5S activities yield good effects when the 5 ‘S’s and disorder improvements are implemented
By using the 5S, things will become clean, searching will be eliminated and choices will not have to be made. Items will be obtained easily.
On the other hand, the 5S will require extra work. Accordingly, if the purpose for and desired effects of the 5S do not materialize, there is no feeling of accomplishment and efforts will drop off. In other words, even if it is understood that the 5S are steps which are basic and fundamental to work, if superiors do not stand over workers and guide them along, they begin making excuses saying that it is all too troublesome and stop following improvements.
Accordingly the 5S must be systematized so that they can be done accurately, quickly, with as little trouble as possible, and, at the time, they must be linked to increased productivity and lower costs. In other words, improvements are necessary. The important items for successfully completing 5S improvements are summarized below.
1. 5S Improvements and the improvements for disorders which will become evident through the 5S must employ improvement steps, analytical methods, and concrete measures which are tailored to fit them.
2. Analytical methods must be employed in order to set improvement themes and goals, and to make an order of priority for improvements.
The three steps for 5S improvements, improvements steps, and analytical methods
When making 5S Improvements, emphasis is placed on the object of improvement (theme) and the following three steps should be followed in order to make effective improvements.
(1) The first stage is improving and standardizing methods for each of the 5S. These should include improvements for each method of daily practice of the 5S and improvements and standard revisions of initial or regular operations.
(2) The second stage is making each of the 5S to accomplish with source measures and difficult spot measures. When these are improved, methods will change, and standard revisions will need to be done. The improvements made at this stage should be categorized into those for making each “S” easy to do and those for making initial and regular operations for each ‘S’ easy to do and those for making initial and regular operations for each ‘S’ easy to do. The former will include temporary and minor measures, whereas the latter includes major, permanent measures.
(3) The third stage entails discovering disorders in the four elements of production systems and operations systems (mechanical facilities, personnel, methods and materials) while enacting each of the 5S, and improving them. After doing this, productivity will increase and this then directly affect costs, and effects will be clearly evident, As in (2) above, improvements at this stage should also be categorized into those for daily activities and those for initial regular activities.
These 5S activities must be promoted in all three stages by each workshop. Only then effects will be felt.
Quantitative Analysis for Setting Themes and making an order of priorities:
It is extremely important to set objects of improvement (themes) and make an order of priorities as part of the third stage 5S Improvements. Whether or not improvements yield good effect depends upon whether or not improvements themes will provide for operations which will be performed quantitatively and scientifically (operations are presently unproductive and have a poor actual production rate).
The improvements should be performed in an order demanding on the value of each.
There are two basic types of quantitative analysis for doing this. One is Operational performance analysis and the other is Analysis of the actual production of machinery. —