Work safer, leaner with 5S

Good housekeeping has historically been a foundation for occupational safety. 5S, a process used in lean manufacturing, offers even greater benefit to create not only a clean workplace, but also one that improves both efficiency and safety at the same time.

5S is a method for organizing a workplace. It works particularly well with shared workplaces by keeping them organized with standardized work practices. Comprised of five Japanese words, each beginning with “S,” 5S offers principles and methodology to improve efficiency by eliminating waste, improving work tasks and reducing process inefficiency. The English translation for 5S is:

1. Sort
2. Straighten
3. Shine
4. Standardize
5. Sustain

Forms of waste

The seven forms of lean waste that inhibit workflow and organizational efficiency help identify problem areas. The acronym COMMWIP offers a simple way to remember:

1. Correction (errors)
2. Over – production
3. Motion
4. Material movement
5. Waiting
6. Inventory
7. Process (complex, bureaucratic or undefined)

Safety personnel understand that risk cannot be reduced without identification and mitigation of hazards. The same is true for improving value-added activity by eliminating waste. You will be hard pressed to reduce waste if you do not know what it is. 5S allows people to learn the fundamentals of waste in a real world, hands-on project that produces immediate benefits.

Benefits of 5S

Short-term benefits include:

• Reduced inventory and floor space
• Having “what you need, when you need it, where you want it” facilitates doing work safely and efficiently
• Visual controls provide immediate notice that something is not up to standard
• Teamwork is enhanced by consensus decision making

The long-range benefits of 5S are improved workplace morale, safety and efficiency, leading to improved organizational culture.

Improving culture

When leadership desires to improve operational performance while demonstrating the real value of employees, they will find 5S to be a powerful tool to begin the journey to an improved culture. Typical 5S workshops are one day so results and learning are virtually immediate.

As you learn more about 5S, think about how you can it as a means to teach teams how to identify and eliminate waste – along with understanding that injuries and illness are wastes. 5S can be used in any size / kind of organization and in offices, vehicles or other places where work is performed. Try it in your own workplace. It is a great first step to making safety a key part of organizational culture.

To learn more, watch for my next blogs on this topic.

You may also be interested in my previous post on the relationship between safety and sustainability.