No value added (NVA) is a management term loosely related to the

lean manufacturing Lean manufacturing is a production method aimed primarily at reducing times within the production system as well as response times from suppliers and to customers. It is closely related to another concept called just-in-time manufacturing (J ...

movement as codified in the 1980s by a landmark MIT study of the

automobile industry The automotive industry comprises a wide range of companies and organizations involved in the design, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industries by revenue (from 16 % such ...

, which explained lean production for the first time. No Value Added programs can be formal or whimsical. Generally, they involved seeking input and opinion from every level of the organization about rules, processes or process elements which are said to be "no value added". In one form, the proponent of an activity accused of being NVA must defend it, or suspend it. In a milder form, the proponent (or process owner) of an activity accused of being NVA is simply informed that it is seen in that light. Oddly, this milder form is often effective because in a large organization, the original reason for an activity can be long forgotten, similar to ''

caboose A caboose is a crewed North American railroad car coupled at the end of a freight train. Cabooses provide shelter for crew at the end of a train, who were formerly required in switching and shunting, keeping a lookout for load shifting, dam ...

s'' which came into use in the 1830s, but eventually had no useful purpose and became NVA. Some claim that this NVA is a jibe at ''Net Value Added''

accounting methods A basis of accounting is the time various financial transactions are recorded. The cash basis (EU VAT vocabulary ''cash accounting'') and the accrual basis are the two primary methods of tracking income and expenses in accounting. Both can ...

, which were held in low esteem by some Lean advocates, and high esteem by others.

References

{{reflist Lean manufacturing

See also

References