5S, a workplace organization method used to promote efficiency and effectiveness, needs to be included in any improvements to your business. Realistically, it should be the platform that all your improvements are based on. I have seen shops in various stages of the 5S process, which includes Sort, Store, Shine, Standardize and Sustaining. Some have completed the process with great success, while others are hovering around what I refer to as 3.5S, a hazy area between Shine and Standardize.
To start you need to gather your people and explain what you are trying to accomplish. Some owners and managers will create elaborate plans giving little thought to the people involved. Let your team help decide where you should start and let them develop the action plan with you. I can assure you that if you walk out to the shop and tell everybody that you want the shop cleaned up by Friday, you will fail. People are your first tool to success and you need their buy-in to reach your goal.
The first step in 5S is Sort. As you begin the Sort process, ask your people to suggest to you what is good and what is not. Again, allow your people to help make the changes in the shop, as their buy-in of the process will ensure sustainability. In the Sort process, I suggest you think strategically.
I walked through a shop after they had completed their 5S and I admit it looked good. However, as I was walking through the shop a technician was pushing a welder across the floor. During the trip he hit a floor pot breaking a wheel off the welding cart. The manager looked at me and said, “There goes another wheel, wish they would be more careful.”
I looked around and saw the shop’s five welders lined up very neatly in marked spots along one wall. I asked the manager who generally uses that welder, his reply; “He does!” I then asked why he didn’t keep it in his work area. You can only imagine the look he gave me. Think about where equipment is being used and locate it near that area.
That leads us to the second step, Store. When you layout your storage areas you again need to think strategically and arrange items in a way that is based on frequency of use. Ideally, you want the items nearby so it takes minimal steps to retrieve them. This is a good time to introduce work carts for supplies used continually throughout the day.
Storage areas should be dedicated to specific items with the location clearly marked and labeled. The best label is a photo of the item taped or glued to the storage shelf. As you work, you can establish stocking levels so you minimize reordering and eliminate overstock. Make sure as you work, when you’re putting items on a shelf for storage, they are going to be used by somebody. If not, put the item back in the Sort pile for review.
As you begin to Shine, which is the third step, you can specify that the work carts be replenished from the main storage area each morning. This eliminates the need to walk back and forth to get supplies throughout the day. As with the storage area, label the carts to allow quick inventory and replenishment. Throughout the Shine process you will want to clean and inspect any item to make sure all are serviceable. If it does not work, do not be afraid to put it back in the Sort pile. Use the Sort area as a place to hold items you need to think about. It does not make any sense to keep moving forward with something that is questionable. Doing so will affect Standardize and Sustaining, the last two 5S steps.
The fourth step, Standardize is where all the work you did in Sort, Store and Shine is tied together in a systematic process. This is the spot where shops begin to stumble and get stuck in my 3.5S definition. In this process you will document the proven practices and methods formulated in the first three S’s, which will get you past that 3.5S hover point. Once again, you need employee buy-in during this phase to establish agreements on how you will move towards Sustainability. These agreements must be shared with all the employees so they can police each other to ensure compliance. You can assign specific areas for employees to “own” so they will be a partner in the shop’s success.
This also is a good time to revisit the Sort pile. As you remember, items were returned to Sort during the Store and Shine processes. Now it’s decision time, you must clear everything out of Sort or it will end up in a corner of the shop or behind something else on a shelf. Missing this step will keep you at 3.5S and stop you from reaching Sustainability.
Standardize leads you to Sustaining, the final but continuing step. Sustaining never ends and is what separates you from the 3.5S. This is where your sheriffs are keeping a look out, ensuring everything is put back in the designated spot and the processes developed in Standardize are being followed. Sustaining is continuous improvement, re-evaluation and adjustment. You might need to revisit Sort, Store, Shine and Standardize as you move forward in your business, that is all part of Sustaining your program.
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