The mygyaan practical guide · Lean
The 8 Wastes: learn to see what gets in the way
Use DOWNTIME to recognise defects, overproduction, waiting, unused talent, transportation, inventory, motion and extra processing.
Try it in your workTaiichi Ohno’s original framework identified seven wastes. Many contemporary Lean teaching frameworks add unused human talent as an eighth. DOWNTIME is a convenient memory aid for this expanded list, not a claim that all eight originated together.
Use the categories to ask better questions. They overlap: an unnecessary batch may create inventory, transport and waiting at once. Finding the primary cause is more useful than arguing over the label.
01 / The 8 Wastes
DOWNTIME: eight lenses for observation
The examples below are illustrations for manufacturing and office work—not a diagnosis of your business.
D — Defects
Scrap, errors and rework. A misdrilled part or an incorrect invoice consumes capacity without delivering the intended result. Ask where the error originated, not only where it was detected.
O — Overproduction
Making more, earlier or faster than the next process needs. Producing an extra batch to keep a machine busy or creating reports nobody uses can trigger several other wastes.
W — Waiting
Work held up by missing material, information, capacity or approval. An order may be late even if every person handling it spends very little time on it.
N — Non-utilised talent
Ignoring the knowledge, skills and improvement ideas of the people doing the work. Examples include solving a recurring problem without involving operators or giving no response to suggestions.
T — Transportation
Unnecessary movement of material or work between places. Repeated transfers between storage areas or departments can add handling, delay and risk without changing the product.
I — Inventory
More stock or work in progress than the system needs. Piles of parts, unfinished orders or unprocessed applications can conceal quality and flow problems.
M — Motion
Unnecessary movement by people: searching, walking, reaching or switching between scattered records. Distinguish the movement of the worker from transportation of the work.
E — Extra processing
Doing more work than the requirement needs: redundant data entry, excessive polishing or repeated approvals that add no useful control. Confirm the requirement before removing a step.
02 / The 8 Wastes
Waste is not the same as a person
An operator waiting for a drawing is not the problem to eliminate. Investigate why the drawing is unavailable, who controls the release and what would prevent recurrence. Treat observations as evidence about a system, not a performance verdict on an individual.
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Separate avoidable waste from necessary work
Some activities do not directly transform the product but are currently essential for safety, law, traceability or reliable operation. Improve how they are done; do not bypass them because they appear on a waste list. Similarly, a deliberately sized buffer can protect service while underlying instability is addressed.
04 / The 8 Wastes
Prioritise causes, not the longest list
Choose an observed problem that matters to safety, quality, customer delivery or the people doing the work. Clarify its frequency and consequence using real evidence. Ask why it occurs, test a countermeasure and check for effects elsewhere. Avoid a waste hunt that produces labels but no follow-through.
Read · Reflect · Apply
Try this with your team
- 1.Pick one small workflow and observe it with the team’s agreement.
- 2.Record what happened, where it happened and what work was affected. Avoid assumptions about motives.
- 3.Use DOWNTIME to categorise the observation; more than one category may apply.
- 4.Select one recurring issue, investigate its cause and review a small countermeasure with the team.