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5S Is The Acronym For Five Japanese Words, Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu and Shitsuke

The document discusses the 5S methodology which focuses on effective workplace organization through sorting, systematizing, cleaning, standardizing, and establishing self-discipline. The 5S principles appear to be common sense and include sorting through work areas to remove unnecessary items, organizing what remains, regular cleaning and inspections, standardizing good practices, and continuous training to maintain standards.

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23 views2 pages

5S Is The Acronym For Five Japanese Words, Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu and Shitsuke

The document discusses the 5S methodology which focuses on effective workplace organization through sorting, systematizing, cleaning, standardizing, and establishing self-discipline. The 5S principles appear to be common sense and include sorting through work areas to remove unnecessary items, organizing what remains, regular cleaning and inspections, standardizing good practices, and continuous training to maintain standards.

Uploaded by

Vinod Sale
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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5S is the acronym for five Japanese words, seiri, seiton, seiso, seiketsu and shitsuke,

which signify order, cleanliness, purity and commitment.

The 5S philosophy focusses on effective workplace organisation, helps simplify the


workplace environment and reduce waste, while improving quality and safety.

Seiri (sort) means to put things in order. Seiton (systematise) means proper arrangement.
Seiso (clean) implies keeping things clean and polished in the workplace. Seiketsu
implies purity and focuses on maintaining cleanliness and perpetual cleaning. Shitsuke is
commitment.

This is a typical teaching and attitude towards any undertaking to inspire pride and
adherence to standards established for the four components.

The principles underlying a 5S programme appear to be common sense -- and they are.
But until the advent of 5S, many businesses ignored these basic principles. There is an
order and logic to how 5S is carried out, which is:

1. Seiri or sorting

Seiri means sorting through everything in each work area. It requires keeping only what
is necessary.

Materials, tools, equipment and supplies that are not frequently used should be moved to
a separate, common storage area. Items that are never used should be discarded. This
makes it easier to find the things needed and frees up additional space.

"Tagging" items is a common approach when deciding what is to be thrown away. An


area is targeted; items likely to be disposed off are tagged with a red tag and a date. If the
item is not used after a certain period of time, say, between one and six months, it is
disposed of. Practising seiri at Sona Koyo, for instance, led to the freeing up of an 8x6 ft
by removing unwanted rakes.

2. Seiton or systematise

This is the next step. It requires organising, arranging and identifying everything in a
work area for efficient retrieval and return to its proper place.

Commonly used tools are readily available; storage areas, cabinets and shelves are
properly labelled; floors are cleaned and painted to make it easier to spot dirt, waste
materials and dropped parts and tools; spaces are outlined on the floor to identify work
areas, movement lanes, storage areas, finished product areas and so on; and shadows are
drawn on the tool boards, making it easy to quickly see where each tool belongs.

In an office, bookshelves are provided for frequently-used manuals, books and


catalogues.
There are two important parts to systematic organisation -- putting everything in its
proper place and setting up a system so that it is easy to return each item to its proper
place. The second part is where labelling and identification practices are important.

3. Seiso or shining

Once everything from each individual work area to the entire facility is sorted and
organised, it needs to be kept that way.

Regular cleaning and inspection makes it easy to spot lubricant leaks, equipment
misalignment, breakage, missing tools and low levels of supplies. When done on a
regular, frequent basis, cleaning and inspecting does not take a lot of time and, in the long
run, actually saves times.

4. Seiketsu or standardise

Seiketsu ensures that the first three steps of the 5S programme continue to be effective.
The good practices developed in the first three steps need to be standardised.

Therefore, organisations must develop a work structure that will support the new
practices and turn them into habits.

5. Shitsuke or self-discipline

This implies continuous training and maintenance of standards. The organisation must
build a formal system for monitoring the results of the programme. A follow-up is a must
for the above four steps to continue to be practise.

There will have to be continuous education about maintaining standards. When there are
changes that will affect the 5S programme -- such as new equipment, new products or
new work rules -- it is essential to make changes in the standards and provide training.

A good way to continue educating employees and maintaining standards is to use 5S


posters and signs.

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