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Example gallery · 19 examples · 5S and visual management

5S examples: 19 before and after cases, one S at a time

A 5S example is one specific change to one area. A red tag sweep takes 81 unused items out of a press cell. A shadow board cuts the search for a tool from 45 seconds to 5. Below are 19 examples sorted by the S they belong to, each with the before, the after, what changed and what it cost. The stations and numbers are illustrative. They are made up to show what a good write-up looks like, and are not results from a real plant or customer.

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Each card is one change at one station. Before and After give the same measure, taken the same way. The paragraph says what changed and who keeps it. Cost is materials only unless it says otherwise.

Area
Materials cost

Showing 19 of 19 examples

Sort

Take out what the area does not need. Red tag what is in doubt and decide by a date.

    • Production
    • Under $100

    Red tag sweep at the press 4 cell

    Four people walked the cell for two hours and tagged anything no one had used in the last 30 days. Tagged items went to a holding area with a decision date on each tag. The cell lead owns the red tag log.

    Before:
    212 items counted in the cell, including 3 cabinets nobody opened.
    After:
    81 red tagged: 46 scrapped, 23 returned to the tool crib, 12 held for 30 days. 131 items stay.
    Cost:
    About $40 for tags and tape, plus 8 labour hours.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Maintenance
    • Under $100

    Obsolete dies off the die rack

    The tool room checked each die against two years of production orders. Dies with no orders moved to a rack outside the press area, with the customer and last run date painted on. The tool room lead reviews that rack once a year.

    Before:
    38 dies on the rack beside the press. Setters moved 2 or 3 dies to reach the one they needed.
    After:
    14 dies with no run in two years moved out. 24 stay, each in a numbered slot.
    Cost:
    $0 in materials. Three hours of forklift time.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Maintenance
    • $100 to $1,000

    Spare parts sort in the maintenance crib

    The planner pulled three years of issue history and walked every bin with a technician. Parts for machines the plant no longer has were scrapped or sold. Slow parts for current machines moved to one marked shelf. The planner repeats the check every January.

    Before:
    640 bin locations. 190 had no issue in three years.
    After:
    450 locations remain and two shelving bays are free.
    Cost:
    About $150 for bin labels, plus 16 labour hours.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.

Set in order

Give everything that stays a marked home, close to where it is used.

    • Production
    • Under $100

    Shadow board at packing line 2

    Nine hand tools left the shared drawer for a board at the line, each with a painted outline and a label. An empty outline shows what is missing. The line lead checks the board at the end of each shift.

    Before:
    45 seconds on average to find a tool, over 20 timed retrievals.
    After:
    5 seconds on average, over 20 timed retrievals.
    Cost:
    About $85 for the board, hooks and paint.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Production
    • $100 to $1,000

    Changeover cart for press 4

    Every wrench, clamp and shim for a die change now sits on one cart in foam cutouts. The setter rolls it to the press before the last part of the run, and restocks it after each changeover.

    Before:
    6 trips and about 480 feet of walking per changeover. 11 minutes spent walking and looking.
    After:
    1 trip and about 80 feet. 3 minutes.
    Cost:
    About $380 for a used cart, foam and labels.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Warehouse
    • $100 to $1,000

    Marked WIP squares at the weld cell

    The team taped three pallet squares at the cell: incoming, finished and empties. Each square has a floor label and holds one pallet. The material handler owns the squares.

    Before:
    Pallets were dropped wherever there was room. The forklift driver stopped about 10 times a shift to move one out of the way.
    After:
    About 1 stop a shift.
    Cost:
    About $180 for floor tape and labels.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Warehouse
    • Under $100

    Min and max labels on the fastener rack

    Each of the 60 bins got a label with the part number, a photo, and a minimum and maximum quantity. A red line inside the bin marks the minimum. The material handler checks the lines on a daily route.

    Before:
    22 of 60 bins had no label. The line ran out of a fastener about 5 times a month.
    After:
    All 60 labelled. 1 stockout a month over the next three months.
    Cost:
    About $45 for labels and a paint marker.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Quality
    • $100 to $1,000

    Gauges at the point of use in the CNC cell

    The three gauges the operator uses for in-process checks moved from the quality lab to a labelled stand at the machine. The calibration due date is on each label. The quality technician owns the stand.

