Any small-scale organization wants an efficient working environment with minimal waste, streamlined workflow, and high revenue. But often, the question pops up: From where to begin the cleansing?

While most Lean Six Sigma professionals consider 5S methods a tool, it is more than that. It was developed in Japan by Taiichi Ohno, who designed the Toyota Production System & Shigeo Shingo. 

The 5S methodology is a culture that must be implemented in an organization looking for continuous and spontaneous enhancement of working environment and conditions. 

This principle is easy to use and doesn't require any technical analysis. 5S is implemented in organizations ranging from manufacturing to offices, private and public sectors.

Today we will discuss the following topics:

• What is 5S?
• Why leverage the methodology?
• The 5 steps of project approach
• 5S method implementation
• The 6^th S
   

What is 5S?

5S comes under the lean manufacturing umbrella is a system leveraged for creating an organized, clean working environment that makes it easy to determine waste and irregularities so that workforces can do their task efficiently and without injury risks.

Each 's' stands for Japanese word:

• Seiri - sort
• Seiton - set in order
• Seiso - shine
• Seiketsu - standardize
• Shitsuke – sustain

The methodology provides a framework for developing a visual management process. Budget-oriented tools such as operational manuals and floor tape can be leveraged as guides to scrutinize the working conditions and determine areas of potential enhancement.
 

Why Leverage the 5S Practice?

There are numerous benefits to be garnered by leveraging 5S within your company, from obtaining more efficient and organized manufacturing working conditions to driving high-level profits.

So, we can say 5S is the perfect approach to determine the first enhancement projects in your organization to eradicate waste. Though it is a housekeeping technique, it is more of an innovative management method that assists workforces to think lean, leading the way for Lean principle adoption in your firm.

Understanding the approach is one of the base levels of 6 sigma principles and can be tremendously helpful for companies of all sorts. For example, if you determine and then eradicate unnecessary obstacles from the manufacturing workflow, your productivity will directly expand. In turn, this will accelerate value and workforce motivation. These results combine to boost the manufacturing operation, followed by your bottom line.

With this insightful, step-level guide, you will understand the valuable part of the methodology, how to formulate an action plan for its implementation, and how great to maintain this robust tool for enhanced productivity, waste elimination and overall efficacy.
 

The 5 Steps of the Project Approach

The execution of the 5S methodology needs time and resources and will transform the working conditions of many individuals. Therefore, managing the process as a whole change project with five basic procedures.

1. Diagnosis

Determine current issues, areas for enhancement and associated problems in the different points of the defined scope. It is essential to ensure the management support from mid-management who may be reluctant to execute 5S.

Once improvement areas are identified, the next step in the diagnosis level is to estimate the potential shareholders or stakes.

2. Project Preparation

The first step in project preparation is defining the approach's purpose and the expected savings. Once sorting this comes the application areas and improvement areas selection. Here the project may cover only a part of the initial possibilities or not attempt to find resolutions for the issues identified, and choose the pilot, which is the next project approach phase.

The 3rd step in this phase - defining the implementation plans such as pilot duration, duration per improvement type, what will be the implementation team, the roles & responsibilities of the team, monitoring approach and the necessary budget.

3. Pilot

This is the phase where we implement the 5S methodology. The first step in the pilot is to train the project team and the workforce in this area. After that comes the 5S implementations (sort, straighten, shine, standardize and sustain) - performed for the pilot area and then for each deployment phase area, with an initial preparation phase.

The next step is to show the savings for team motivation and display process interest. Here it is necessary to check that the savings have corresponded to the initially estimated savings. Finally, the method improvement, where approach implementations are tested before deploying it in other areas.
 

4. Implementation

As the zones are deployed, the remaining skillsets are trained. Now, the 5S is integrated into the operational system, managerial follow-up and support functions such as training, team meetings, etc. The final step is to measure and communicate savings. This step is crucial to continue demonstrating the approach value, from the operational to top-tier management.

5. Sustainability

This is the last phase of the project approach. Here we have 2 steps that are: Monitoring and Auditing.

Monitoring - the effective integration into operational modes is monitored regularly. Then, the 5S approach is managed in a similar active way, working with 5S performance indicators.

Once done with monitoring, the process is moved onto the auditing stage.
 

5S Implementation Plan

Here we will see why a company requires a 5S methodology and its implementation plan for a better working environment? If you are among those required of an efficient workflow, then this is for you.

Let’s go…

Stage1: Is Your Business Profitable?

Before getting started, let's answer some questions about why 5S can be effective in your organization.

Do your employers have difficulty finding documents or crucial files, be it a digital or physical format? Are there cabinets and files left unlabelled or contain unmarked contents making it hard to differentiate? Do unwanted materials consume your valuable office space? Do your employees know how to keep their working environment clean and organized, followed by full awareness of their roles and responsibilities?

