What is 5S?

5S is a system for organizing spaces so work can be performed efficiently,

effectively, and safely. This system focuses on putting everything where it belongs
and keeping the workplace clean, which makes it easier for people to do their jobs
without wasting time or risking injury.

 Sort
 Set in Order
 Shine
 Standardize
 Sustain

5S began as part of the Toyota Production System (TPS), the manufacturing method
begun by leaders at the Toyota Motor Company in the early and mid-20th century.

Benefits of 5S

Over time, the 5S methodology leads to many benefits, including:

 Reduced costs

 Higher quality

 Increased productivity

 Greater employee satisfaction

 A safer work environment

What Are the 5 S's?

The 5S concept might sound a little abstract at this point, but in reality it's a very
practical, hands-on tool that everyone in the workplace can be a part of.

5S involves assessing everything present in a space, removing what's unnecessary,

organizing things logically, performing housekeeping tasks, and keeping this cycle
going. Organize, clean, repeat.

[Type here]
What Are the 5 S's?

The 5S concept might sound a little abstract at this point, but in reality it's a very
practical, hands-on tool that everyone in the workplace can be a part of.

5S involves assessing everything present in a space, removing what's unnecessary,

organizing things logically, performing housekeeping tasks, and keeping this cycle
going. Organize, clean, repeat.

Sort

The first step of 5S, Sort, involves going through all the tools, furniture, materials,
equipment, etc. in a work area to determine what needs to be present and what can
be removed. Some questions to ask during this phase include:

 What is the purpose of this item?

 When was this item last used?

 How frequently is it used?

 Who uses it?

 Does it really need to be here?

These questions help determine the value of each item. A workspace might be better
off without unnecessary items or items used infrequently. These things can get in
the way or take up space.

Keep in mind the best people to assess the items in a space are the people who work
in that space. They are the ones who can answer the above questions.

For cases when an item's value is uncertain—for example, a tool hasn't been used
recently, but someone thinks it might be needed in the future—use the red
tag method. Red tags are usually cardboard tags or stickers that can be attached to
the items in question. Once the extra clutter is gone, it's easier to see what's what.
Now work groups can come up with their own strategies for sorting through the
remaining items. Things to consider:

 Which people (or workstations) use which items?

[Type here]
  When are items used?

 Which items are used most frequently?

 Should items be grouped by type?

 Where would it be most logical to place items?

o Would some placements be more ergonomic for workers than

others?

o Would some placements cut down on unnecessary motion?

 Are more storage containers necessary to keep things organized?

During this phase, everyone should determine what arrangements are most logical.
Businesses may want to stop and think about the relationship between organization
and larger Lean efforts. What arrangement will cause the least amount of waste?

In Lean manufacturing, waste can take the form of:

 Defects
 Waiting time
 Extra motion
 Excess inventory
 Overproduction
 Extra processing
 Unnecessary transportation
 Unutilized talents

Shine

Everyone thinks they know what housekeeping is, but it's one of the easiest things to
overlook, especially when work gets busy. The Shine stage of 5S focuses on cleaning
up the work area, which means sweeping, mopping, dusting, wiping down surfaces,
putting tools and materials away, etc.

In addition to basic cleaning, Shine also involves performing regular maintenance on

equipment and machinery. Planning for maintenance ahead of time means

[Type here]
businesses can catch problems and prevent breakdowns. That means less wasted
time and no loss of profits related to work stoppages.

Shining the workplace might not sound exciting, but it's important. And it shouldn't
just be left up to the janitorial staff. In 5S, everyone takes responsibility for cleaning
up their workspace, ideally on a daily basis. Doing so makes people take ownership
of the space, which in the long run means people will be more invested in their work
and in the company.

Standardize

Once the first three steps of 5S are completed, things should look pretty good. All
the extra stuff is gone, everything is organized, spaces are cleaned, and equipment
is in good working order.

Standardize systematizes everything that just happened and turns one-time efforts
into habits. Standardize assigns regular tasks, creates schedules, and posts
instructions so these activities become routines. It makes standard operating
procedures for 5S so that orderliness doesn't fall by the wayside. Initially, people will
probably need reminders about 5S. Small amounts of time may need to be set aside
daily for 5S tasks. But over time, tasks will become routine and 5S organizing and
cleaning will become a part of regular work.