    Before:
    A 150 foot walk to the lab, 6 checks a shift, about 4 minutes each.
    After:
    About 1 minute a check, with no walk.
    Cost:
    About $310 for two extra gauges and the stand.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Office
    • Under $100

    One supply cabinet in the production office

    The office sorted three cabinets into one. Each shelf has a label, and each item has a reorder card at its minimum quantity. The office coordinator owns the cabinet.

    Before:
    3 cabinets and about 140 item types, many of them duplicates.
    After:
    1 cabinet and 60 item types. Two cabinets went to the training room.
    Cost:
    About $25 for labels and card holders.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.

Shine

Clean as a way to inspect, and deal with where the dirt comes from.

    • Maintenance
    • Under $100

    Five-minute clean and inspect at the CNC lathe

    A 40 minute Friday clean became 5 minutes at the end of every shift, following a map with 6 numbered points. At each point the operator wipes and looks for leaks, loose parts and wear. Anything abnormal gets a tag. The operator owns the map and maintenance owns the tags.

    Before:
    40 minutes every Friday. Problems were found when the machine stopped.
    After:
    5 minutes a shift. 4 abnormalities tagged in the first month, one of them a weeping coolant hose.
    Cost:
    About $60 for the laminated map, rags and a brush set.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Production
    • $100 to $1,000

    Cardboard dust at the case erector

    The team traced the dust to the blank magazine and fitted a vacuum pickup under it. Cleaning with the air gun stopped. The operator empties the pickup once a shift.

    Before:
    Dust blown off with compressed air 4 times a shift, about 5 minutes each time.
    After:
    One 5 minute wipe a shift.
    Cost:
    About $380 for a small vacuum pickup and hose.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Production
    • $100 to $1,000

    Colour-coded cleaning boards in the mixing room

    Brooms, squeegees and scoops now hang on three boards, one colour per zone. A tool that turns up in the wrong zone is obvious. The sanitation lead checks the boards daily.

    Before:
    About 6 minutes to find a broom, timed 10 times.
    After:
    Under 30 seconds, timed 10 times.
    Cost:
    About $360 for three boards and colour-coded tools.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.

Standardize

Make the first three S the normal condition, with a standard anyone can check.

    • Production
    • Under $100

    Photo standard at assembly station 3

    One photo of the station as it should look is posted at eye level, with 7 numbered locations. At shift start the operator compares the station with the photo. The team leader replaces the photo when the layout changes.

    Before:
    About 8 minutes at shift start putting things back where they belong.
    After:
    A 1 minute check against the photo.
    Cost:
    About $5 for a print and a sleeve.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Warehouse
    • Over $1,000

    One floor marking colour code for the plant

    The safety lead and three supervisors agreed a one-page colour guide with 6 uses and posted it at every entrance. 14 areas were re-taped to match over two weekends. The safety lead owns the guide.

    Before:
    4 tape colours used 9 different ways across 3 departments. Yellow meant an aisle in one area and scrap in another.
    After:
    One guide, 6 uses, the same meaning in every department.
    Cost:
    About $1,400 for floor tape and corner markers.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Production
    • Under $100

    Five-minute end-of-shift check at the molding cell

    The outgoing operator runs a 6 item check before handover: tools on the board, floor clear, bins emptied, regrind labelled, gauges back, log signed. The incoming operator initials it. The shift supervisor reviews the sheets weekly.

    Before:
    The morning shift spent about 15 minutes clearing up before the first good part.
    After:
    About 2 minutes.
    Cost:
    $0. The check is one printed sheet.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Warehouse
    • Under $100

    Rules for the red tag holding area

    The holding area got three rules on a sign. Every item has a tag with a date. Nothing stays longer than 30 days. The area owner decides on the last Friday of the month. A log on the wall lists every item, and the warehouse supervisor owns it.

    Before:
    96 items in the area. The oldest had been there 14 months.
    After:
    11 items, none older than 30 days.
    Cost:
    $0 in materials. Four hours to clear the backlog.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.

Sustain

Keep it with an audit on a fixed day, a posted score and actions that have an owner.

    • Production
    • Under $100

    Weekly audit with a posted score at the weld cell

    The team leader runs a 10 minute audit every Tuesday with a 25 check sheet and posts the score on the cell board. The three lowest checks become that week's actions, each with a name.