If any of these questions answers are YES, then the 5S methodology is precisely the thing you require.

Stage2: Steps Towards Process Excellence

The 5 steps towards process excellence are as follows:

Sort (Seiri) 

Separation of necessary materials, instructions and tools from those not required from the work area.
 

Set in order/ straighten (Seiton) 

Organizing and sorting resources, materials, files, data, etc., for swift, quick location and utilization. Label all storage locations, devices and tools so that anyone can identify them and return them once the work is completed.
 

Shine (Seiso) 

The setting of new cleanliness standards. It offers a safe working environment and creates potential issues such as loose parts, missing guards, device leaks, etc. Hence to maintain the standards and detect defects, it is necessary to clean the device and workplace regularly.
 

Standardize (Seiketsu) 

Engage the employees to systematically follow the 1st three steps of 5S, i.e., Sort, Set in order and Shine regularly, to maintain the company in perfect condition as a standard procedure.
 

Sustain (Shitsuke)

Make 5S methodology a part of your working culture build commitment so that the practice becomes one of your organizational values allowing others to develop the technique as a habit. Don't forget to merge the method into the performance management system.
 

Stage3: The Action Scheme

By providing training sessions to your workforce, you can implement the 5S plan into the organization. For the proper and efficient implementations, one-day sessions with each team are done to ensure harmony.

Here are the following things that occur during the first one-day session:

• Preparation: click a picture of your current workplace for later comparison.
• Sort: separation of required and necessary materials from those not required.
• Set in order: organizing the sorted materials so that everything is neat and has a specific place for easy finding.
• Shine: to maintain cleanliness, use proper standards by cleaning the area and eradicate unwanted things consuming the workplace space. Make sure that you label the drawers, cabinets and files for a neat presentation.
• Action: prepare an action scheme for materials that you couldn't deal with that day but will be able to the next day or so. This can include material donation, selling, eradicating or even recycling.
• Review: Take a second picture after the entire day's task and review it with the start-of-the-day view.
   

Stage4: Standardize

Amid the second one-day session, which is not supposedly the next day but a week or two later, employees must take the third picture and review it with the first 2 images. Several companies set up peer audits to monitor how the 5S methodology is fulfilled and ensure that the plan moves ahead.

Work together to define ways to organize cleaning schedules, written diagrams or procedure preparation and employee roles & responsibilities to help employers standardize the improvements.
 

Stage5: Sustain

During the 3rd one-day session, a month or two later, review how your workplace looks and arrange another peer analysis. This will ensure that the 5S methodology is sustained by monitoring whether defined arrangements are met and everyone follows the practices.
 

The 6^th S?...

Over the years, there have been discussions of whether or not to include a 6th S - Safety into the 5S methodology. Some argue that Safety is a fundamental part of 5S, while others say it authorizes a much greater focus.

6S targets promoting and sustaining a top-level of Safety and productivity throughout a workspace. It not only assists companies in promoting an efficient workplace but also establishes a sustainable safety culture.

Irrespective of whether you practice 5S or 6S, it remains a system that promotes continuous enhancement within the manufacturing environment by eradicating waste and enabling companies to achieve quality consistency and delivery (QCD).
 

Conclusion

5S is more than a cleansing procedure, offering a foundation for developing a successful Lean initiative. It’s also a budget-oriented solution for smooth internal workflows, preventing fallacies, and building a culture where everyone is responsible for maintaining a safe environment.

The methodology empowers workforces to take responsibility for their working conditions, motivating them to be more productive in waste minimization. This, in turn, enhance productivity, company value and profit.
 

About Us

iCert Global is a one-stop solution offering certification training courses in a wide variety of techniques that will give you a head start in this competitive world. Visit our website to find out the different technology courses.

https://www.icertglobal.com/ 

Our company conducts both Instructor-led Live Online Training sessions and Instructor-led Classroom training workshops for learners across the globe.

We also provide Corporate Training for enterprise workforce development

Data Science & BI courses

• Data Science with R Programming Certification
• Apache Kafka Certification
• Power BI Certification

Quality Management Training

•  Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt (LSSYB) Certification Training Courses
•  Lean Six Sigma Green Belt (LSSGB) Certification Training Courses
•  Lean Six Sigma Black Belt (LSSBB) Certification Training Courses

 DevOps Training

• DevOps Certification Training Courses

Business Analysis Training by iCert Global:

• ECBA (Entry Certificate in Business Analysis) Certification Training Courses
• CCBA (Certificate of Capability in Business Analysis) Certification Training Courses
• CBAP (Certified Business Analysis Professional) Certification Training Courses