5S--A Way of Being

Have you heard the term 5S and wondered what people mean?

The purpose of a 5S exercise is for colleagues and management to create a clean and orderly workplace that exposes waste and makes abnormalities immediately visible. It’s more than housekeeping: it has a huge impact on safety, helps eliminate waste, and is a low-cost/high-impact action to improve the overall workspace. It’s a way to help make your workplace the best for you.

5S may have originated from Henry Ford’s CANCO program, which was eventually turned into 5 Japanese words: Seiri (Sort), Siton (Straighten), Seisou (Sweep or Shine), Seiketsue (Standardize) and Shitsuke (Self-discipline or Sustain). So what does each “S” entail?

• Sort: Touch each item and get rid of what you don’t need or use.

• Straighten: Find a place for everything you kept that works for the tasks needed.

• Sweep/Shine: Clean to inspect so each item looks as good as it can.

• Standardize: Create standards so abnormalities are easily recognized and create processes that are easy to comply with. Think about how you would set up the next guy to succeed.

• Self-Discipline/Sustain: Keep up the standards and adapt when something doesn’t work. This is an opportunity to apply positive tension so we can identify issues immediately.

5S is easily applicable to the mill environment, but can also be used in kitchens, offices and homes. It’s not a one-time action, but an ongoing mindset.

Congrats to each team as they work together through the 5S program to help improve how we work!