    Before:
    61 out of 125 on the first audit.
    After:
    104 out of 125 after 12 weeks.
    Cost:
    $0. Ten minutes a week.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Production
    • Under $100

    Monthly manager walk in the machining area

    The plant manager walks the area once a month with the supervisor and the last four audit sheets. They pick out the repeat findings and agree who fixes each one and by when. The walk is a repeating appointment in the plant manager's calendar.

    Before:
    The audit score sat between 78 and 82 out of 125 for 8 weeks.
    After:
    9 of 11 repeat findings closed within 30 days. The score reached 97 two months later.
    Cost:
    $0. Thirty minutes a month.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.
    • Quality
    • Under $100

    Audit findings turned into owned actions in the quality lab

    Every finding now goes on an action list with one owner and a due date. The list gets 5 minutes at the Monday lab meeting, and overdue items show in red. The lab supervisor owns the list.

    Before:
    23 open findings on old audit sheets, none with an owner.
    After:
    19 closed in 4 weeks. 4 overdue, shown in red with a new date.
    Cost:
    $0.
    Basis:
    Illustrative. Not a real plant or customer.

These examples are illustrative. The stations and numbers are made up and are not results from a real plant or a customer. Measure your own before and after, the same way both times, before you copy one.

Write up your own 5S example

One area, one measure, in this order.

  1. 1Pick one station and one thing that wastes time there: searching, walking, clearing up or cleaning.
  2. 2Measure it before you change anything. Count the items, or time the task at least 10 times.
  3. 3Take a photo from a spot you can stand in again.
  4. 4Make the change with the people who work there, and write down what you spent.
  5. 5Measure again the same way, and take the photo from the same spot.
  6. 6Name who keeps it and how often it is checked. Add the check to the audit sheet.

Where the five S come from, and what the rules say

The Lean Enterprise Institute's Lean Lexicon lists 5S as five related Japanese terms that begin with an S sound: seiri, seiton, seiso, seiketsu and shitsuke. English versions usually read Sort, Straighten or Set in order, Shine, Standardize and Sustain. The Lexicon describes them as workplace practices that support visual control and lean production.

The same entry notes that Toyota traditionally counts four S. It leaves out the fifth, because its daily, weekly and monthly audits of standardized work already do that job. Some practitioners add a sixth S for safety. The sustain examples on this page follow the Toyota logic: an audit on a fixed day, a posted score and actions with owners.

In the United States, housekeeping is also a legal duty. OSHA 29 CFR 1910.22 requires places of employment, passageways and storerooms to be kept clean and orderly. 29 CFR 1910.176 requires permanent aisles and passageways to be appropriately marked where mechanical handling equipment is used. It does not set a colour or a line width. 29 CFR 1910.144 makes yellow the basic colour for caution and for marking physical hazards. That is why the floor marking example has the plant agree one guide of its own.

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Go deeper

The cards are the short version. These guides explain the method and walk through examples in full.

All our articles on this subject are in the 5s and visual management topic.

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FAQ

Questions about 5S examples

  1. A shadow board is a common one. Tools move from a shared drawer to a board at the line, each with a painted outline. In the illustrative example on this page, the time to find a tool drops from 45 seconds to 5. The same idea works for cleaning tools, gauges and office supplies.

  2. Sort: red tag what the area has not used in 30 days. Set in order: give each tool a marked home near where it is used. Shine: clean on a short daily route and look for leaks and wear while you do it. Standardize: post a photo of how the station should look. Sustain: audit on a fixed day and post the score.

  3. Use a count or a time, taken the same way before and after. Good measures are items removed, seconds to find a tool, feet walked per changeover, minutes to clean and the audit score. The 5S audit checklist on this page scores 25 checks from 1 to 5, for a total out of 125.

  4. A red tag marks an item nobody is sure the area needs. The tag records what the item is, who tagged it and the date. Tagged items go to a holding area, and someone decides by a set date whether to keep, move, sell or scrap each one.

  5. 5S does not set colours, and OSHA does not set one for aisles. 29 CFR 1910.176 says permanent aisles must be appropriately marked. 29 CFR 1910.144 makes yellow the basic colour for caution and physical hazards. Agree one colour guide for the whole plant and post it, as in the floor marking example.

  6. Yes. The steps are the same and the items change: supplies, shared drives, forms and printers. The supply cabinet example on this page takes three cabinets down to one, with a reorder card at the minimum quantity for each item.

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