On Essential Waste v.2021–05

Necessary waste is the type of waste that doesn’t bring direct value to the customer but ensures that the product/service we deliver does. One of the brightest examples that illustrate a process, which falls under this category is quality assurance.

According to all the theories out there, QA is a waste in Lean. Does your customer pay you to test your product before delivering it? No. Are they expecting the product to be reliable and worth the money they are paying? Yes. Therefore, you need to ensure that your product meets their quality expectations.

So quality assurance doesn’t bring direct value to your customer but does so for your organization and therefore it is necessary to waste.