5S Check List also known as 6S Checklist to include Safety
for Lean Manufacturing, Lean Office, Lean Healthcare, and any type of Operational Excellence
Most Lean initiatives start out with a 5S program to get things cleaned
up and organized as one of the first steps toward Kaizen process
improvement.
The 4 simpler elements of 6S are not very "template intensive" - so Systems2win doesn't offer very much for them.
We give away our 5S Checklist when you download our free trials. If your 5S initiative fails, it will be when you reach the much more challenging elements of Standardize and Sustain. Those are the phases of 6S where you will grow to truly appreciate your Systems2win templates.
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5S Check List for Lean Manufacturing and Lean Office |
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Purpose: To measure and improve 5s workplace organization, instill 5s philosophy, and evaluate success of your 5s implementation This 5S template comes with the Lean tools bundle of Systems2win templates |
 5S Audit Form |
The 5 S Housekeeping Scorecard template is a very useful tool for supervisors to use on a consistent time cycle (perhaps weekly) to formally inspect and review the work areas they supervise.
The 5S Scorecard is especially useful when it is personalized for each work area.
Successful Lean companies know that when
top management stops paying attention - everyone else soon follows -
so they use audit checklists as one component of a well-designed lean management system.
| 5S Housekeeping - to organize the workplace | |
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Sort |
The 5S workplace organization process usually starts out by sorting the useful from the unnecessary. The only things that should remain in a work area are the parts, tools, & instructions needed to do the job. |
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Straighten(Seiton) |
Everything has a place; everything is in its place. This is also a good time for your team to create a Visual Scoreboard, Jidoka lights, floor paint, kanbans, and other visual controls described in our our free Lean & Kaizen PowerPoint presentation. |
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Sweep & Shine (Seiso) |
Do an initial spring cleaning. |
Safety |
If your company has a 6S program, it will also address Safety issues. |
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Standardize(Seiketsu) |
In the Standardize phase of Lean 5 S, routine cleaning becomes a way of life. Preventative maintenance is routinely performed, perhaps with planning and scheduling and some responsibilities done by your central maintenance department, and as much routine maintenance as possible performed by the people that know that work center better than anyone else. |
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Sustain
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Shitsuke is when five S becomes a routine way of life. Root causes are routinely identified and dealt with. The Systems2win 5 S forms and the Standard Work Audit are very familiar to everyone - both supervisors and the workers that have come to appreciate the benefits of Five S and Lean methods. |
Benefits of Lean 5S
One important purpose and benefit of 5 or 6S is to make your work area clean and in order to unhide potential problems. In an unclean workplace, it is hard to even notice things like "When did that machine start making that noise?" or "When did that start leaking oil?"
Another purpose and benefit is to reduce the amount of time wasted looking for misplaced tools, and materials, and supplies.
Most Lean initiatives start out with 5S training as one of the earliest initiatives, and there is a flurry of enthusiastic cleaning and organizing. The real test, however, is how well the new ways "stick" over time. The success of your 5s program is often an excellent predictor of the probable success of your greater lean manufacturing initiative.
Office 5S
Five or Six S housekeeping is the most common starting point for most successful Lean process improvement initiatives.
The exception sometimes being Lean Office - because many office workers pride themselves on being organized (even if they maybe aren't), and you want your first lean initiative to be a resounding impressive success. Because office workers are thinkers and organizers by nature - it is often better to start your lean initiative by encouraging the worker(s) to come up with their own A3 improvement project - and then coach them through it.
5S for Lean Office is still, however, a very essential component of an overall Lean program - that should be introduced when the office workers are ready for it. Filing cabinets and computer hard drives often contain plenty of opportunity for 5s housekeeping.
5S Program - How to get started
Training is always the first step. And because 5S is often the first introduction to the entire concept of Lean continuous improvement - patient attention should be given to ensure that people's fears, misconceptions, and questions are fully answered. Most importantly, management must convincingly lay to rest the fear of "improving ourselves out of a job." (how?)
After initial 5S training, every consultant has their own favorite way of implementing an initial workspace clean up.
The essential thing is to have the workers evaluate every tool and machine, every pile of materials and supplies, every piece of instructional paper... to decide what is actually used, and how often.
- This can be done by marking any suspect items with a red tag, and then moving it out of the area into a temporary holding area (just in case it really is needed)...
- It can be accomplished by holding a mock auction - where the workers "bid" to plea their case for why an item should be kept.
The end result is to Sort the useful from the clutter.
Depending on the volume and complexity of the initial clutter - Sort can be its own phase, or you might have time to move right into an initial round of Straighten and Shine.
Be sure to take before and after photos - and distribute your highly visual success story far and wide to begin generating enthusiasm for your Lean program.
More 5S Training
- 5S is just one component of a complete Lean Assessment audit.
- How to caliabrate audit assessment criteria - to get consistent scores from diverse lean leaders.
- If you haven't yet viewed the
demos of the
Systems2win Kaizen and Lean templates, you might want to do that now. - Or you might want to sign up for our newsletter to get your free 5 S Scorecard and instant access to a 130+ page PowerPoint presentation of Kaizen and Lean training.
- And why not test drive all 150+ templates - with the confidence of a 30-day money back guarantee.
Suggested Reading and Resources
If you appreciate our free on-line training, you can support us by buying your books through these links to Amazon.com.
We have personally reviewed the train-the-trainer offering below, and highly recommend it.
These printed red tags are THE way to go when you are in the Sort phase of 5S,
and the posters are a nice way to keep reminding people long after the initial training
that continuous improvement never ends.
Once you have "picked the low-hanging fruit" of the first 3 phases of 5S,
you will soon be challenged with the tough ones... Standardize and Sustain.
Your success or failure with Standard Work will determine ultimate failure or success of your entire 5S initiative -
and indeed your entire lean six sigma initiative.
And Standard Work is where Systems2win has a LOT to offer...
Check out our free Kaizen Lean Training home page - and see what we mean...
