6S

To Create a Workplace suited for

Visual Control and Lean
Production
The Six Ss
 Is not Six Sigma
 A highly disciplined process that focuses on
developing and delivering near-perfect products
and services
 6S is Sort, Straighten, Shine (Scrub), Safety,
Standardize, Sustain
 5-S… in Japanese factories
 Focus: orderliness
 6th S added in some US companies… Safety
 Combines orderliness with safety / ergo
 Overall intention: CLEAN, SAFE, ORDERLY
 First step on Lean Journey
 Visual Factory/Office

 1st Level: See the Shop/Office

 Basic 6S
 90% never get beyond this point
 2nd Level: See the work
 In 5 Seconds, can you see what’s going
on?
6S
 Think of 6-S as a repeating action sequence:
 1: SORT OUT - get rid of what’s not needed
 2: STRAIGHTEN - organize what belongs
 3: SCRUB - clean up, see and solve problems
 4: SAFETY - make the work area safe
 5: STANDARDIZE - assign tasks, track visually
 6: SUSTAIN - keep it up (audit and insist)
 Remember…
 This applies to all areas (value-adding and
administrative)
 Basic "6-S” is part of establishing any cell
Sort
 GET RID OF WHAT’S NOT NEEDED
 Start with a red tag campaign
 Tag everything that looks disorderly or unsafe
 Be ruthless (90% of the time you'll be OK, you'll
get over the 10%)
 If in doubt throw it out
 If still in doubt, send it to a “red tag area” for
resolution
 You should be removing truckloads of items… be
tough (sometimes you’ll need to ask for
forgiveness later!)
Straighten
 ORGANIZE WHAT BELONGS
 Create a place for everything
 Meet with shop/office personnel on what
should be where
 Deal with the open red tags from the "Sort
Out" step:
 Organize parts and material
 Resolve things you were afraid to throw out
 Write off or sell off obsolete materials
Straighten
Straighten
Straighten
Straighten
Scrub
 CLEAN UP, SEE AND SOLVE PROBLEMS
 Make the work area absolutely clean
 Clean everything (equipment, floors, walls…)
 Paint everything (equipment, floors, walls…)
 Look for problems…
 Leaks?
 Loose or missing items
 Unsafe conditions
 Causes of messes or problems…
 Quality issues
 Solve problems (root cause), take corrective
action (prevent)
Scrub
Safety
 MAKE THE WORKPLACE SAFER
 Look for unsafe conditions
 Look for potential for unsafe acts
 Look for difficult tasks (are they
ergonomic?)
 Try the jobs yourself… where could you
get hurt?
 List the opportunities
 Resolve them

 Put creativity before capital and put

safety first!!!
Safety
 Standardize
 ASSIGN TASKS AND MANAGE VISUALLY
 Who will do what to keep the area clean,
safe and orderly?
 Agree on daily and weekly tasks
 Establish a visual management system for
these tasks

 Can you tell at a glance if the tasks

have been done?
Standardize
Sustain
 KEEP IT UP (AUDIT AND INSIST)
 Develop audit checklists for office and for
shop floor
 Assign the audit role to someone outside
the area
 Track the audit results (a bit of friendly
competition?)
 Hold yourselves accountable for sustaining
Sustain - Maintain The Gains
 Create checklist for entire
area & all items within the
area
 Use checklist daily or
weekly as appropriate
 Once a year have
Examiners perform
independent review
 Fix and clean daily
 Continue to train &
heighten awareness
 Remember you are World
Class! Act like it.
Sustain - 6S Scorecard
0 = No evidence that 6S is being
considered for implementation
1 = Some evidence of 6S being
started
2 = 6S is partially implemented
(some gains are evident)
3 = 6S has been implemented but
not self-sustaining
4 = 6S has been implemented & is
self-sustaining (standard
throughout)
5 = 6S is entrenched; efforts have
resulted in high achievements
6 = “Out-of-the-box”; Area is doing
extraordinary things, above &
beyond the norm
Sustain - 6S Scorecard
0 – 20 = Some organization,
needs much improvement
21 – 40 = Signs of 6S in place,
good organization, needs
more time to mature
41 – 60 = 6S implemented,
signs of maturing, not self-
sustaining
61 – 80 = 6S implemented,
system is self-sustaining
81 – 100 = 6S is entrenched
with high achievements
100+ = Extraordinary, over-
and-above, “outside-the-
box”
Visual Management
 Make normal / abnormal conditions obvious
with
 Floor and surface marking
 Shadow boxes
 Samples
 Visual indicators
 Obstacle height limits
 Lights and sounds
 Arrows, zones, stickers
 Scoreboards
 Labels and tags
For Shops
 Remove unnecessary items
 All cleaning material stored in a neat manner
 Floors clean of debris, oil and dirt
 Bulletin boards updated, straight and neat
 Easy access to emergency equipment, highly visible
 Items on floors are in clearly marked areas
 Aisles are clear and kept free of material
 Storage of boxes is square, neat, orderly
 Machines, tools, equipment kept clean
 Nothing on top of machines or cabinets
 Documents and binders stored in a neat manner
 Tools, jigs, fixtures, details are labeled, shadowed, identified,
easy to reach
 Shelves, benches, desks kept free of unused objects, including
files and documents
For Offices
 Remove unnecessary items, minimum personal items
 Cleaning equipment stored in a neat manner
 Floors clean and free of debris and dirt
 Bulletin boards are updated, straight and neat
 Easy access to emergency equipment, stored in a prominent manner
 Nothing on the floor but furniture, CPU, recycle bin and garbage can
 Office layout posted at each entrance, name and task/position outside
cubicle/office
 Office equipment and furniture is functional and in good repair
 Paper, cabinets, and bins squared up, centered and at right angles, PC
wiring is routed and secured/clamped
 Desks, surfaces, cabinets, chairs cleaned weekly
 Nothing on top of overheads or cabinets, nothing leaning against walls
or columns, everything labeled
 Documents and binders stored in a neat and orderly manner
 Shelves, cabinets, desks kept free of unused objects, including files and
documents
Acknowledgements

 “Lean Thinking” by James Womack and

Daniel Jones
 “Toyota Production System” by Taiichi
Ohno
 Simpler Business System,
www.simpler.com