Eliminating non value adding activities

FICCI CE

Eliminating non value adding activities

An important method of doing continuous improvement is to eliminate Waste and non value adding activities from the organization. Mismanagement of time constitutes one of the most important reasons of failure of improvement initiatives in any organization.

FICCI CE

Eliminating non value adding activities

The key to continuous improvement is not about driving people and machines faster, but about the elimination of waste.

Waste is often confused with materials ruined or discarded or time which could obviously have been better spent. However this view is only partial.

Waste is any operation which does not add value.

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Sources of unproductive Time.

Waiting time. Set - up times. Time spent on over production . Avoidable Transportation. Ineffective communication. Inopportune timing of activity.

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Time spent on non value adding activities

The organization must therefore eliminate non value adding activities from the system and the time saved from these activities must be utilized in improvement activities.

A typical matrix of how the organization spends time is given on the next slide.

Matrix of organizational activities

Ineffective activities

Time spent: 20%

Negative activities

Time spent: 10%

Positive activities

Time spent : 60%

Improvement activities

Time spent: 10%

Ineffective activities

• Chasing information• Misdirected queries• Unproductive meetings• Seeking authority to act• Bureaucracy• Ineffective procedures

Positive activities

Dealing effectively with:-

• Customer queries• Rush orders• Surge of demand• Staffing shortages• Resource shortages

Negative activities

• Avoiding quality problems• Interdepartmental rivalry• Secrecy• Putting self needs before team needs• Defensiveness

Improvement activities

• Commitment to quality• Customer driven approach• Willingness to improve• Effective problem solving• Improvement targets• Information sharing• Company wide approach

Matrix of organizational activities

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Time spent on non value adding activities

Thus if an organization is able to eliminate its ineffective and negative activities from the matrix, it is able to save 30% time which can straight away be utilized in its improvement activities as depicted on the next slide.

Matrix of organizational activities

Ineffective activities

Time spent: nil

Negative activities

Time spent: nil

Positive activities

Time spent : 60%

Improvement activities

Time spent: 40%

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