Sustainable value stream mapping

Value stream mapping (VSM) is a tool used in lean manufacturing to identify waste. A value stream is defined as all activities, both value-added and non-value-added, required to take a product from raw material to the customer. Value-added activities create customer value, which they in turn are willing to pay for, whereas non-value-added activities (waste) add costs that customers would rather not pay for. As a manufacturing principle, lean manufacturing's focus is to continuously improve productivity by reducing the use of resources on activities that do not create value for the end customer.

While lean manufacturing's focus is reducing non-value-added activities, sustainable manufacturing focuses on improving the three pillars of sustainability: economy, society and the environment. As an approach, sustainable manufacturing manages the products, processes and systems to minimize negative impacts on the environment and improve sustainability performance, including economic performance. This method of capturing sustainability impacts via value stream mapping is called sustainable value stream mapping (Sus-VSM) and allows companies to review their operations from a sustainable manufacturing perspective.