Articles by Results

Save Money by being Organised! Organise your work area.

Posted by Jim Killeen on Fri, Jun 15, 2012 @ 12:16 PM

Jim Killeen - ResultsSounds obvious doesn’t it? Everyone wants to save money. Most people realise that organised work saves money. The point is – “How do I get to be organised?”

Two things can help: The first is 5 Stages to Workplace Organisation; The second is PLAN-DO-CHECK-ACT.

 Here, we’re going to have a look at 5 Stages to Workplace Organisation. (See my separate blog for PLAN-DO-CHECK-ACT

5 Stages to Workplace Organisation is a simple, straightforward and easy to use system. 

Its purpose is to make sure that the workplace that you operate in is fit for purpose. In short, it means that the workplace is helping you to do the jobs you need to do, instead of hindering you.

Think of it this way. Would you rather have the area you work in as your enemy or your friend?

Consider making a cup of coffee at home. If you drink tea, it’s the same thing, only the names have changed to protect the innocent!

Picture yourself at home, in the kitchen.

  • Where is the kettle?
  • Where are the mugs?
  • Where is the spoon?
  • Where is the coffee, the sugar, the milk?

Everything you need is close to hand, isn’t it?

Now ask yourself. “Is my workplace like that?”  If you answer no, then why not? If you say yes, is it really? Can you get it to be any better?

The answer to improving the area you work in is called the 5 Stages of Workplace Organisation. Usually, the people who use the system call it 5S.

It’s a very simple system, and that’s the beauty of it.

Sort, Set, Shine, Standardise, Sustain.

Each stage builds on the previous ones. It is of no value at all to jump in to one of the middle stages. If you don’t get each stage right, all of the work in the next stages are going to actually make things worse, not better.

5S - Workplace Organisation

Sort - make sure that only the things we need are present, and everything that we need day to day is present.

Set –make sure that it’s obvious where things should go. Make sure that it’s very easy to locate and return items to the right place.

Shine –make sure that the hard work that you’ve out into getting Sort and Set in place doesn’t have to be done again and again and again. Keep the area clear, organised and clean.

Standardise –make sure that there are Standard Operating procedures for the key tasks performed in the area. This makes sure that we always do things the right way, in order to improve quality of product and service. Make sure that the knowledge and experience gained so far in organising this area are spread out into other areas.

Sustain – This is often the hardest thing to do, and the part of 5S that is often missed. The key is to constantly strive for Continuous Improvement of the area. So you should make sure that you regularly review the area, to see if any other things need improving. If you find something that needs improving, then improve it!

Simple, common sense stuff.

All we are saying here is to apply what you do in the kitchen at home to your workplace.

The 5 Stages to Workplace organisation is a simple, easy to use, common sense based system that should help you. It’s not there for its own purpose. Everything you do in the 5 Stages should save you time and make your job easier in the long term, even if it might take some time to do at the start.

So how have we saved money?

Every time you can’t find something, you’ve wasted time – and time is money.

Having everything that you need, where you need it, kept that way, always that way and improved when needed.

This all saves time, effort, expense.

It doesn't matter if you're a factory, small business or an office. Wasted time is wasted money.

Being organised saves money!

 

 5S Process SnapShot

Topics: Small business, 5S, PDCA, Plan Do Check Act, Organsisation, Workplace Organisation, Save Money, Factory

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