Muda (Japanese term)

is a Japanese word meaning "futility; uselessness; idleness; superfluity; waste; wastage; wastefulness", and is a key concept in the Toyota Production System (TPS) as one of the three types of deviation from optimal allocation of resources (muda, mura, muri). Waste reduction is an effective way to increase profitability. Toyota adopted these three words beginning with the prefix mu-, which in Japan are widely recognized as a reference to a product improvement program or campaign.