Phil Cooper (Sherborne)

Defects: an imperfection or abnormality that needs to be reworked.

Defects are one of the 8 Wastes of Lean and generally accepted as the biggest of the eight.  Defects can be anything that means additional actions are required to rectify the issue.  Examples of defects on farm are:

The defect of mastitis carries a cost to the business, estimated to be £365 per cow per case, (Kingshay Dairy Costings Focus 2023).

5% mouldy silage in a 1000 tonne clamp means 50 tonnes wasted at £25/tonne to make. This is a loss of £1,250 plus the cost of replacing the wasted silage.

Defects include machinery and equipment not working properly, e.g. backing gate not functioning or shedding gate not operating correctly.  These defects not only waste time but also cause frustration within the farm team.

Defects can lead to other wastes including motion and over processing.

Motion waste is any movement of people that does not add value, e.g., having to scrape the backs of the cubicles off because the cows are lying too far forward.

Overprocessing is doing more work than is necessary, e.g., removing mouldy silage from the clamp and tipping in the muck heap to then be spread back on the field.

Reducing areas of waste on farm not only saves money and time it also reduces frustration on farm which should mean a happy team with members less likely to leave. 

To discuss how Lean Farming can help on your farm, contact Phil at pcooper@fcgagric.com