1. UNLEASHING THE POWER OF 5S
S U B I K A S H R OY , D I R E C T OR -P R O C E S S O P E R A T I O N S A SI A P A C I F I C , S C H A E F FLE R
H O LD I N G (C HI N A ) L T D ., S HA N G HA I -201804, P.R. C H I N A EMAIL:
SU B I K A S H . R OY @ G M A I L . C OM
I NTRODUCTION
When I first embarked on my Lean journey to learn and implement Continuous
Improvement in Japan, I was first introduced to 5S and Kaizen. At that time I used to really
wonder why my Sensei is telling me about 5S again and again. It is just simple cleaning and
commonsense. I had, more than once, asked him about it but really got no satisfactory
answers. He told me that it was a very important tool to identify wastes, to create stability,
and for creating standards by which I could identify problems or opportunities for Kaizen
and Continual Improvements. This kept lingering on my mind as I thought of the various
possible applications when I return back to India. Very soon I realized that 5S is not as
simple as a cleaning or housekeeping activity which is done whenever required. It is
“Cleaning with a Meaning”.
To be successful with 5S we must make it a part of our Daily Work Management, using it as
a powerful tool for identifying wastes, creating standards and of course for creating stability
and flow. As I write this article for the Lean Six Sigma Institute of China, I will also share
some of my experiences with you.
IDENTIFYING WASTES AND ORGANISING THE WORKPLACE
Sort
Identify &
clear items
not or rarely
used
Sustain Set in Order
Use regular Organize and
audits to be label a place
disciplined for everything
Standardize Shine
Create
Clean the
procedures to
needed items
maintain first
regularly
3S
F IGURE 1 - T HE C YCLE OF 5S

2. In our Lean journey, 5S is the first step to identify wastes. The primary purpose of the first S
of 5S is to identify the wastes of motion, of moving things or unnecessary movements of the
operator, and the waste of searching for things. In other words, we identify the items that
create unnecessary motion and searching for tools and equipment. Once we are able to
identify these items we clearly take them out of the process. The first S is the most crucial
part of the 5S implementation and we must understand its importance.
We must first understand the concept of consolidated waste which can help us to capture
benefits. We normally believe that individual efficiencies can be maximized if each person
works independently. Therefore, we feel that problems encountered by one operation do
not influence the others. When this happens, waste occurs in isolated areas and is absorbed
individually. Thus each operation carries a high waste burden, and in many cases the waste
is identical to wasteful procedures being created at other operations.
We consider a real case study of a shock absorber factory in India where they were
producing outer tubes for shock absorbers in one cell. They were barely able to produce
about 1,000 sets after employing 5 people. The original layout of the cell is shown in figure-2
below.
Marking M OT Flaring M Pressing M Welding M Leak Testing
Washing
Material Store Finished Product
Storage
M- Material for process
F IGURE 2 ORIGINAL LAYOUT
When we first set to implement the first S, we went into each operation and identified the
areas of unnecessary motion and uncalculated areas for material. We observed that there
was a considerable scope of eliminating consolidated waste in the system. The operators
were walking to get their components from the nearby storage area and therefore keeping
the machines idle for that time thus interrupting flow. There was no logic as to how many
components to keep on the machine, because customer’s demand was varying over which
we had no control. So it was impossible to define the area required for each component
because of this factor. What we found was that irrespective of the customer’s demand, the
cycle times of the machines were constant. Therefore, we decided to standardize on the
output per hour. We introduced the new concept of workstation design wherein the area
for material was defined for only one hour output. When we did this, we were able to
define and control the area for material and reduce the distance between machines. Next,

3. we took the actual cycle times of each machine and plotted them on a Standard Work
Combination Table as shown in figure-3, to calculate the manual work content.
F IGURE 3 STANDARDIZING THE REQUIREMENTS
After analysis we observed that the manual value added work content was only 32 sec
which could produce about 1,450 pieces with only 2 people!! While the machines kept
working, people could be utilized to load and unload other machines. We then reorganized
the workplace as in figure 4 below.
OT Flaring Pressing
W
Marking
Material Store el
di
Washing Leak Testing
Finished Product
Storage
Material for process @ 1Hr on fixed on machine
F IGURE 4 NEW LAYOUT WITH 2 OPERATORS & 1 MATERIAL HANDLER

