1st Edition
Lean Waste Stream Reducing Material Use and Garbage Using Lean Principles
The fact that a process produces garbage is a testament to design inefficiency, and this book explains how to use the nature of that garbage to pinpoint and eliminate those inefficiencies. Lean Waste Stream: Reducing Material Use and Garbage Using Lean Principles supplies an unprecedented look at how to address business waste in a manner that will improve your organization’s environmental and financial performance.
Tackling the problem of business garbage from a Lean perspective, the book maintains a focus on how to minimize garbage in ways that cut costs. It considers the problem of garbage in terms of transportation, inventory, and labor costs—with an effort to connect reductions in garbage production at all stages with lower operating costs and improved productivity.
Explaining how to use garbage analysis as a tool to identify the problems in process flow that produced the garbage, this book describes how to look downstream for options to reuse, repurpose, and recycle garbage to minimize landfill impact and costs. The text includes practical exercises with step-by-step instructions, as well as real-world examples that illustrate how specific wastes have been dealt with profitably by various organizations.
The Garbage Can
Looking Inside the Magic Box
Garbage and Wealth
Garbage as Embodied Process Costs
Garbage vs. Material Waste
Endnote
Getting Rid of Our Waste
Landfilling
Energy Recovery
Recycling
Downcycling and Upcycling
Recycling as a Last Resort
Waste Avoidance Strategies
Reuse
Minimization and Prevention
Endnotes
Garbage Auditing
Planning the Audit
Safety for the Audit
Dumpster Diving Safety
Conducting an Audit Autopsy Style
Include Recycled Material in Your Audit
Vacuum Hoses
Hazardous or Sensitive Materials
Garbage Audit Data Collection
Conducting a Live Audit
Ongoing Garbage Monitoring
Endnote
Interrogating the Garbage
Garbage Interrogation Worksheet
Making Improvements
Improvement Teams
Project Selection Criteria
The Project Team
The Project Charter Tool
Value Stream Mapping
Capturing Garbage on a Value Stream Map
Garbage and Material Waste Data Box
Building a Baseline Value Stream Map
Mapping Time
Mapping Improvements
Process Mapping Presentations
Making Improvements That Stick
Endnote
Effective Recycling Programs
Design for Recyclability
The Psychology of Effective Recycling
Sharing the Rewards of Recycling
Waste Sorting and Segregation
Making Garbage Transparent and Accountable
Postconsumer Recycling vs. Material Recapture
Endnotes
Composting Programs and Organics
Food Waste
Plant Waste from Landscaping
Municipal Compost Yards
Plant Waste from Operations
Biodegradable Materials
Edible/Consumable Landscaping
Endnotes
Transportation and Storage of Garbage
Process Improvement and Spaghetti Diagrams
Garbage Compaction
Small-Scale Compactors
Styrofoam Densifiers
Reducing Dumpster Pulls—External Waste Handling Costs
Water in the Garbage
Dewatering Slurry
Endnotes
Reuse and Repurposing
Reusable Containers
Relationship with the Supplier
Repurposing and Reusing Containers
Specialty Markets for Materials
Material Exchange Programs
Virtually Any Waste Product Can Be Reused for Something
Endnotes
Waste Prevention through Design
Source Reduction Efforts
Simplify Suppliers
Purchasing Controls
Compressed Gas Leaks
Preventative Maintenance Practices
Biomimicry
Endnotes
Paperwork Reduction
Why Do We Use Paper?
Advantages and Disadvantages of Paper
Advantages
Disadvantages
Active Processes vs. Records Retention
Analyzing Paper Use with a Paper Audit
Records Retention Policies and Document Destruction
Build a Robust Electronic File System
Common Sources of Office Waste Resulting from Paper Use
Reducing Toner Use
Paperwork Reduction vs. Paperless Office
Endnote
Regulated Waste Segregation
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
Defining Hazardous Waste
Measuring Hazardous Waste
Exploring Nonhazardous Alternatives
Regulated Medical Waste
Confidential Paperwork
Waste Hoarding
Training and Information
Endnotes
Afterword: Maybe Don’t Call It Green
Appendix A: Conducting a Garbage Audit at the University of Oklahoma
Appendix B: Norman, Oklahoma, Municipal Compost Facility
Appendix C: Regulated Medical Waste at St. John Medical Center
Index
Biography
Marc Jensen
Garbage is something to which most people pay little attention. When companies like Walmart have focused on their waste they have discovered new profits. Heightened awareness of solid waste in virtually every setting can result in lower costs. Jensen explains the importance of paying attention to garbage and provides the methods for organized evaluation. His work is an excellent resource for anyone devoted to improving an organization’s environmental and financial performance.
—Fenton Rood, Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality
