Organized With 5S:

Sort, Set, Shine, Standardize, Sustain

5S is a method of organizing a workspace to make it safe, efficient and effective. The
goal of 5S is to create a clean, uncluttered environment that allows people to do their
jobs without wasting time, while also lowering the risk of injury.

The five words in 5S represent the five steps to accomplish this goal. They are sort, set,
shine, standardize and sustain. Lean bases the words on the original Japanese: seiri,
seiton, seiso, seiketsu and shitsuke.

5S is a key component in eliminating the eight wastes of Lean when setting up a

workstation. While it ranks among the most widely used and fundamental components
of Lean Manufacturing, it’s common-sense application also works in almost every setting.

Here’s an overview of the five steps.

Sort
In this first step, workers sort everything in a workspace into what is and what is not
needed. Some use a system called “red tagging” in which every item not necessary for a
process gets red-tagged during the sort phase. These items are set aside and evaluated
later. Workers store seldom used items nearby, but not at the workstation. They discard
unsafe items and clutter.

The Sort phase is the first step to making more effective use of space by clearing out
hazardous items and clutter that distracts from doing the job.

Set
Set, or Set in Order, follows the advice: “A place for everything and everything in its
place.” Workers position items based on use, with frequently needed items kept closer at
hand. Every item that made it through the Sort stage is given storage space. In some
cases, workers can use color-coded labels to easily identify storage spaces.

The Set in Order phase creates an ergonomic, organized and uncluttered workspace
where employees have what they need close at hand and know where every item is
stored. This creates a less stressful work environment.

Shine
With the clutter gone and storage space organized, it’s time to clean. After a thorough
initial cleaning, workers clean the station every day (sometimes twice a day). This
maintains the gains made in the Sort and Set phases. Cleaning includes storage areas,
machines, equipment, tools and work surfaces.

The Shine phase creates a more pleasant environment for employees, who no longer
have to combat dust, dirt and clutter. Cleaning the area every day also leads to a higher
level of employee buy-in for the 5S method.

Standardize
This step involves creating ways to sustain the first three steps. Employees participate in
creation of a set of standards that will govern maintenance of the workspace going
forward. Once this “new normal” becomes a habit, all old habits will fall away. This may
require oversight and enforcement before becoming a habit, however.

The Standardize phase takes the progress and changes in behavior from the first three
steps and makes them the standard procedure.

Sustain
In Sustain, the goal is to stick to the new rules. Workers keep the new standards in place
and practice the first three steps every day until they become automatic and the
accepted way of doing things. This final step often proves the most challenging.
However, without sustaining the new system, all the cost and effort that went into
creating it will prove pointless.

The Sustain phase of 5S often requires training and good communication, but it
eventually will lead to employees becoming comfortable with 5S procedures.

While not complicated, the 5S system presents challenges in both implementing the
steps and sustaining the practice. Putting 5S into place can not only help make people
less stressed and more efficient, but will also improve workplace safety and reduce
training time for new employees.
What Is Six Sigma?

Six Sigma is a quality-control methodology developed in 1986 by Motorola, Inc. The

method uses a data-driven review to limit mistakes or defects in a corporate or business
process. Six Sigma emphasizes cycle-time improvement while at the same time reducing
manufacturing defects to a level of no more than 3.4 occurrences per million units or
events. In other words, the system is a method to work faster with fewer mistakes.

Six Sigma points to the fact that, mathematically, it would take a six-standard-
deviation event from the mean for an error to happen. Because only 3.4 out of a million
randomly (and normally) distributed, events along a bell curve would fall outside of six-
standard-deviations (where sigma stands in for "standard deviation").

Six Sigma is a quality-control methodology developed in 1986 by Motorola, Inc.

It was originally developed as a management method to work faster with fewer

mistakes.

It has now become an industry standard with certifications offered to practitioners.

In recent years, Six Sigma has evolved into a more general business-management
philosophy, focused on meeting customer requirements, improving customer retention,
and improving and sustaining business products and services. Six Sigma applies to all
industries. Many vendors, including Motorola itself, offer Six Sigma training with the
special certifications carrying the names of yellow belt, green belt, and black belt.

Understanding Six Sigma

Six Sigma represents a management ideology, which focuses on statistical improvements
to a business process. It advocates for qualitative measurements of success over
qualitative markers. Therefore, practitioners of Six Sigma are those business people who
use statistics, financial analysis, and project management to achieve improved business
functionality.

Six Sigma evolved to define numerous ideas within the business sphere and is sometimes
confusing. First, it's a statistical benchmark. Any business process, which produces less
than 3.4 defects per 1 million chances, is considered efficient. A defect is anything
produced outside of consumer satisfaction.

Second, it is a training and certification program, which teaches the core principles of Six
Sigma. Practitioners may achieve the Six Sigma certification belt levels, ranging from
white belt to black belt. Finally, it's a philosophy, which promotes the idea that all
business processes can be measured and optimized.

The 5 Steps of Six Sigma

True believers and practitioners in the Six Sigma method follow an approach called
DMAIC, which stands for define, measure, analyze, improve, and control. It is a
statistically driven methodology that companies implement as a mental framework for
business process improvement. The ideology behind DMAIC is that a business may solve
any seemingly unsolvable problem by following the DMAIC steps.
A team of people, led by a Six Sigma champion, defines a faulty process on which to
focus, decided through an analysis of company goals and requirements. This definition
outlines the problem, goals, and deliverables for the project.

The team measures the initial performance of the process. These statistical measures
make up a list of potential inputs, which may cause the problem and help the team
understand the process's benchmark performance.

Then the team analyzes the process by isolating each input, or potential reason for the
failure, and testing it as the root of the problem. Through analysis, the team identifies
the reason for process error.

From there, the team works to improve system performance. Finally, the team adds
controls to the process to ensure it does not regress and become ineffective once again.

Lean Six Sigma is a team-focused managerial approach that seeks to improve

performance by eliminating waste and defects. It combines Six Sigma methods and tools
and the lean manufacturing-lean enterprise philosophy, striving to reduce waste of
physical resources, time, effort, and talent while assuring quality in production and
organizational processes. Under the tenets of Lean Six Sigma, any use of resources that
do not create value for the end customer is considered a waste and should be
eliminated.

Real-World Examples of Six Sigma

Six Sigma is used by both corporations and local governments. Below are two examples
of how six sigma improved operational efficiency, saved money, and increased customer
satisfaction.

Example:

Microsoft Inc.

Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) is one of the largest software producers in the world. In an

effort to improve the reliability and availability of its networks worldwide, Microsoft
implemented Six Sigma methodologies as outlined on the company's website. The goal
was to use a robust data-driven process to help eradicate any defects in their systems
and data centers to systematically reduce IT (information technology) infrastructure
failures.

The company first established standards for all of its hardware and software to create a
baseline measurement for detecting defects. Microsoft used root-cause analysis,
including collecting data from past high-priority incidents, server failures, and
recommendations from product group members and customers. Using the historical data,
Microsoft established baseline standards from which to measure going forward.

Large amounts of data were collected on a daily and weekly basis from various servers.
Data analysis and reporting identified the defects and remediation steps for each defect
were then established. The incidents were prioritized based on how severe the defects
impacted the business and the company's underlying services.

Using Six Sigma methodologies, the teams executed eradication initiatives of the defects.
As a result, remediation of defects improved by 40% within the first year. The mean or
average time between server failures improved from 18 days to 125 days. As a result of
Six Sigma, Microsoft improved the availability of its servers, boosted customer
productivity, and increased customer satisfaction.