4. The entire cell was working with only 2 operators and a third operator was used for the
material handling of the material and finished products. Further, we redesigned the
workplaces with only 1 hour production material; we were able to define the quantities at
es
each workplace with respect to their cycle times. Thus we performed not only the first S but
also completed the second S successfully. This helped to improve the Stability an Flow.
and
REDUCE CLEANING TIME TO IMPROVE VALUE ADDED
After doing this we further check that unwanted motions and the stability and flow are
optimized and we do this when we perform 3S. Many times we observe that we are
cleaning unwanted surfaces and corners. These could also be eliminated systematically to
reduce the cleaning time and convert it value added By this we would be actually sorting
added.
the unwanted items like surfaces and corners. This means that we are setting the
workstations in a way that could reduce cleaning time and increase value added Some such
hat added.
examples are given in figures 5 and 6 below.
BEFORE AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
F IGURE 5 – IDENTIFYING UNWANTED F IGURE 6 – IMPROVING STABILITY –
SURFACES AT THE END OF A FIFO RACK CONTROLLING REWORK BY MAKING IT VISIBLE
By reducing the distance between these machines we could actually reduce motions and
thus increase the flow. We can now redefine 5S in terms of Flow as figure 5 below.
Sort
Identify and
clear clouds
blocking Flow
Sustain
Ensure Set in Order
sustained Flow
through Create Flow
continuous
audits
Shine
Standardize Clean and
Create standards identify the
to ensure flow source of
bloking Flow
F IGURE 5 5 S REDEFINED WITH FLOW MANAGEMENT

5. CREATING STANDARDS
By checking for optimization through 3S we are able to identify the source of problems
because we have just created a basic standard as we did for the shock absorber cell.
e
Standards and Standardization are the focus of all systematic improvements. The most
andards
visible standards are those associated with 5S. We have always thought 5S to be associated
only with neatness and tidiness. Through 5S we can go beyond this and identify vis
visually the
standards and deviations from the standard. Once we create a standard, we need to
document the same. What we created in Figure was a 5S Map. This is a standard for the
Figure-4
workplace.
KAIZEN AND CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT
As mentioned earlier, 5S cannot be a one time exercise of housekeeping We must be a
housekeeping.
problem solving organization; and everyone must contribute to identifying and solving
problems. Small problems contribute to bigger radical changes in the long run. It is not one
man’s idea. We must continuously study the cell or workplace in relation to the changing
ust
customer requirements and environments. Therefore, this is must a part of our culture and
Daily Work Management. The cycles of 5S can be visualized as following the PDCA cycle as in
figure 6.
• Plan • Do
Sort Set in Order
Standardize Shine
• Act • Check
F IGURE 6 - THE PDCA CYCLE OF 5 S
The Sort is the Plan cycle wherein we can identify the wastes and weed them out of the
system by comparing with the standards Setting in Order is the Do cycle where we actually
standards.
eliminate the unwanted items and put the remaining items in order so as to create and
improve stability and flow. Shine is where we Check the Stability, Flow and WWastes and

6. finally Standardize is the Act Phase where we document the new standard. This cycle
continues forever.
SUSTAINING 5S
th
The 5 S is used as an external audit to ensure that things are in place. It is also used to
ensure that we are aware of the changing customer requirements and the changing
environments. Let us understand that it NOT to catch people doing something wrong. It is
actually looking from the 3rd eye. Many organizations have also introduced layered audits.
One form of layered audit is the Kamishibai audit system. This is a visual system and is
known for its simplicity. The Kamishibai board is particularly useful when there is a will and
desire for managers to practice genchi genbutsu (go see what's really happening) but they
are unsure how to structure day or even what to do when they are on the shop floor. The
Kamishibai system formalizes, prioritizes and schedules the checks to be made on the
gemba. It is a simple and flexible visual tool to ensure the required checks are being
completed. This can be also used for the layered audits.
CONCLUSION
We all have been doing 5S for a very long time. But we have always held 5S as a standalone
tool; to tidy up our operations. 5S is actually much more than that. It’s a change of our
mindset; the way we look at those 5 simple words. As I conclude this article saying that I
have tried to ignite a spark of interpreting 5S differently, I do not know how much I have
been able to do so.
In any case, please understand that 5S is a very powerful tool… So Let’s Unleash the Power
of 5S in our organizations.