I found this site while I am googling for definition of DBR (Drum Buffer Rope). It is an online book, and totally free for reader. As post title presents, this book mainly introduces the rationale and application of TOC. I think it is very helpful to understand the basic of TOC. If you are interesting on this topic, click here to check the main content of this online book.

What Is Theory Of Constraints?

Theory of Constraints is the invention of Dr Eliyahu Goldratt, an Israeli physicist, educator, and management specialist.

It’s a business philosophy which seeks to strive towards the global objective, or goal, of a system through an understanding of the underlying cause and effect dependency and variation of the system in question.

It is equally applicable to for-profit and not-for-profit organizations for; strategy, personnel, marketing, sales, distribution, manufacturing, design, and project management.

This web site is designed to be an introduction to some of the important concepts of the Theory of Constraints and its successful implementation. It is biased a little toward the manufacturing end of the spectrum. But if you run a hospital for instance and can’t see the parallels, then please let me know.

It is likely that you will have arrived at this material from a number of different directions;

(1) Companies that are already very successful (we aren’t making enough money).

(2) Companies that are not successful and in need of turnaround (we aren’t making any money).

(3) Not-for-profit ventures (we can’t achieve sufficient output with our current funding).

In each case we are making insufficient of whatever it is that the organization needs to make in order to be successful. In other words, we are, in some way, constrained.

Although Theory of Constraints developed out of for-profit based manufacturing, it has a much broader and more general applicability. People in not-for-profit organizations, or service organizations, or a paper-based transaction will find the principles equally relevant and applicable.