5S is a basic, fundamental,
systematic approach for productivity, quality and safety improvement in all
types of business.
What is 5S?
A 5S (Five S) program is usually a
part of, and the key component of establishing a Visual
Workplace and are both a part of Kaizen - a system of
continual improvement - which is a component of lean manufacturing.
The 5S program focuses on:
·
having
visual order
·
organization
·
cleanliness
·
standardization
The results you can expect from a 5S
program are: improved profitability, efficiency, service and safety.
The principles underlying a 5S
program at first appear to be simple, obvious common sense. And they are. But
until the advent of 5S programs many businesses ignored these basic principles.
What are the Five Ss?
5S was developed in Japan and stands
for the Japanese words seiri (tidiness), seiton (orderliness), seiso
(cleanliness), seiketsu (standardization), and shitsuke (discipline).
These
words have been adopted to English to maintain "5S."
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The first step in making things cleaned up and organized. This improves efficiency, helps increase quality, and makes it simpler to spot problems and enhances productivity.
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Organize, identify and arrange everything in a work area.
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Regular cleaning and maintenance.
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Make it easy to maintain - simplify and standardize.
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Maintaining what has been accomplished.
What
types of businesses benefit from a 5S program?
Everyone and all types of business benefit
from having a 5S program. Manufacturing and industrial plants come to mind
first, as those are the business that can realize the greatest benefits.
However, any type of business, from a retail store to a power plant — from
hospitals to television stations — all types of businesses, and all areas
within a business, will realize benefits from implementing a 5S program.
What will 5S cost me?
The shipyard industry is spending nearly a
million dollars to develop a Five S program the industry can use, and to
implement that program at two shipyards. On the other hand you can implement a
Five S program without adding an extra dollar to your budget.
Realistically you probably will need to spend
some extra money to get your Five S program going. There will be training time;
man-hours spent to get your facility cleaned up and organized; equipment
purchases, such as buying a quality labeling system; and time spent on
sustaining your Five S program once it is in place.
Your actual costs will depend on where you
are now - for example what is the condition of
your facility? The further you are from meeting the goals of a Five S program,
the more it will cost to implement one and the greater the benefits you'll see
as a result of your Five S program.
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