KaizumiKaizumi™

Spaghetti Diagram

Motion and transport waste · travel-path mapping

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What is a Spaghetti Diagram?

A spaghetti diagram traces the actual path something takes through a space — an operator on a line, a nurse on rounds, a line cook in the kitchen, even a document moving desk to desk. Draw the route on a simple map of the area and the wasted motion reveals itself as a tangle of overlapping lines, like a plate of spaghetti.

It is one of the simplest lean tools and one of the most convincing. People argue about waste in the abstract; nobody argues with the tangle once they see it.
Double-click any object on the map to rename it.
Example
Floor map
Lay out the space as it sits, then trace every trip, backtracks included.
PlaceDraw path

Drag an object to move it. Grab a corner to resize. Double-click to rename.

Raw StockLathe 1Mill 2DeburrDrill 3ToolsInspectFinishedDoor
Measure
Distance and crossings update as you draw.
Total travel
419 ft
Crossings
21
High tangleStrong candidate for a layout change.
Selected object

Click an object on the map to rename, resize, or delete it.

Per subject
SubjectTripsDist.
1419 ft
0
0
Scale
One grid square =

To calibrate, pick Set scale and drag across a doorway or anything of known length.

OperatorSubject 2Subject 3Filled dot marks the startOpen ring marks the endOne grid square = 2 ft

Want an editable copy?

Download the free Spaghetti Diagram template — a gridded floor-plan worksheet with a movement-distance tracker to map operator or material travel. Opens in Excel and Google Sheets.

What is a Spaghetti Diagram?

A spaghetti diagram is a simple drawing that traces the actual path a person, product, or piece of information travels through a workspace. You sketch the layout — machines, desks, patient rooms, kitchen stations — then draw the real route followed during the work. The line almost always doubles back on itself, crossing again and again until it looks like a plate of spaghetti. That tangle is waste: every extra foot of walking or hand-off is transport and motion that costs time and adds nothing the customer pays for.

How to use this tool

Pick your industry to load the right objects and a worked example, place the layout to match your real space, then drag to trace the travel path. The panel measures total distance and counts the crossings so you can target a layout change — then re-trace and prove the improvement. New to it? Use Practice mode to watch a route play out and trace it live, the way spaghetti mapping is really done: by observing.