The Journey Begins with 5S

Why we always begin with the 5S’s…

We always begin our Lean journey with the 5S’s.  Why is this?  The question came about during a kaizen event brainstorming session I was facilitating.  I was at first completely thrown off track since it was not even remotely in line with the discussion.  I remember giving some generic non-committed answer but, afterwards really sat down and put my swim trunks on and took the dive into the cold, icy waters to find the answer below.  

I realized that for many people Lean is nerve-wrecking though not because it is difficult.  It was simply regarded as “common sense,” and why would we document common sense?”  I disagree, I don’t believe Lean to be common sense only because common sense is a subjective term.  The best example I can give is this: I’ve been to friends’ houses for, whatever, and have come to realize that just because someone knows how to clean, doesn’t mean they will always do so.  Cleaning, in my humble opinion, is common sense.  Not everyone views common sense the same way.  5S is a straight forward tool…not much to interpret, thus the difference.

Before I go too far, I’ll go into just what 5S is.  

5S is a short for (Sort, Set in order, Sanitize, Standardize & Sustain).  The great attribute about this tool is it can be used everywhere for anything.  My wife, up until I explained what I actually did to help pay for food, did this unconsciously all the time and I’m willing to bet many of you do too.  

I’ll tell a story to define the 5S tool…it is not nearly as dry…

This spring my wife and I open up the garage and looked at the train wreck that had been created over the past number of years.  We don’t park our cars in there because there isn’t any room too.  We had been putting this day off for a few years and really wasn’t looking forward to the next few days but, had come to a point where the pain of looking at the mess superseded cleaning it.

“Well,” my wife asked, “where do you want to begin?”

I knowing my wife’s preference not to discuss work on a weekend replied, “We start by 5S’ing.”

I got a sour look in response but, it was quickly followed by a bunch of questions to explain what I meant.  

We started by removing everything we could, organizing it into categories as we went (outdoors equipment, totes of personal items, tools, etc.,) Tool boxes, bikes, totes of miscellaneous stuff…everything.  Then we cleaned & cleaned & cleaned.  We swept the floors, wiped down benches, wiped down rafters and walls, we cleaned it all.  Next we went through our “categorized” piles and determined where we wanted to store what we had.  We also had a very large pile of “red tag” items we were going to have to discuss the future of.  Slowly and methodically we began to bring items back into the garage.  Every item had a purpose for being there.  If we could not come up with a viable purpose we “red tagged” the item.  

We then went through the “red tagged” items, most of which we got rid of in some way shape or form.  What we didn’t immediately throw away was put in a specific area that would eventually be removed.  We even set a date by which if we hadn’t followed through with finding alternative means of getting rid of the item we’d just throw it away.  

Then we labeled everything we felt needed labeling.  We established parking areas for the bikes and workspace for me to use my tools in and a large open area where we agreed to keep open.  

The entire process took two weekends and was a lot of work but, 1 year later we are enjoying having the doors to the garage open without embarrassment.

We start with 5S because it is one of the easiest tools to grasp, typically with have a large ROI, and quite honestly is a great excuse to clean.  When you are done you get that relieving sensation of accomplishment afterwards.  It’s always refreshing to work in a clean environment.  

Lean is a major change in culture for many organizations.  Starting in 5^th gear is not typically a sound decision when initiating this change.  Start the process slowly, gain inertia and then use that inertia to break free of the gravitational pull keeping the old culture in place.  I’ve never heard or read of Lean being an overnight success.  I have heard about it being an utter fail because of poor execution.  Change can be a difficult and painful process if taken on improperly.  

So, this is why 5S is a great introduction to Lean.  It is a tool everyone can comprehend and act upon quickly and without much misunderstanding.  It allows a simple start into the journey of Lean.