5S As an Environmental Organization Management Tool; Benefits and Barriers

5S As an Environmental Organization Management Tool; Benefits and Barriers Akbar Nilipour * Lecturer-Malek Ashtar University of Technology- Department of Information Technology and Industrial Engineering, Ph.D. student-university of Isfahan *akbarnilipour@yahoo.com Mehdi Jamshidian ** Ph.D. - associate professor -University of Isfahan- Department of Management **mehdijus@yahoo.com Key words: Environmental management, Organization, 5S, Management tool Abstract In a manufacturing environment, implementing 5Ss can result in considerable improvements in environmental performance in parallel with improved housekeeping and health and safety. The 5Ss in theory are a set of straightforward steps to continual improvement. Implementation of the 5Ss is influenced by many factors that can interfere with the effectiveness of the technique. Effective implementation depends on top-level commitment and total involvement of staff at all levels within a firm. Likewise, environmental management that results in real improvement depends upon commitment at the top and involvement and commitment of employees from all levels and functions of the business in improvement actions. The authors in the present paper explain the steps of 5Ss in theory and the benefits from implementing, housekeeping, and health and safety purposes. Also the factors such as time, management structure, space, control, feedback, and communications that act as barriers to the implementation of the 5Ss are introduced and possible solutions to improving the environmental performance with respect to environmental management system are also identified. 1

Introduction Industrialization has provided humanity with many material and social benefits. At the same time it has brought in its wake many material and social problems. One of them is environmental pollution. Court actions and legislation have required industrial concerns to be more careful of pollution. Environmentalists have succeeded in blocking many projects whose need to society is evident. These actions may be meritorious in most cases in that proper concern for the environment was not given in the planning of the project or that alternative plans should have been considered. Nevertheless a better decision making procedure needs to be developed, which will give proper concern to the effect on the environment but not allow a small group to block construction once a decision has been made. [1] Since pollution is concomitant with most industrial activity, methods of controlling it must be employed. The best method of control is to avoid pollution in the first place by replacing the present process with one, which does not pollute. Usually this is not feasible, and so some method of control must be installed. The following types of pollution are generally recognized: Water pollution - The presence, in concentrations higher than normal, in natural waterways of dissolved or suspended foreign material, such as silt, chemicals, fecal matter, metallic elements, organic material, or nutrients. Air pollution The presence in the atmosphere of solid particles, liquid droplets, or gaseous compounds which are not normally present or which are present in a concentration substantially greater than normal. Waste pollution The presence on land or water of solid material, organic or inorganic, which has no beneficial qualities. Chemical pollution The presence in plants and animal tissue, including feed and foodstuffs, of adulterant chemicals, which have no beneficial effect. Noise pollution The presence in the open atmosphere or in a confined space of a noise generally considered undesirable, except possibly by the person responsible for it. Thermal pollution The discharge into the environment of a stream of air or water which is at a different temperature from that of the environment at the point of discharge or downstream of this point. One of the powerful environmental organization management tools is 5S, which has come out of lean manufacturing process. It is originally developed by Toyota in Japan for a manufacturing environment. It is easy to apply the concepts to the office, warehouse, or jobsite. The 5S process can simplify the work environment and maintenance system's procedures, reduce 2

waste and non value activity, as well as improve safety, quality, and efficiency. In other words, it is one of the effective methods of control, which can avoid or reduce all types of the pollutions. The steps of 5S 5S is a strategy for attaining workplace organization and cleanliness, and it will do more for quality, productivity and morale than any other lean manufacturing improvement tactic. The original concept was based on five Japanese words that begin with "S, i.e. Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu, and Shitsuke. The English equivalents are Sort, Straighten (Simplify), Sweep, Standardize, and Sustain. [2] The first "S" is Sort. The goal of sorting is to improve workplace organization and reduce clutter. An effective method of sorting is to break the equipment, material, inventory etc, in the work area into three categories: required, might be required, and not required. Further categorize the "required" items into required frequently, occasionally, and rarely. Throw out, return to supplier, sell or recycle everything in the "might be" and "not" required categories. Most organizations and employees will find a lot of items that are just taking up space and collecting dust. This clutter makes it harder to find what is really required on a day to day basis. The sort process also helps to prevent the "lets keep this just in case" mentality that exists in many organizations. The second "S" is Straighten. The goal of straightening is to create a designated space for everything that remained after the Sort stage. Organizing the items, with the most often used items having the easiest access, will reduce the time spent finding them. Strategies for effective sorting can include: outlining work areas and locations, well labelled shelving and cabinets, color coded bins, well labelled bins, and organized and labelled filing systems. One of the key objectives of this step is to develop a systematic approach to putting in their place. This type of approach will help to eliminate wasted time searching for items, make it easier to train new employees or employees from other areas, and create a safer and more efficient worksite. The third "S" is Sweep. Once the clutter and unnecessary items have been removed, and the required items have been put in place, the next step is to create a clean environment. This step should include ensuring that tools and equipment are in good repair as well as cleaning up the work environment. The sweeping step will be an ongoing challenge. Organizations should create a regular schedule for cleaning, maintenance, and safety inspections. Having set schedules and expectations will help to maintain productivity improvements and prevent workplace injuries such as trips, falls and slips. 3

