Many manufacturing facilities have opted to follow the path of 5S lean manufacturing as part of a continuous improvement program. By adopting the 5S strategy, manufacturers can focus on the lean operation without compromising the health and safety of employees. 5S allows the organisation to function at a culminating level with minimal interruptions. To ensure the 5S lean culture within an organisation, a continuous audit and assessment process is needed. The 5S audit evaluates the proper implementation of 5S in the workplace. Conducting periodical 5S audits ensure a 5S workplace, thereby improving all aspects of production, from safety to profitability.
Even though its time to discard the paper-based solutions to carry out audits, few companies continue the old practice of using a pen and paper to audit the facility. That invokes a great deal of hazard in terms of safety, environmental perils, organisational jeopardy, or other conditions of the company. Paper documentations consumes more time and occupies a lot of space, and often managers find it difficult to retrieve them later for assessment. The change from a traditional working pattern to a digital solution transforms the working environment. There are a few advantages when organisation shift to an online audit and assessment system.
The Saisho 5S is a Lean 5S audit and assessment app that eludes the complications of paper-based 5S audits and reports. Saisho 5S enhance the auditing and assessment process making the workplace organised, transpiring a safer, efficient and productive environment. Managers can easily create and conduct audits and initiate action plans for improvements. With Saisho 5S, organisations can sustain the standards set for an organised workplace. Auto-generated audit reports and graphs help managers to analyse the real progress and sustainability of the 5S programme.
- Usability
Managers find it easy to create, manage and assign the audits in a paperless solution. With an application, the lean managers can easily manage 5S audits in multiple locations, areas or cells. Applications allow managers to customise the questions for audits for each process easily.
- Traceability
By using a digital solution for audits, managers can keep track of what had happened and initiate action plans and allocate it to different employees as well. Through this, managers can track the actions planned, ongoing and executed. The effectiveness of the 5S implementation within the organisation can be traced regularly and thereby ensure Lean culture. Charts and reports give an overall performance of 5S.
- Standardisation
An audit is not a process that is done only once. To maintain the 5S standards in an organisation, regular audits are required. 5S audit apps help to keep these standards by doing regular audits, managers and employees also get notification about the planned audits.
- Faster Review
Once an audit process is complete, and the action plan is carried out, the organisation gets the reports. Reports always help the organisation in comparing and contrasting it with previous reports. While using a paper-based solution, it becomes challenging to retrieve the previous data and then analyse them. A faster review is possible with a digital solution as the earlier reports and graphs are available at one's fingertips.
- Cost Savings
Conducting audits online will not only reduce the usage of paper but also saves the time of employees. Each audit is inevitable as it analyses the progress within the organisation. The ROI will be high for a 5S audit app as it saves them time and human effort.
A systematic 5S approach at work improves product quality and enhances worker productivity, resulting in lower costs and higher efficiencies. This system reduces any time or wastage of tools, materials and supplies. This brings efficiency and safety to a higher level, and it also reduces mistakes.