5S Best Practices for Lean Warehousing

5S for your Warehouse

Lean warehousing is the way of the future. In its April 2014 report, the Council of Supply
Management Professionals identified Lean as a projected characteristic of the 2025
India supply chain. According to the report: “The pressure to do more with less will not
subside. Lean and continuous improvement practices will be essential.”
Implementing 5S is a key step in establishing a Lean warehouse.
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Why 5S?
5S is a Lean strategy that helps accomplish a basic objective: making problems
visible. Having a clean and organized warehouse is about more than just looking great.
It’s about having more efficient warehousing operations, excelling at training, and
encouraging communication. A warehouse should be able to identify and surface issues
quickly, address their root causes, and prevent recurrence. If replenishment is needed,
if something is out of place, if tasks are being done incorrectly, 5S can identify these
issues and surface them for quicker resolution. For example, if there is a piece of lift
equipment leaking hydraulic fluid, a warehouse with a strong 5S policy will identify it as
soon as it is parked, before the problem costs more to remedy.
How can you bring 5S into your warehouse? Let’s take a look at each of the five S’s to
see how they can be part of your daily schedule.
1. SORT
Warehouse managers often fall into the trap of using established categories when
sorting, instead of thinking about the Lean warehouse from a 10,000-foot view. You can
sort your warehouse by type of object, chronology of order cycle or most-to-least used.
While we’ve seen warehouses set up in a multitude of ways, many of them only seem to
make sense – until you take a fresh look. A supply chain engineer can help you step
back and view your warehouse operations with a fresh perspective and a focus on your
goals. Lean warehousing requires a willingness to implement whatever system will
result in the most efficient warehouse.Once you establish the right categories and sort
criteria, it’s important to make sure that there is a place for everything. Everything in
your distribution center should have an intentional place and a transaction, or a set
method of use, that’s a part of the established process. We’ve discussed how reporting
turnbacks is essential for warehouse operations, and this is where steps that might
qualify as a turnback can be eliminated.
SORT in Action: When LEGACY runs a Lean Action event, we go into a specifically
scoped area, collect all of the things in that area, and figure out how to classify it. If it
belongs in the area of scope, it stays. If not, it goes to a red tag area for disposition. If it
isn’t needed for the job on a daily basis, it gets removed.
2. SET
This step is sometimes interpreted as “straighten” or “streamline.” Traditional Lean
practices encourage a streamlined warehouse setup, arranged in order of the picking
process. Optimal warehouse setup will have the shortest possible distance between
each step.
SET in Action: At this step in our Lean Action events, we arrange what remains in its
“best place” at the scoped area. We assess where the work occurs to reduce waste,
both in movement and in travel. We employ ergonomic tactics like semi-circle ranges to
allow for lefty-righty switches. Most of all, we focus on putting work at the fingertips of
the employee, and keeping them in their workstations as much as possible.
3. SHINE
If you walk into a Lean warehouse, the results of this step will likely be the most
immediately visible. Warehouses suffer when they consider cleanliness of the
warehouse an expendable element, whereas clean warehouses free up space to be
more productive — and profitable. It’s not surprising that a clean workspace operates
better, but it is surprising how many warehouses skip this crucial step.
Cleanliness also contributes to an overall standard of behavior, and signals order as an
expectation of the warehouse. Regular, or even daily, sweeps as a part of this Lean
warehouse process, can include safety inspections (decreasing liability) and equipment
maintenance checks (increasing equipment longevity).
SHINE in Action: In our Lean Action Workouts, we use this step to define the level of
clean we want in the area. We do a one-time cleaning to bring the area up to this
standard, and then set up mechanisms to ensure that we keep it clean at all times.
4. STANDARDIZE
Standardizing is the hallmark of the Lean methodology. A great example of this is
standardized labels in a Lean warehouse. Labels that have all the information needed
for any container or product in the warehouse will greatly increase efficiency.
Eliminating waste is another Lean warehouse tenet — standard labels should get rid of
wasteful or unnecessary information or clutter.
How Can You Fight Excess? – Read More >
In Lean warehousing, standardization also applies to a values-driven culture. A
warehouse culture in which core values truly and consistently drive behavior will be, by
definition, standardized. As previously discussed, top-down implementation of strong
core values results in consistent and improved warehouse culture. Effective leadership
means communicating expectations through demonstration (see “Servant Leadership”).
STANDARDIZE in Action: In our Lean Action workouts, first we set up very clear
expectations for the work area. This means: standard work (a document that explains
the job down to the smallest movements), a list of what is allowed in the area, a list of
tasks that are required with a schedule that shows who and when and a list of the tools
needed to do these tasks. Second, once we do this to one workstation, we use that as a
template so that all of the other like stations have exactly the same types of
expectations. This ensures that expectations across stations are cohesive so that
anyone can be in any station without significant adjustment. These steps make it easy
to identify problems.
5. SUSTAIN
The final step to any successful organization methodology is the sustaining step.
Stephen Covey, of 7 Habits of Highly Successful People fame, calls it “Sharpen the
Saw,” to suggest keeping the practice sharp and in order. A successful Lean warehouse
will have implemented an efficient process, taken ownership of the Lean warehouse
practice and have a transparent and visible way to measure every transaction.
Sustaining is also where regular analysis and reassessment occurs — a Lean
warehouse prioritizes continuous improvement. To blindly follow a process is not to
learn from it; metrics must show results — or the system must be reassessed. Following
this process of implementation, practice and measurement will set your warehouse
operations up for success.
SUSTAIN in Action: 5S should not be seen as a one-time event. Sustainable
improvements are only accomplished with rigor and discipline — mostly on
management’s part. Everyone, from the newest operations supervisor to the most
seasoned executive, has a role to play in ensuring the process works as intended. Well-
designed Sustain mechanisms incorporate tiered observation from all levels of
management so that they see problems and performance issues first hand. Good
systems set a standard, and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) help measure whether
your warehouse meets the mark. Many companies want the benefits of 5S and Lean,
but don’t have the discipline or rigor to make it function properly. Implement a strong
Sustain step to reap success, long-term.
Bringing Lean practices into your warehouse will yield results. Making Lean part of your
warehouse culture will create an environment where problems are immediately visible,
and every employee is engaged in solving them. Read some of our recent Customer
Success Stories to learn more about how Lean practices like Kaizen Blitz and Lean
Action Workouts have improved the bottom line of our clients’ warehouse operations. If
you’re ready to transform your warehouse into a Lean warehouse, contact us to learn
how we can help you grow, improve and protect your business.