The fourth " S " is Standardize. After implementing the first three phases, employees should develop standardized best practices. Decisions must be made on how work functions will be performed and how worksites will be organized. Processes should be documented, labelled, updated and shared with all participants. Standardizing work environments will increase employee productivity. If the organization has multiple offices or worksites, standardized layouts and filing systems will enable workers to move from site to site or office with a minimum learning curve. [3] The fifth "S" is Sustain. This is by far the most difficult step of the 5S process to achieve. Internal resistance to change is normal and it requires significant discipline in the organization to sustain the change long term. There is a tendency to return to the comfort of the "old way ". Involving the employees early in the process will reduce the push back and resistance to maintaining what has already been accomplished. 5S and environmental management Environmental management in a business and industrial context is based upon a philosophy that relates strongly to the 5S. An effective environmental management system that results in real improvements in environmental performance relies on commitment from top management, a comprehensive training programme, effective communications and total involvement of employees from all levels and functions. Building upon this foundation, the firm's environmental performance can be assessed, legal obligations identified, significant risks to the environment determined, a meaningful environmental policy written and objectives set. The improvement work begins at this point and requires full involvement of employees throughout the business. Many activities to improve environmental performance are linked with housekeeping; therefore the shop floor, yard and storage areas become the primary focus of attention. Generally a clear out of wastes / scrap, old, unused tools, and equipment is necessary. Once the areas are clear, attention is given to the storage of tools, equipment, raw materials, oils, chemicals, scrap and wastes. To reduce risk to the environment, drums and containers of fluids must be stored with appropriate secondary containment and labelling. Such measures prevent possible spillage and accidents, and reduce access and retrieval time. Abatement technologies may be required where processes, manufacturing or otherwise, pose particularly high environmental risks. New or amended operational procedures and work instructions to prevent a return to bad habits need to be introduced and followed. [4] 4

In order to demonstrate achievement, parameters should be set and measured to show progress, or otherwise. This gives employees a means of monitoring the effectiveness of their actions and is an incentive to keep with the good practice. Repetition of good practice together with means for regular feedback on the effectiveness of improvement actions or issues that arise, resulting in corrective actions drives the cycle of continuous improvement. Therefore the link between the 5S and implementation of an environmental management system is clear, however in practice successful implementation of the 5S to improve environmental performance, housekeeping or health and safety standards depends to a great extent upon the firm's culture. [5] Firm's culture and 5S Largely top management and organizational structure determine the culture of a firm. Human factors such as personalities of top and middle management influence the communication dynamics of a firm, which in turn determines the extent of involvement and motivation at the operative level. Managing improvement and change of practice even in a small firm requires strong leadership by example, not words. Opportunities to involve those at lower levels in the organization in improvement initiatives are created mainly at the top and cascade to middle managers. Therefore the success or failure of improvement techniques such as the 5S lies in the hands of top management, as they play the key role in establishing the firm's culture. Theoretically, the 5S set out a clear and simple route towards achieving a total quality, equitable, environment where wellcontrolled processes and operations produce high quality goods and services. In practice, because of the plethora of human factors that come into play, the situation is far more complex and the route to implementation and use of the 5S is not so clear out. [6] Benefits from implementing the 5S There have been observed many benefits at all levels of the firms through the introduction of environmental improvements by implementing the 5S as follows: [7] - Reducing the pollutions, especially waste, water and air pollution. - Fast retrieval of items such as documents, tools and etc. - Reducing mistakes and reworks. - Creating total discipline 5

