WIP (Work in Progress, or Work in Process) is the stock of products in the course of production — they have started being transformed from raw material but have not yet reached finished-product status. It is an inevitable component of any industrial operation, but it is also a form of idle capital that deserves attention.
In lean operations, reducing WIP is one of the central objectives. High WIP hides inefficiencies (imbalance between workstations, quality problems, long setups), increases lead time (more parts waiting in queue), and amplifies the risk of obsolescence (if there is a design change or cancellation, more already-transformed material is affected). Kanban, takt time and SMED are techniques aimed at reducing WIP.
KORA Productivity measures WIP continuously per workstation and per order. The real-time view makes it possible to intervene immediately when WIP builds up at a specific workstation — typically a sign of a bottleneck or a breakdown. MULTI integrates this signal with financial value: WIP has a holding cost that enters the actual costing of the parts.