Using 5S to increase workplace productivity
5S requires top-down commitment from top management to operator level. Without it, any 5S program is doomed from the start. There also needs to be an infrastructure like QCDSM in place for sustainability and continuous improvement (time and resources, brainstorming, etc.) to ensure the programs meet your goals and expectations.
5S must be properly understood by everyone in the organization. This is not just a clean-up exercise and if presented as such then the program will only achieve the second ‘S’ and be considered a failure. It simply only works when management understands that 5S is fundamental to good performance, not secondary to it. 5S only succeeds in environments where there is discipline and self-regulation to ensure that performance standards are maintained and followed.
Standards should be maintained by a simple system of daily auditing of different areas or areas, each in charge of a person or a small team.
Even with all this in place, long-term sustainability will only be possible if the system is continuously measured and improved. The QCDSM program ensures that this will happen on a daily basis. In addition to the QCDSM, members of senior management should conduct periodic reviews of each target area. A common mistake of senior management is to never be visible in the factory.
5S provides the basis for improving performance through continuous improvement. It focuses on:
- Improving quality by eliminating waste from the workplace.
- Ensure operational cost reduction by reducing non-value-added activities.
- Improving delivery by simplifying processes and removing bottlenecks
- Improving safety through improved maintenance and hazard identification
Provide an environment where continuous improvement is embraced through employee problem solving and suggestions, thus improving morale.
Simply put, 5S works best if program execution is based on the 5S performance improvement formula:
P=Q+C+D+S+M
Where;
- P – Increase productivity.
- Q – Improving product quality.
- ° С – Reduction of production costs.
- e – Ensure timely delivery.
- S – Provide a safe working environment
- M – Increasing worker morale.
Ensuring that everyone maintains the daily 5S discipline is a management problem. This may be the responsibility of the 5S team leader, but is also managed and supported by the audit and tracking system that is used to measure compliance with the 5S process. The QCDSM process structure ensures that a disciplined approach is applied to each shift day after day.
Expectations:
You must be able to achieve significant levels of performance improvement with a structured approach to carrying out daily 5S activities.
- Performance measurement can be done in many ways and at many levels, such as overall factory performance and work team performance. Overall plant performance is most important from a competitive point of view, but many other factors can influence this besides 5S. When using a structured system like QCDSM, expect a typical increase of around 15%-50%
- An organization’s concern for safety can greatly contribute to morale and pride. It can be measured by lost-time injury rates or other safety measures. Up to 70% Off
- Cleaning out the trash will sometimes open up a significant amount of space in itself. If analysis and localized re-layout of departments is part of the 5S effort, there can be significant savings. However, such space savings must be consolidated into larger blocks of space to be useful. 5%-60% off
- Absenteeism is the result of many reasons, but pride and morale are two of the more important. Improvements in absenteeism, other factors remaining constant, can be attributed to increased pride and morale. 20%-50% off
- If 5S teams prepare before-and-after spaghetti diagrams, they can measure the reduction in walking distance. However, there are other micro-level economies of motion (reaching, bending, etc.) that are more difficult to measure directly. 20%-50%+ off
- The rigor, discipline and analysis inherent in the QCDSM approach to 5S implementation can contribute to the development of ° Сcontinuous improvement mindset. This happens when constantly looking for and implementing improvements becomes part of the job. One way to measure this is with the QCDSM Idea/Suggestion program. Expect the number of suggestions per employee to be tracked and reported to management. Number of offers 1500%+ increase
If you want to get more out of your productivity improvement budget by reducing the amount you spend and increasing the likelihood that these investments will positively impact your company’s performance over time, use a structured system like QCDSM to manage and maintain your 5S program. Without a focused approach to 5S implementation like QCDSM, your improvement efforts will eventually die.
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