According to Toyota, Muda, Mura, and Muri are enemies. Muda means waste. Mura means unevenness. And Muri means overborden. This thinking model is a truth of both office and production processes. Maybe 3M model enemies are more visible in the production process. But It does not mean that there are no enemies in-office process.
Let’s deep with each enemy:
Muda refers to activities that do not add value to your business. But these activities consume money, time, and resources. There are 7 types of Muda: Defects, Overproduction, Waiting, Transport, Inventory, Motion, and Over Processing.
Mura causes Muda. Mura is some kind of fluctuation in processes. If employees work too much, this affects their performance in a bad way. And it causes defects in the production process. Maybe, it happens because of demands. For example, at the end of the month, your business still needs more than your daily capacity. You forced your employees to overwork, then they become idle when demand drops.
Muri refers to put too much stress and strain on machines and people. People and machines are not perfect sometimes they need to rest for the next task. Trying to put more than 100% of the capacity comes to ear good but in long term, it leads to defects. So Muri causes Muda. And Mura causes Muri.
All 3m’s are connected to each other. To get rid of these 3 enemies, you need well planned and structured process plan. At the same time, this plan has to be flexible. In the business world, everything can change from demands to machines. Even what is seen as the basis of the process can change. So always being aware of these enemies and changes makes your business agile.
