The 5s Program

What is a Five S?
A 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 Five S program focuses on having visual order, organization, cleanliness and standardization. The results you can expect from a Five S program are: improved profitability, efficiency, service and safety.

The principles underlying a Five S program at first appear to be simple, obvious common sense. And they are. But until the advent of Five S programs many businesses ignored these basic principles.

What types of businesses benefit from a Five S program?
Everyone and all types of business benefit from having a Five S 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 Five S program.

What are the Five S's?
Use the following links to learn more about 5S
• Sort - the first step in making things cleaned up and organized
• Set In Order - organize, identify and arrange everything in a work area
• Shine - regular cleaning and maintenance
• Standardize - make it easy to maintain - simplify and standardize
• Sustain -maintaining what has been accomplished

What will it 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.
FREE 5S Quick Start Guide
"Introduction To The 5S Philosophy"
Labeling & Signs In A Five S Program: Proper labeling, and use of 5s posters and signs are an important part of 5S. We are a leading supplier of custom label and sign making equipment and supplies. We are happy to answer any questions you have about labeling or signs, or provide you with free brochures, specification sheets or other information. Please give us a call today at 1-888-326-9244 . Or use our label and sign information online request form.
What Is A Visual Workplace*?
Using Visual Communication In An Industrial Organization
The term "visual workplace" refers to one of the key underlying concepts of lean manufacturing. It refers to a workplace that uses a system of visual cues and visual communication tools that impart information visually at the time and place it is needed. The benefits of having a visual workplace is that it will improve productivity, safety, quality, on-time delivery, profits and employee moral by implementing "visual controls."

Visual controls make working areas user friendly by answering questions; identifying equipment, materials and locations; describing actions and procedures; and providing safety warnings and precaution information. Visual controls help employees avoid wasting time by giving them the information they need, where and when they need it.

A visual workplace begins with implementing a Five S program.

One part of creating a visual workplace involves using proper labeling and signage to create a workplace in which employees have the information they need, understand their role, and contribute in a positive way to the success of your company.
Establishing a visual workplace is not an expensive management tool nor is it difficult to implement. It involves posting information about the job to be done, the work area (environment), the equipment and materials to be used, safety and job performance.
Kaizen is...
... a system of continuous improvement in quality, technology, processes, company culture, productivity, safety and leadership.
We'll look at Kaizen by answering three questions: What is Kaizen? What are the benefits of Kaizen? What do you need to do to get started using Kaizen principles?
What is Kaizen?
Kaizen was created in Japan following World War II. The word Kaizen means "continuous improvement". It comes from the Japanese words 改 ("kai") which means "change" or "to correct" and 善 ("zen") which means "good".

Kaizen is a system that involves every employee - from upper management to the cleaning crew. Everyone is encouraged to come up with small improvement suggestions on a regular basis. This is not a once a month or once a year activity. It is continuous. Japanese companies, such as Toyota and Canon, a total of 60 to 70 suggestions per employee per year are written down, shared and implemented.
In most cases these are not ideas for major changes. Kaizen is based on making little changes on a regular basis: always improving productivity, safety and effectiveness while reducing waste.
Suggestions are not limited to a specific area such as production or marketing. Kaizen is based on making changes anywhere that improvements can be made. Western philosophy may be summarized as, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." The Kaizen philosophy is to "do it better, make it better, improve it even if it isn't broken, because if we don't, we can't compete with those who do."
Kaizen in Japan is a system of improvement that includes both home and business life. Kaizen even includes social activities. It is a concept that is applied in every aspect of a person's life.
In business Kaizen encompasses many of the components of Japanese businesses that have been seen as a part of their success. Quality circles, automation, suggestion systems, just-in-time delivery, Kanban and 5S are all included within the Kaizen system of running a business.
Kaizen involves setting standards and then continually improving those standards. To support the higher standards Kaizen also involves providing the training, materials and supervision that is needed for employees to achieve the higher standards and maintain their ability to meet those standards on an on-going basis.
Sort (Clean Up)
This is step 1 in a Five S program:

"Sorting" means to sort through everything in each work area. Keep only what is necessary. Materials, tools, equipment and supplies that are not frequently used should be moved to a separate, common storage area. Items that are not used should be discarded.

Don't keep things around just because they might be used, someday.

Sorting is the first step in making a work area tidy. It makes it easier to find the things you need and frees up additional space.

As a result of the sorting process you will eliminate (or repair) broken equipment and tools. Obsolete fixtures, molds, jigs, scrap material, waste and other unused items and materials are disposed of.
The objective of this step is to clean up the work area. Cleaning up not only makes things look nice, it makes it easier to spot maintenance needs such as an oil leak. It improves safety. It eliminates clutter and confusion. It removes tools, equipment, supplies and waste that interferes with getting the job done.
Set In Order (Organize)
This is step 2 in a Five S program: Step two is to organize, arrange and identify everything in a work area for the most efficient and effective retrieval and return to its proper place.

Commonly used tools should be readily available. Storage areas, cabinets and shelves should be properly labeled. Clean and paint floors to make it easier to spot dirt, waste materials and dropped parts and tools. Outline areas on the floor to identify work areas, movement lanes, storage areas, finished product areas, etc. Put shadows on tool boards, making it easy to quickly see where each tool belongs.