[Type here]
Sustain

Once standard procedures for 5S are in place, businesses must perform the ongoing
work of maintaining those procedures and updating them as necessary. Sustain
refers to the process of keeping 5S running smoothly, but also of keeping everyone
in the organization involved. Managers need to participate, as do employees out on
the manufacturing floor, in the warehouse, or in the office. Sustain is about making
5S a long-term program, not just an event or short-term project. Ideally, 5S becomes
a part of an organization's culture. And when 5S is sustained over time, that's when
businesses will start to notice continuous positive results.

Tip #1: To help sustain 5S practices, make sure all new employees
(or employees who switch departments) receive training about their
area's 5S procedures.

Tip #2: Keep things interesting. Look at what other companies are
doing with 5S. New ideas for organization can keep things improving
and keep employees engaged.

What is PDSA?
PDSA, or Plan-Do-Study-Act, is an iterative, four-stage problem-solving
model used for improving a process or carrying out change.

Stage 1: Plan
A. Recruit team

Assemble a team that has knowledge of the problem or opportunity for

improvement. Consider the strengths each team member brings—look for
engaged, forward-thinking staff.

After recruiting team members, identify roles and responsibilities, set

timelines, and establish a meeting schedule.

B. Draft an aim statement

Describe what you want to accomplish in an aim statement. Try to

answer those three fundamental questions:

1. What are we trying to accomplish?

2. How will we know that a change is an improvement?
3. What change can we make that will result in improvement?

[Type here]
C. Describe current context and process
brainstorm

Examine your current process. Start by asking the team these basic
questions:

 What are we doing now?

 How do we do it?
 What are the major steps in the process?
 Who is involved?
 What do they do?
 What is done well?
 What could be done better?

You might have already answered the last two questions if you have
performed a SWOT analysis.

Try a swim lane map

You may find it helpful to construct a swim lane map to visually describe
your process.

Creating a process flow or at least depicting the current process can be

very useful. If your team runs into road blocks, you might have found
where the problem is occurring—or maybe the right person for identifying
a missing step is not at the table.

Gather more detail

Once the general structure is completed, these can be some more helpful
questions to ask:

 How long does the process currently take? Each step?

 Is there variation in the way the process is currently completed?

D. Describe the problem

Using the aim statement created in Step B, state your desired

accomplishments, and use data and information to measure how your
organization meets/does not meet those accomplishments.

[Type here]
For example: If your objective is to maximize your staff's quality of work
life, you might find evidence by surveying employees on workplace
stressors.

Write a problem statement

Write a problem statement to clearly summarize your team's consensus

on the problem. You may find it helpful to prioritize problems, if your team
has identified more than one, and/or include a justification of why you
chose your problem(s).

E. Identify causes and alternatives

Analyze causes

For the problem in your problem statement, work to identify causes of the
problem using tools such as control charts, fishbones, and work flow
process maps (e.g., flowcharts, swim lane maps). The end of the cause
analysis should summarize the cause analysis by describing and justifying
the root causes.

Examine your process, and ask:

 Is this process efficient? What is the cost (including money, time, or other
resources)?
 Are we doing the right steps in the right way?
 Does someone else do this same process in a different way?

Develop alternatives

Try to mitigate your root causes by completing the statement,

"If we do __________, then __________ will happen."

Choose an alternative (or a few alternatives) that you believe will best
help you reach your objective and maximize your resources.

Develop an action plan, including necessary staff/resources and a

timeline. Try to account for risks you might face as you implement your
action plan.

[Type here]
Stage 2: Do
Start to implement your action plan. Be sure to collect data as you go, to
help you evaluate your plan in Stage 3: Study. Your team might find it
helpful to use a check sheet, flowchart, swim lane map, or run
chart to capture data/occurrences as they happen or over time.

Your team should also document problems, unexpected effects, and

general observations.

Stage 3: Study
Using the aim statement drafted in Stage 1: Plan, and data gathered
during Stage 2: Do, determine:

 Did your plan result in an improvement? By how much/little?

 Was the action worth the investment?
 Do you see trends?
 Were there unintended side effects?

