Integrating

The International JIT and

Journal 5-S ConceptsManagement
of Construction for Construction Site31Management:
(2003) - 47 A Case Study 31

INTEGRATING JIT AND 5-S CONCEPTS FOR

CONSTRUCTION SITE MANAGEMENT: A CASE STUDY

LOW Sui Pheng and ANG Gin Keng

Department of Building, National University of Singapore, 4 Architecture Drive, Singapore 117566.

E-mail: sdelowsp@nus.edu.sg

Abstract
Both the Just-In-Time (JIT) philosophy and the 5-S concepts have been successfully implemented in the
manufacturing industry to boost productivity and quality. However, construction practitioners have yet
to appreciate and reap the benefits of the JIT and 5-S. This paper seeks to apply the JIT and 5-S concepts
into the construction setting by identifying the similarities between them and subsequently integrating
them by incorporating the 5-S concepts to operationalise the JIT philosophy. By introducing 5-S activities
in the work site, the JIT system can be achieved without expending additional resources. By means of a
case study, this paper shows how efficient site management can be achieved by further integrating the
JIT and 5-S concepts to improve productivity and quality.

Keywords
Just-In-Time (JIT), 5-S concepts, Site Layout, Construction, Productivity, Quality

INTRODUCTION

Achieving high productivity and quality standards is a challenge for many organisations. In
so far as productivity is concerned, attempts have been made to transfer various management
concepts that are successful in improving productivity in the manufacturing industry to the
construction industry to help raise its productivity level. One such example is the Just-In-Time
(JIT) philosophy that originated in Japan. Lim and Low (1992) examined the use of the JIT
philosophy in the context of materials management and found that better procurement and
co-ordination of materials on site can be achieved with a JIT system in place. Application of
the JIT principles for process layout in precast concrete production and for site layout have
also been examined by Low and Chan (1996) and Low and Mok (1999) respectively.

In the United Kingdom, the JIT philosophy was examined for building materials management
(Akintoye 1995) as well as for housebuilding (Bates, Sturges & McGowan 1999; Naim, Naylor
& Barlow 1999). In Denmark, Bertelsen (1995) reported an increase in productivity for a
social housing project that experimented with the use of the JIT philosophy in building logistics.
In the United States, Howell (1999) propounded the use of the JIT philosophy for lean
production in the construction industry. Tommelein (1998) and Tommelein and Li (1999)
examined the application of JIT principles for pipe-spool installation and concrete deliveries
respectively.

Despite some reservations (Green 1999), studies on the application of JIT principles in the
construction industry appear to be gaining momentum in several countries. Such studies seem
to suggest that the application of JIT principles can be generic enough to accommodate for
different behavioural and cultural contexts outside of Japan where its origin lies.