Are you stuck with 5S? Would you like to try something different?

In the journey of Operational Excellence, one of the most commonly employed tools is 5S. It is also considered by many as the fundamental step taken by an organization in their OpEx journey. I have been associated with many organizations in different capacities, who have made remarkable strides in their operational excellence journey but somehow have not been able to achieve the same success when it comes to 5S.

For the unapprised, 5S is short for Seiri (Sort); Seiton (Set-in-order); Seiso (Shine); Seiketsu (Standardize); and finally, Shinsuke (Sustain). In simple terms, 5S is a tool for workplace organization. It is responsible for creating a visually appealing workplace that is neat and tidy, and with a place for everything and everything at its place.

Through my years of experience in working for and supporting various organizations, I have often received common feedback concerning 5S. I have been told by several people that their belief in the concept and results associated with 5S is unquestioned. Yet, they believe that practically using 5S and sustaining it in a dynamic industrial environment is not always possible. Such feedback worries me a bit and leaves me to ponder over the fact that while some organizations have done well in implementing and sustaining 5S, whereas the majority have struggled to sustain despite assertive beginnings.

During one of the assignments where I was helping the client to develop a model 5S area in its Spare Part Store, I remember the entire team being extremely enthusiastic. They had their own ideas, suggestions, recommendations to set up the area and we were eventually able to accomplish a very successful project. All the concerned people from the area were very happy to see the results and the impact created by 5S. My next visit to the same plant happened in a little over six months. I excitedly enquired about the Spare Part Store and if they have extended the 5S to any other area. Surprisingly, the answer was in negative, rather the Spare Part Store itself was in a mess. I requested a GEMBA to the area to look by myself of what has gone wrong in six months. On visiting the area, I realized the most common mistake committed by all 5S enthusiasts is the belief that 5S will solve all their problems. The mess was created due to inconsistent supplies of material to the store which was not factored in while initially designing the spare part store following 5S. As a result, the earmarked area for inventory overflowed and the complete layout went haywire. Instead of acknowledging the erratic supply and taking up the issue with the purchasing department, the store in-charge labelled 5S as failed. He had trust in 5S but was left to believe that 5S is not a helpful tool in current circumstances.

Here, we need to understand that 5S does not solve the problem, rather it helps you to see the problems which you yourself need to solve with your team and at times, taking up the matter at management level, if required. Had the store in-charge gotten in touch with purchase department to realign material flow supply and redone the 5S, the issue would have been sorted and 5S sustained over the long run.

So, the most common belief about 5S is that it helps us solve the problems when we organize our workplace. In fact, this is just one side of the coin. On the flip side, if we practice 5S it will rather expose several problems which were by then unseen or undiscovered. But when it comes to the day-to-day practice of 5S, even the best of practitioner fails to find a sustainable model. The problem lies in the eyes of the practitioner, who until then is only used to see the existing problems getting solved rather than view the new problems that are cropping up with time. Resultant is a disgruntled employee, just like the store in-charge, who now blames 5S for all his new problems, without realizing the fact that to sustain 5S, one needs to keep their eyes open to anticipate new issues arising during course of time, and every time make new commitments to address those issues. These new solutions are nothing but update to the existing 5S system or collaborating with related departments to take their inputs.

5S is never a solitary effort on part of an individual or a team; rather it is a routine practice that needs to be embedded in the organizational culture.

#5S, #Excellence #Continuousimprovement