poorly Organized Workspaces

Cluttered or disorganized work areas make it difficult for employees to find tools and materials quickly. Items may be misplaced or stored inefficiently, leading to excessive searching or reaching. Go to Gemba allows managers to see firsthand how disorganization impacts daily tasks.

2. Inefficient Task Sequences

Tasks arranged in a non-optimal order cause unnecessary backtracking and repetition. Without a clear process flow, employees may perform extra movements that add no value. Observing the actual task sequences enables identification of steps that can be rearranged for efficiency.

3. Lack of Standardized Procedures

Variability in how tasks are performed by different employees leads to inconsistencies and inefficiencies. Without documented best practices, each person may develop their own method, some of which may involve unnecessary motions. Go to Gemba helps in understanding these variations and the need for standardization.

4. Inadequate Workstation Design

Workstations not tailored to the needs of the tasks or the physical characteristics of employees contribute to motion waste. Observing employees at their workstations can reveal ergonomic issues such as awkward postures or excessive stretching.

Key Principles of Standardized Work

Standardized work is a foundational element of operational excellence and Lean methodology. It involves defining, documenting, and optimizing the most efficient way to perform a task or process. The goal is to achieve consistent performance, reduce variability, and eliminate waste, thereby enhancing productivity and quality.

Definition of Standardized Work

Standardized work is characterized by being a repeatable and predictable process. Every task is performed in the same way each time, which reduces variability and ensures consistent outcomes. It is based on the “best-known” method, reflecting the most efficient and effective way to do the work, grounded in current knowledge and best practices. Importantly, standardized work is dynamic, not static; it evolves as improvements and innovations are implemented. It serves as a living document that encourages continuous improvement by becoming the baseline against which changes are measured.

The Three Core Elements of Standardized Work

1. Takt Time

Takt time represents the rate at which products or services must be completed to meet customer demand. It is calculated by dividing the available production time by the customer demand. For example, if there are 480 minutes available in a workday and the customer requires 240 units, the takt time would be 2 minutes per unit. Takt time ensures that production pace is aligned with customer requirements, helping to avoid overproduction or delays. By adhering to takt time, organizations can synchronize their processes with market needs, maintaining a steady flow of work.

2. Work Sequence

The work sequence refers to the exact steps required to perform a task in the correct order. It outlines the most efficient sequence of actions necessary to complete a task, ensuring that tasks are executed efficiently, safely, and consistently. Detailed work instructions, often supported by visual aids such as diagrams or photographs, facilitate understanding and adherence to the work sequence. This clarity reduces confusion, errors, and wasted motions, contributing to improved productivity and quality.

3. Standard Inventory

Standard inventory encompasses the minimum materials, tools, or resources needed to complete the task without delays. By defining the standard inventory, organizations prevent overstocking, which leads to waste, as well as understocking, which causes interruptions and delays. Maintaining optimal resource levels ensures that workers have exactly what they need, where they need it, and when they need it, thereby minimizing unnecessary movements associated with searching for materials or tools.

Benefits of Standardized Work

Implementing standardized work brings several significant benefits.

Eliminates Variability

Standardized work reduces errors and defects by ensuring consistent execution of tasks. By establishing a uniform method, it minimizes the differences in how individual employees perform tasks, which can lead to inconsistencies and quality issues. This consistency provides a baseline for quality control, making it easier to identify deviations and implement corrective actions.

Supports Continuous Improvement

Standardized work creates a foundation for identifying inefficiencies and testing improvements. When a standard method is in place, any proposed changes can be measured against it to assess their impact. This fosters a culture of ongoing enhancement, where employees and management collaborate to refine processes and eliminate waste.

Enhances Training and Onboarding

Standardized work offers clear, repeatable processes for new employees, accelerating learning curves and reducing training costs. New hires can quickly become productive members of the team by following established procedures. This consistency in training reduces variability introduced by different training approaches and ensures that all employees perform tasks to the same standard.

Improves Safety and Quality

By identifying and institutionalizing the safest and most effective ways to complete tasks, standardized work reduces risks associated with hazardous movements or practices. Employees are less likely to experience injuries caused by awkward or unnecessary motions. Moreover, the quality of the output is maintained or improved due to consistent practices, reducing defects and rework.

Conclusion

Motion waste, though often subtle, has profound impacts on operational efficiency and employee health. By understanding and addressing motion waste through the adoption of standardized work, organizations can create more efficient, safer, and more satisfying workplaces. This not only leads to enhanced productivity but also fosters a culture of continuous improvement and respect for employees.

Discussion Questions

1. 1. Identify an Example of Motion Waste in a Workplace You Are Familiar With

• • What unnecessary movements are employees making?
  • How does it impact productivity and employee well-being?

2. How Can Standardized Work Be Implemented in Service Industries?

• • Consider how the principles apply beyond manufacturing settings.
  • What challenges might arise, and how can they be addressed?

3. Reflect on the Role of Employees in Developing Standardized Work

• • Why is their involvement crucial?
  • How does it contribute to the sustainability of improvements?