Do you find yourself always having to search for items?

5S is a lean technique that you can use to overcome this difficulty, and help boost your productivity. So what is 5S and what is all about? 5S is a methodology for creating a high performance workplace that is free of clutter and has "a place for everything and everything in it's place. " It is fundamental to creating a Continuous Improvement Culture. It is if you like the foundation that we build a Lean Organization upon. 5S is a structured way of implementing excellent office organization, that helps you facilitate an efficient working environment that people in your organization can be proud of. 5S is in not just about housekeeping and keeping the place tidy.

5s helps you determine what things in the office are needed and where they are needed. The 5S technique is intolerant of waste and helps you create an environment where things are easier to find and abnormality visually jumps out at you. Adopting 5S brings a neater, easier to understand office that has improved productivity with fewer errors. It creates a better working environment which is free of clutter, leading to over all stress reduction. Here are just a few examples of the types of things we waste time on due to lack of Workplace Organization; Looking for files, Finding stationery, Unearthing information that you need, Locating an appropriate piece of equipment, Uncovering a persons contact details.

So what are the 5S? The 5S originated from 5 Japanese words but can be described in English as follows:

1. Sort
2. Straighten
3. Scrub
4. Systems
5. Sustain

Let me take you through each S and what they are all about.

The First S - Sort

Sort means, clearly distinguishing between what is needed and should be kept and what is not needed and should be removed. "If in doubt move it out". Take a look around your own office. Many of the items there are no longer required, have never been required, are broken and need fixed , have been "borrowed" from a different department and never returned or are simply in the wrong place or are poorly labeled and identified. In general this amounts to "clutter"; lots of it. How many pencils, pens, rubbers, envelopes, rolls of tape does any individual need ? Often we tend to hoard stationery much like pirates capturing treasure and woe betide anyone who tries to get if off us.

The amusing thing is that although we all seem to hoard private collections we constantly run out of materials as there is no real system in place. Locked filing cabinets with unknown contents are another good example. "Oh that filing cabinet was used by Joe but he moved 3 months ago and I think there is still some of his paperwork in it. "People seem to leave their "paperwork DNA" all over offices. So by now hopefully you recognize that there is lots of information spread over the office that has no clear function or purpose. How do we go about separating the "clutter" from the good stuff?

The First S - Sort - The Red Tagging Process

One very practical way to sort out what we need from what we don't need, is by conducting a red tagging process. This involves using conspicuous red tag labels to attach to objects that we do not think should be in the area or are not in good order. The Main steps are as follows; Inform everyone ahead of time that a red tag campaign will be taking place in the office; Identify an area to store red tag items temporarily, Identify red tag targets and criteria ; Attach red tags to targets and document activity on a log sheet; Move red tag items into a red tag area; Review and disposition the red tag items.

So what are the typical types of red tag targets we go after; Desks; Stationery; Filling Cabinets; Files and Folders; Out of date documents; Books; Equipment (Telephone, Fax, P. C.); Correspondence; Business Forms; Paper; Catalogs; Shelves; Chairs. However, we must never red tag people. (That was a joke). Once all items have been red tagged then the team should review each item to agree on the appropriate course of action. Typical Potential actions are as follows; Re-organize the storage of the item; Sell the item; Re-locate the item; Repair the item; Give away the item; Dispose of the item; Re-label the item.

So at the end of the first S stage Sort, we should have separated out those things we need and those things we do not need. Just doing the first S can have a dramatic effect. I was in one city center office where we managed to free up 190 square meters of expensive office space by just getting rid of the "stuff" we did not need.

The Second S - Straighten

Straighten means organizing the way needed things are kept so that anyone can find them easily; there must be a location for all needed things, there must be a limit to how much of each item can be stored, make the items easy for anyone to find, use and return. For every item you need to indicate; what it is, where it is stored and the amount there should be of that item. When we "straighten" the office here are just a few of the things we are trying to achieve; Eliminate searching time (waste) for documents, staplers, markers etc. Make things easier to get to and use with the most frequently used items nearby. Make things easy to put back to maintain the orderliness. Make thing understandable at a glance using visual controls. "Orderliness is meaningless unless everyone knows where things are kept and how to find them. "

The Third S - Scrub

Scrub means, creating a clean work environment that is free from clutter and contamination. There are various things we need to do to make this happen; Identify daily cleaning activities (with suppliers) and the routine maintenance required; Zone office areas to avoid duplication of effort and create ownership; Create standards for maintaining personal workspace; Identify and resolve areas of chronic contamination; Do daily walk a-rounds to ensure that there are no areas of clutter and take immediate action.

The Fourth S - Systems

This means review the first 3S regularly to identify sources of abnormality and make further improvements to the office. The forth S is concerned with making the first 3S unbreakable. For instance; Sort - use a few red tags every day to avoid clutter building up; -Straighten - continually think of ways to make it impossible to put things in the wrong place; Scrub - Find the sources of dirt and clutter and develop counter measures. When abnormality occurs ask "why" 5 times until you get to the route cause of the problem and then apply counter measures. "If things don't get dirty and cluttered you don't need to clean up all the time"

The Fifth S - Sustain

Sustain means creating an environment where the 5S has been adopted as a way of life around the office and people are continually thinking of ways to make things even better. Once you have created a fantastic workspace guess what, unless you maintain discipline then very quickly it will revert back to the old clutter and inefficiency that you had before. Here are just a few of the things that we need to do to make the fifth S happen; -Stick to the rules you set out; -Audit the workplace on a regular basis; Train all new employees in the 5S and keep refreshing existing ones; Use Checklists and Visually display the results.

So in Summary here are the 5S:

- Sort = Separating what is needed from what is not
- Straighten = Organising the way needed things are kept so that anyone can find them easily
- Scrub = Keeping the office area free from clutter and contamination
- Systems = Review first 3S regularly to identify and improve sources of abnormality
- Sustain = Audit Office to maintain Improvements and motivate staff

I challenge you to think about applying some of these ideas to your own work and home environment. You could save yourself some money by not having to buy something that you know you already have somewhere in your house but are not quite sure where it is.