You can use a number of different tools to visually review and evaluate an
improvement, like a Pareto chart, control chart, or run chart.

Stage 4: Act
Reflect on plan and outcomes
 If your team determined the plan resulted in success, standardize the
improvement and begin to use it regularly. After some time, return
to Stage 1: Plan and re-examine the process to learn where it can be
further improved.

[Type here]
  If your team believes a different approach would be more successful,
return to Stage 1: Plan, and develop a new and different plan that might
result in success.

Kaizen

Essentially meaning "continuous improvement", kaizen targets human resources

and processes so as to anchor an industry for long-term and successful operation.
Kaizen is a Japanese term coined in the period after World War II when businesses
were trying to cope with the effects of the war. "Kai" translates to the word
"change", and "zen" means "good". Kaizen produced significant results for
companies like Toyota and has become a popular production philosophy all over the
world.

in Lean manufacturing, Kaizen is the practice of continually making small,

incremental improvements for a safer, more productive, and efficient workplace.

Kaizen reviews and training teaches new employees how to apply Kaizen principles
to their work, which means Kaizen stays sustainable for years to come.

The Process of Continuous Improvement in the Workplace

. Kaizen can be defined as the philosophy and practice of continuous improvement. It
refers to the practice of looking for ways to improve work processes on a regular
basis. The practice involves small, incremental changes rather that large changes.
With Kaizen, all people within the organization look for possible improvement
opportunities, not just managers or executives.

Without Kaizen

 No structure to the improvement process; few set procedures

 Goals are not defined or are vague/difficult to measure
 Changes are made to processes infrequently; little reflection on their
effectiveness
 No plan exists for improvement; improvement is haphazard

With Kaizen

 Consistent, ongoing process of improvement takes place

 Improvement process has clearly defined, measurable goals

[Type here]
  Constant review of successes occurs, and the improvement process itself
is evaluated
 Consistency of the process leads to new, higher goals

Benefits

Kaizen benefits organizations for many reasons. Some of these benefits are:

 Smoother, more effective processes

 Cleaner, safer workspaces
 Higher quality products and/or services
 Lower costs
 Improved employee morale and engagement
 Better customer service

Respect for People

In kaizen, all workers must feel respected so that they are comfortable making
suggestions for process improvements. This means management must believe
workers are capable of making changes.

Some improvements may not result in direct cost savings, but they could make a
process run smoother or make the work environment better for the people in it.

People should look for improvements that will make their work function better, and
in turn, these improvements may help the company and its customers. People
should also be encouraged to test out ideas themselves and make changes as
needed.

Role of Management

Management plays a critical role in kaizen's success and should:

 Looking for ways to improve their own work

 Help maintain and improve standards
 Provide goals or targets for improvement
 Support actions with evidence

Tools of Kaizen
PDCA Cycle

A prominent example of Kaizen is the implementation of a process called PDCA

cycle. This is the Plan, Do, Check, Act method

[Type here]
Quality Circles

These elements are teamwork, self-discipline, improved morale, quality circles and
suggestions. While most of these terms are fairly straight-forward, "quality circles" is
a term new to a lot of people. Quality Circles and Suggestions are two of the main
forces behind the success that Toyota has had with Kaizen.

5S

Kaizen is built on a 5S framework with elimination of waste and standardization at

the forefront.

Kaizen & Continuous Improvement

The Kaizen mindset of continuous improvement makes for a more productive

and efficient workplace by implementing small changes and emphasizing the
involvement of all employees. Kaizen establishes a consistent process for
improvement, defines the organization’s goals, and gives managers the tools they
need to reach those goals.

[Type here]
What is Six Sigma?

Six Sigma is a technique used to improve overall quality of production output.

Originally developed by Motorola, the six sigma process is used to remove causes of
variation and defects in manufactured products, and is a universally recognized as
an important Lean Manufacturing concept.

Six Sigma, as a whole, relies on several

other quality management processes to function, including statistical methods such
as data collection, charts and tables. When companies implement six sigma, projects
generally involve a defined sequence of steps and quantified targets. The targets
could be product quality, production process, financial conditions, or a number of
other set goals. Generally speaking, if an organization can measure the "defects" in
a process, then they can systematically identify ways to reduce or eliminate those
defects. The goal is to be as close to "zero defects" as possible.