In an office, provide bookshelves for frequently used manuals, books and catalogs. Labels the shelves and books so that they are easy to identify and return to their proper place.

The objective in this step is: A place for everything and everything in it's place, with everything properly identified and labeled.

This means there are two important parts to Systematic Organization - putting everything in its proper place and setting up a system so that it is easy to return each item to its proper place. The second part is where good labeling and identification practices are important. Both the equipment/tools and materials you use, as well as their proper storage locations, need to be clearly identified and labeled.

Information about label and sign making equipment.

Systematic organization not only refers to individual work areas. Your overall facility should also be systematically organized, including the proper placement of easy-to-understand labels and signs. Piping, valves, control panels, major equipment, doorways, minor equipment, instruments, storage areas, offices and files should all be clearly identified.
Sweep (Regular Cleaning)
Step Three: Once you have everything, from each individual work area up to your entire facility, sorted (cleaned up) and organized, you need to keep it that way. This requires regular cleaning, or to go along with our third S, "shining" things up.
Regular, usually daily, cleaning is needed or everything will return to the way it was. This could also be thought of as inspecting. While cleaning it's easy to also inspect the machines, tools, equipment and supplies you work with.
Regular cleaning and inspection makes it easy to spot lubricant leaks, equipment misalignment, breakage, missing tools and low levels of supplies. Problems can be identified and fixed when they are small. If these minor problems are not addressed while small, they could lead to equipment failure, unplanned outages or long - unproductive - waits while new supplies are delivered.
When done on a regular, frequent basis, cleaning and inspecting generally will not take a lot of time, and in the long run will most likely save time.
Standardize (Simplify)
Step Four: To ensure that the first three steps in your Five S program continue to be effective, the fourth step is to simplify and standardize.

The good practices developed in steps 1 through 3 should be standardized and made easy to accomplish. Develop a work structure that will support the new practices and make them into habits. As you learn more, update and modify the standards to make the process simpler and easier.

One of the hardest steps is avoiding old work habits. It's easy to slip back into what you've been doing for years. That's what everyone is familiar with. It feels comfortable.

Use standards to help people work into new habits that are a part of your Five S program.

Any easy way to make people aware of, and remind them about the standards is to use labels, signs, posters and banners.

For example, use a PosterPrinter to create large format signs, posters and banners. A PosterPrinter is a machine that takes an 8-1/2" x 11" original and enlarges it to poster size. You can also create posters and banners on your computer and print them directly on your PosterPrinter.
For labels and smaller signs consider an custom label printer. Label printers are available ranging from simple, monochrome models to machines that can print color labels cut into custom shapes.
Sustain
Step Five: The final step is to continue training and maintaining the standards.

Have a formal system for monitoring the results of your Five S program.

Don't expect that you can clean up, get things organized and labeled, and ask people to clean and inspect their areas every day -- and then have everything continue to happen without any follow-up.

Continue to educate people about maintaining standards. When there are changes - such as new equipment, new products, new work rules - that will effect your Five S program, and adjustments to accommodate those changes, make any needed changes in the standards and provide training that addresses those changes.
Using 5s Posters and Signs: A good way to continue educating employees, and for maintain standards, is to use 5s posters and signs. You can create your own custom 5S posters, allowing you to communicate the specific information that needs to be communicated at each location. Changing work habits can be difficult, and it is easy to slip back into doing things the old, comfortable way. Use custom 5S posters to remind employees of the proper procedures, and of the benefits that come from following a 5s plan.

Think of this step as sustaining the benefits you are getting from your Five S program.

Use equipment such as labelers, sign makers and PosterPrinters to help inform and educate people about your Five S program, new procedures and standards.
Custom 5S Posters
5S is a part of lean manufacturing that helps reduce waste and improve quality and productivity, through cleaning up and getting organized. Although 5S utilizes common sense principles, getting a 5S program started involves changing employee work habits. And that can be difficult.
Custom posters and signs that present information at the point of need can be valuable tools in overcoming old work habits, which helps implement and sustain your 5S program.
The term "5s" refers to the five Japanese words that describe the five steps. 5s posters can be a valuable tool in each of these five steps.
What are the Five S's?
• (Seiri) Sorting
• (Seiton) Systematic Organization
• (Seiso) Shine
• (Seiketsu) Standardize
• (Shitsuke) Sustain

The first step in a successful 5s program is to train your employees so they understand what a 5s program is; what the benefits are; and what they need to do. Having 5s posters in each work area, reminding employees of what 5s involves and the benefits they can expect, is a good way to reinforce your training.
5s posters should also be used to provide information needed to sustain what has been accomplished with 5s. For example, procedures and check lists for starting and ending a shift can be posted so they are easy to see and read.
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5S Is A Five Step Process
Sort - Get areas cleaned up. Get rid of unused materials and waste.
Separating - put things in order. Get organized. Materials and tools can then be found quickly and safely, and easily returned to their proper storage location.
Shine -keep work areas clean. If machines are clean, it is easier to spot lubricant leaks or other potential problems.
Standardize - Establish standards so that areas stay cleaned up, free of excess materials and tools, and organized.
Sustain - Establish procedures to prevent backsliding.
5S is not complex, difficult or expensive to implement. It provides a structure and method that utilizes a lot of common sense.