What is the 5-S

The logic behind the 5-S practices is that organization,

neatness, cleanliness, standardization and discipline at
the workplace are basic requirements for producing
high quality products ad services, with little or no waste,
and with high productivity.

The 5-S has become the way of doing business, not only
to impress customers but to establish effective quality
processes as pre-requisites for good products and
services.
The 5-S in DETAILS
What is organization (Seiri)?

Organization is about separating the things which are necessary for

the job from those that are not and keeping the number of
necessary ones as low as possible and at a convenient location.

Information Management – sort information and organize it.

Most importantly, know what to discard, what to save and how to save
things so that they can be accessed later when needed.
 Stratification Management
- involves deciding how important something is and then
reducing the non-essential inventory.
- ensures that the essential things are close at hand for
maximum efficiency.
The key to good stratification management is the ability to make
these decisions about usage frequency and to ensure that things
are in their proper places.

The way to organize things according to its usage:

Usage Degree of Need (Frequency of Use) Storage Method
(Stratification)
Low •Things you have not used in the past year •Throw them out
• Things you have only used one in the last 6-12 •Store at a distance
months
Average •Things you have only used once in the last 2 – 6 •Store in a central place
months in the workplace
•Thing used more than once a month
High •Things used once a week •Store near the work site
•Things used every day or carry by the person
•Things used hourly
ILLUSTRATION# 1:
Organized File
 ILLUSTRATION# 2:
Disorganized File - Should throw away rubbish
 ILLUSTRATION# 3:
Disorganized - Should throw away rubbish
Which office would you like to work on?
Would you like to experience a good and
sound sleep in this bedroom?
Differentiation between Need and Want
Once stratification and classification are done, you are in a
position to decide what you want to do with things that you do not use
more than once a year. Save them or throw them away.

SAVE : How much of them do you need?

Most people tend to err in the beginning, on the conservative side

of saving things ‘just in case’. But it is crucial that management make
a decision: “Is it needed?”

If NOT get rid of it!

If YES , how much of it is needed?

Get rid of the rest.

If something is borrowed, return to the owner.

“ONE IS BEST”
It is worthwhile to emphasize the importance of a
principle called “ One is Best”.

Ex: One set of Tools/Stationary

One page Memo
One day processing
One stop service for customer
One location file.

Let today’s work

“

belong today.”
ACTIVITY
1. Why is the principle “One is Best” important? Why
are the following examples below important in the
household and workplace? Explain very briefly.

Ex: One set of Tools/Stationary

One page Memo
One day processing
One stop service for customer
One location file

2. Comment on the saying, “Let today’s work belong

today.”
What is neatness (Seiton)
Neatness is a study of efficiency. It is a question how you can get the things you need
and how quickly you can put them away.
4 things in achieving neatness
4. Analyze the status quo – start by analyzing how people get things out and put
them away, and why it takes so long.

Typical Problems
a. Not knowing what things are called
b. Not sure where things are kept
c. Storage site is far away
d. Repeated trips
e. Hard to find because of many things
f. Not labelled
g. Not there, but not clear whether it is finished or somebody is using it
h. Unclear if spare parts exist (no ledger, nowhere to ask)
i. One brought was defective
j. Hard to get out
k. Too big to carry or too heavy to carry
l. Need to set or assemble
m. No gangway to transport
2. Decide where things belong

There need to be criteria for deciding this because the absence of criteria an
any other pattern will make it impossible to remember where things are supposed
to be and will mean that it takes that much longer for them to put things back or
to get them out.

3. Describe how things should be put away. This is critical to functional storage.

Procedures:
a. Everything should have a name
b. A place for everything and everything in its place
c. Quick identification
d. Safe storage (ex. Heavy things on the bottom & etc.)
e. Height considerations

4. Obey the put-away rules. This means always putting back where they belong.

Rules:
a. Out of stock – decide the minimum stock level and indicate that more are on
order.
b. Somebody is using it – have an indication of who is using it and when they will
return it
c. Lost – decide how many there should be. Draw a shadow outline indicating
clearly what is missing.
 What is Cleaning (Seiso)
“Everyone is a Janitor” - Cleaning should be done by everyone in the organization
from the managing director to the cleaner.

Mottos for cleaning are:

 I will not get things dirty
 I will not spill’
 I will not scatter things right away
 I will rewrite that have got erased
 I will tape up things that have come down.

In an office or factory, one will start by graphing out the individual areas of
responsibility.

What is Standardization (Seiketsu)

- means continually and repeatedly maintaining your organization’s neatness and
cleaning. It embraces both personal cleanliness and the cleanliness of the
environment.

Emphasis:
a. Visual Management – an effective means of continuous improvement and has
been used for production, quality, safety and customer service.
 Methods of Visual Management:

1. Color management – color coding(creates a pleasant work environment).

Workers opt for white and other light colored clothes because these colors show
the dirt quickly and they provide a good indicator of how clean the workplace is.
They have highlight the need for cleaning.

2. Appropriate Labels – most effective method.

h. Transparency – an important consideration for standardization. Tools and files

are put in lockers, on closed shelves and under cover to be off sight. Thing
inside closed spaces should be in a transparent containers of covers to ensure
cleanliness.
i. Visualizing conditions - like ribbons on the fans so everyone can see the breeze
and etc.
j. Trouble maps – put maps where they are visible for everyone ex. Blueprints of
fire exits in each room of the hotel
k. Quantification – by constantly measuring, quantifying results and analyzing the
date statistically, one can identify the limits to management and spot deviations
before they become headaches.
 What is Discipline (Shitsuke)
- Means instilling the ability of doing things they way they are supposed to be
done. Creating good habits in the workplace.
- Self-discipline is important. It guarantees the continuity of a daily routine.
- Discipline is a process of repetition and practice. Think of discipline as an
integral part of industrial safety.

The 5S in the office

The office needs the 5-S to eliminate inefficiencies, to prevent mistakes, and to
keep things running smoothly. The office is for administrative and managerial
work that has to be done effectively and efficiently.

The office is basically the same as factory. They both get raw materials
and turn out a product, the only difference is that the factory deals
with tangibles while the office deals with the information and
paperwork.
Why is 5-S useful?
The 5-S reflects our attitudes and behavioral patterns. It can help everything we do.

 5S is useful because it will help everyone in the organization to live a better life.
Implement the 5S at you home first and you will see the real benefit. Then it will
become useful in the office as well (habit forming)
 5S can form a good basis for QCC(quality control circle) activities. 5S can
provide a very good framework fro improvement.
 5S also forms a basis for other quality improvement activities.
 5S results in immense benefits to the company. It promotes high in quality and
productivity, keeps cost down, ensures delivery on time, is safe for people to
work and is high in morale.

How to implement the 5S

The 5-S implementation requires commitment from both the top management and
everyone in the organization. The following s teps will help you to achieve
success:
11. Get Top Management Commitment and be Prepared (sell the idea to the
executives)
12. Draw up Promotional Campaign (set up timetable)
13. Keeping Records (decisions, problems, action taken and results achieved)
14. 5-S Training
15. Evaluation