In the quality management world, "Six Sigma Quality" is defined by a process that
produces no more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities. An "opportunity" may
be defined as the chances of the products or processes not conforming to, or
meeting , the required specifications. This means that six sigma quality management
demands that a process be as close to perfect as possible.

Six Sigma projects can follow two different, five-phased

methodologies: DMAIC and DMADV. DMAIC is used mainly for projects aimed at
improving existing manufacturing processes and DMADV is used primarily for
projects aimed at creating new product or process designs.

DMAIC

1. Define – define the problem (from both customers and process perspective)
2. Measure – measure the current process and collect relevant data
3. Analyze – analyze the data collected to determine the relationship to the
problem and how to solve it
4. Improve – improve the entire process based on the analysis of the collected
data
5. Control – control the future of the process to prevent any deviation from
target

DMADV

[Type here]
 1. Define – define the design goal to meet the customers’ needs and
manufacturing process
2. Measure – identify risks, production process capability and product
capabilities
3. Analyze – after designs are created, each of them is to be analyzed to
determine which is best for implementation
4. Design – optimize the chosen design while planning for the next phase (this
step may require simulations using software or prototype)
5. Verify – verify the design: set up pilot runs, implement the production
process, and hand it over to the process owners

WHAT IS
BENCHMARKING?
Benchmarking on ASQTV
Quality Glossary Definition: Benchmarking

Benchmarking is defined as the process of measuring products, services, and processes against
those of organizations known to be leaders in one or more aspects of their operations.
Benchmarking provides necessary insights to help you understand how your organization
compares with similar organizations, even if they are in a different business or have a different
group of customers.

Benchmarking can also help organizations identify areas, systems, or processes for
improvements—either incremental (continuous) improvements or dramatic (business process re-
engineering) improvements.

[Type here]
Incremental Quality Improvement vs Benchmarking Breakthroughs

BENCHMARKING PROCEDURE
Considerations
 Before an organization can achieve the full benefits of benchmarking, its own processes
must be clearly understood and under control.
 Benchmarking studies require significant investments of manpower and time, so
management must champion the process all the way through, including being ready and
willing to make changes based on what is learned.
 Too broad a scope dooms the project to failure. A subject that is not critical to the
organization’s success won’t return enough benefits to make the study worthwhile.
 Inadequate resources can also doom a benchmarking study by underestimating the effort
involved or inadequate planning. The better you prepare, the more efficient your study
will be.

Plan
1. Define a tightly focused subject of the benchmarking study. Choose an issue critical to
the organization’s success.
2. Form a cross-functional team. During Step 1 and 2, management’s goals and support
for the study must be firmly established.
3. Study your own process. Know how the work is done and measurements of the output.
4. Identify partner organizations that may have best practices.

Collect
1. Collect information directly from partner organizations. Collect both process
descriptions and numeric data, using questionnaires, telephone interviews, and/or site
visits.

[Type here]
 Analyze
1. Compare the collected data, both numeric and descriptive.
2. Determine gaps between your performance measurements and those of your partners.
3. Determine the differences in practices that cause the gaps.

Adapt
4. Develop goals for your organization’s process.
5. Develop action plans to achieve those goals.
6. Implement and monitor plans.

TECHNICAL BENCHMARKING
Technical benchmarking is performed by design staff to determine the capabilities of products or
services, especially in comparison to the products or services of leading competitors. For
example, on a scale of one to four, four being best, how do designers rank the properties of your
organization’s products or services? If you cannot obtain hard data, the design efforts may be
insufficient, and products or services may be inadequate to be competitive.

COMPETITIVE BENCHMARKING
Competitive benchmarking compares how well (or poorly) an organization is doing with respect
to the leading competition, especially with respect to critically important attributes, functions, or
values associated with the organization’s products or services. For example, on a scale of one to
four, four being best, how do customers rank your organization’s products or services compared
to those of the leading competition? If you cannot obtain hard data, marketing efforts may be
misdirected and design efforts misguided.

Pitfalls
Pitfall No. 1: Lack of upper-level management
support for process improvement initiatives
This can have a number of causes, including lack of understanding of the potential value,
a poor implementation process, insufficient sustain controls, inadequate validation
process, or loss of focus on the bottom line.

