TOC uses a tool to ensure that the actions in our operating procedures are always in line with the global optima of the company. This tool is called Throughput-Inventory-Operating Expenses. These are the three global operational measurements:

• Throughput: This is the rate at which an organization generates money through sales. However, anything that is produced but not sold is not included in the calculation of throughput. Throughput is the actual money earned through sales minus the truly variable cost (cost associated with production of each unit of the product)
• Inventory: This is the money that the system invests in purchasing things that it intends to sell. It includes the money locked in the form of raw materials and finished goods which is held in the warehouses.
• Operating Expenses: This refers to the money the system spends in order to turn inventory into throughput. This definition of operating expenses includes direct labor, as well as all other expenditures associated with producing and selling the products.