There are a number of things that can/should be done to minimize this. For example, you
can schedule an orientation session with upper management. Or better yet, encourage
them to become trained and run a project. Routine project reviews should include
participation, not only from the process owner, but also from those over him/her. Ensure
that improvement initiatives always maintain their focus on the business’ bottom line.

[Type here]
Pitfall No. 9: Team make-up not including all
relevant functions
This problem has a variety of causes, including resource constraints, siloed functions,
and the failure to recognize the value of other functions in obtaining an all-encompassing
view of the process. As a result, a narrow view of process results in narrow improvement
plan and minimal results — or none at all.

The key is to ensure that all functions affected by the process are involved in the project.
That being said, team size can be an issue. An ideal size is from six to 10 members. Any
less may cause one to wonder if all appropriate functions are included. Any more can
cause the team to be difficult to manage and result in a loss of focus. Therefore, where
appropriate, some resources can be supporting team members, rather than full-time
team members. This will allow them to be brought in to the improvement process when
they are needed, but keep the team size manageable and allow them to focus on their
other duties when not needed. Whether a full time team member, or supporting team
member, all should be copied with minutes and other team documentation.

Pitfall No. 9: Not walking the process and

involving the operators
Every project should start in the work area where improvement is expected. As
improvements are implemented, additional visits to the area are in order to ensure that
employees in the area understand and benefit from the improvements. At the end of the
project another visit is needed to ensure that the control plan is fully implemented and
effective.

Bonus: Ineffective control plan

Unless something is put into place to prevent returning to “the way it has always been
done,” the process will slide back to what it was. The tendency is to put in more
instructions, signoffs, control charts, etc., in an attempt to control the process. But this is
not the way to go. The new process must be easier to run than the old. It must make the
operator’s job simpler, better, faster. It must make going back to the old way undesirable
or hard to do and the new way pleasant and a joy. This requires careful thought and
ingenuity from the team, and close involvement and feedback from the workers in the
process. But please don’t jump to an engineering solution involving capital. There are
other, cheaper, ways to accomplish this — you just have to dig them out.

Quality Function Deployment (QFD)

Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is a process and set of tools used to effectively
define customer requirements and convert them into detailed engineering specifications
and plans to produce the products that fulfill those requirements. QFD is used to
translate customer requirements (or VOC) into measureable design targets and drive
them from the assembly level down through the sub-assembly, component and
production process levels. QFD methodology provides a defined set of matrices utilized
to facilitate this progression.
QFD was first developed in Japan by Yoji Akao in the late 1960s while working for
Mitsubishi’s shipyard. It was later adopted by other companies including Toyota and its
supply chain. In the early 1980s, QFD was introduced in the United States mainly by the

[Type here]
big three automotive companies and a few electronics manufacturers. Acceptance and
growth of the use of QFD in the US was initially rather slow but has since gained
popularity and is currently being used in manufacturing, healthcare and service
organizations.

Why Implement Quality Function

Deployment (QFD)
QFD methodology effectively communicates customer needs to multiple
business operations throughout the organization including design, quality,
manufacturing, production, marketing and sales. This effective
communication of the Voice of the Customer allows the entire
organization to work together and produce products with high levels of
customer perceived value. There are several additional benefits to using
Quality Function Deployment:
 Customer Focused: QFD methodology places the emphasis on
the wants and needs of the customer, not on what the company
may believe the customer wants. The Voice of the Customer is
translated into technical design specifications. During the QFD
process, design specifications are driven down from machine
level to system, sub-system and component level requirements.
Finally, the design specifications are controlled throughout the
production and assembly processes to assure the customer
needs are met.
 VOC Competitor Analysis: The QFD “House of Quality” tool
allows for direct comparison of how your design or product
stacks up to the competition in meeting the VOC. This quick
analysis can be beneficial in making design decisions that could
place you ahead of the pack.
 Shorter Development Time and Lower Cost: QFD reduces the
likelihood of late design changes by focusing on product
features and improvements based on customer requirements.
Effective QFD methodology prevents valuable project time and
resources from being wasted on development of non-value
added features or functions.
 Structure and Documentation: QFD provides a structured
method and tools for recording decisions made and lessons
learned during the product development process. This
knowledge base can serve as a historical record that can be
utilized to aid future projects.
Companies must bring new and improved products to market that meet
the customer’s actual wants and needs while reducing development time.
QFD methodology is for organizations committed to listening to the Voice
of the Customer and meeting their needs.

[Type here]
How to Implement Quality Function
Deployment
1. Product Definition: The Product Definition Phase begins with
collection of VOC and translating the customer wants and needs
into product specifications. It may also involve a competitive
analysis to evaluate how effectively the competitor’s product
fulfills the customer wants and needs. The initial design concept
is based on the particular product performance requirements
and specifications.
2. Product Development: During the Product Development Phase,
the critical parts and assemblies are identified. The critical
product characteristics are cascaded down and translated to
critical or key part and assembly characteristics or
specifications. The functional requirements or specifications are
then defined for each functional level.
3. Process Development: During the Process Development Phase,
the manufacturing and assembly processes are designed based
on product and component specifications. The process flow is
developed and the critical process characteristics are identified.
4. Process Quality Control: Prior to production launch, the QFD
process identifies critical part and process characteristics.
Process parameters are determined and appropriate process
controls are developed and implemented. In addition, any
inspection and test specifications are developed. Full production
begins upon completion of process capability studies during the
pilot build.

What is House of Quality

House of Quality refers to a well-known process for product
development that is inspired by customer desires for product or
process development and anchored by the capabilities and
resources of the organization seeking to meet those desires. It is
a process of listening to customers, translating their desires into
a written plan, prioritizing steps of execution based on what is
most important to the customer, and putting a realistic plan on
paper.

Primary Purposes of House of Quality

 Understand Customer Desires

Many times, customers need outside perspective to
discover what they really need to build their product or

[Type here]
 process. The goal is to understand customers perhaps
even better that they understand themselves so as to
open their eyes to ideal solutions.
 Understand Customer Priorities
During the interview stage, get to know customer needs,
but then break those needs down into prioritized parts.
For example, if a customer is building drones for media
production, how important is battery life compared to
camera quality? How important is aesthetic compared to
quality of the drone body? Weights are assigned to each
quality based on what is most important to the customer.
How well each need is met is ultimately how the
customer will judge your solution’s value.
 Departmental Buy-In
Often, disagreement or misunderstanding between
departments of a customer’s organization can occur in
relation to what is actually needed. Marketing may think
that a drone with trending features is top priority, but
engineering may think that overhaul of a problematic
part is top priority. The process helps create a plan that
addresses all true priorities and to which all departments
can agree.
 Translate Customer Desires Into Goals &
Technicalities
This is the heart of the QFD process where the recorded
desires of the customer are ranked by priority and
specific process and resource planning takes place. They
are laid out onto a useful diagram labeled the House of
Quality.
 Specify Traceable Requirements
Specific requirements for the execution of the customer’s
product or process should be laid out.
The how and why questions should be answered in the
plan–how are we meeting the client’s requirements
and why are we doing it this way? The written
requirements and should be specific enough that their
completion and success are traceable. One should be
able to work forward and backward in the plan and
determine easily whether or not the overall plan is being
executed successfully. For example, if there is a question
on why something is done a certain way, one should be
able to trace back to the beginning of the process to the
initial requirement that determined the process needed
to meet that requirement.

[Type here]
  Provide Structure
It is easy for customers to jump all over the place stating
what they desire and tossing out ideas. But, at the end of
the day, your role is to hone in on what they want and
provide a logical, executable, traceable structure to
organize their ideas.
 Allocate Resources
Whether developing a physical product or creating a
process for a customer, resources are needed to do so.
Humans, machines, computers, construction materials,
disposable materials and more must be accounted for.
What do we have available to us and what do the
available resources allow us to do? Answering these

Looking at these various pitfalls, it seems that they are often inter-related
and linked. As a result, like a set of dominos, one problem leads to
another, leads to another, often exponentially. If you need to improve
your process improvement process, make it a project. Get a team of the
right people together, charter the project, and use the tools to make
improvements. Look at potential (or existing) problems as opportunities
for improvement — and go after them.

[Type here]