- Creating an organizational discipline background - Reducing obstacle in work environment - Creating an attractive work environment and better housekeeping - Creating a clean work environment free from pollution - Enhanced health and safety standards and safer storage of substance and materials. - Creating moral perspective among employees - Improving employee relationship - Reducing downtime in machine tools - Quality consistent and improvement - Increasing efficiency and effectiveness - Reducing cost - Time saving - Reducing dependency relative to employees and creating possibility of Job rotation - Preventing scrap - Reducing environmental risks - Preventing unsuitable use of materials, parts, tools and forms. - Increasing life of the equipment - Creating a cultural productivity - Capturing customer views - Creating a self disciplinary culture - Creating an attractive work environment - Reducing the waste at process level Barriers to using the 5S There are some barriers to the implementation for the 5S. The main barriers relate to communications and limited resources. Other barriers are as follows: [8] - Management structure and methods - Employee attitudes - Personality clashes epically at lower management levels - Lock of recognition - Low incentive - Low morale 6

- Loss of control by middle management - Lack of planning - Time - Space - Lack of feedback Discussion Managing the environment wisely and equitably requires the balancing of a number of conflicting interests. An industry discharging untreated wastes to the atmosphere or to water bodies may argue that it is employing the cheapest disposal method resulting in decreased Production cost, enabling it to sell its product cheaply [9]. This produces benefits not only to the Industry but to the public as well, in the form of an inexpensive product and increased employment. However, the same public is also paying indirect costs associated with industrial pollution. It must pay to treat its drinking water to a greater extent than might be necessary without Industrial pollution and it may pay in the form of increased sickness and decreased aesthetic quality of the environment. [10]. If a large enough region and population are considered, it is not difficult to see that all of us Are either directly or indirectly polluters and all of us share the disadvantages and cleanup costs of pollution-generating activities, although often not in an equal and equitable manner. So, managers are responsible to reduce the environmental pollution. [11] In this way, 5S is one of the simple and powerful environmental organization management tools that can help them. The 5S process can simplify the work environment and maintenance systems procedures, reduce waste and non-value activity, as well as improve safety, quality and efficiency. But, in practice, implementation of the 5S is not easy because it is influenced by human factors and resource limitations that can interfere with the effectiveness of the technique, so, in order to have an effective implementation of the 5S, it could be applies as follows: 7

First, assess current communication mechanism within the firm. Identify communication barriers and determine their sources. Clear out clutter and remove barriers. Reassure employees at all levels that they are in no danger. Second, create short lines of communication and promote transparency. Promote the use of simple and visual communication methods where appropriate and electronic methods to replace paper where possible. Encourage openness. Evaluate effectiveness of training programmes and initiate change where necessary. Third, give all employees opportunities to create and test the elements of the new communication system that affect them and their jobs. Get feedback and amend system as a result. Fourth, standardize the communications system across the firm and ensure all employees use the system consistently. Fifth, adhere to the new improved system. Monitor its effectiveness continuously through audit. Keep improving. Conclusions The 5S is an effective technique that can improve housekeeping, environmental performance and health and safety standards in an integrated holistic way. However there are barriers to the effective implementation of the 5S for any improvement purpose. The most significant barriers related to communication, degree of staff involvement and attitudes of employees, which the resolution laid in employee autonomy and more effective communication mechanisms. The lines of communication should be short with fast and effective feedback mechanism, so the introduction of a suggestion scheme with fast feedback is an important means of promoting involvement. [12] The recognition for work well done is an effective means of promoting positive attitudes and increased involvement especially at lower management levels. Generally, top managements are very aware of the issues that constrained full implementation of the 5S. Owing to the firm having limited resources and small investment budgets, top managements felt that certain actions that required investment would have to wait and this could be perceived negatively by lower management levels, however communicating resources constraints to all employees and involving them in the planning process would counteract any negativity. [13] The 5S is effective in improving environmental performance relate primarily to reductions in waste, at production level, particularly water, oil and energy. It promotes neatness in the storage of 8

all items including oils and chemicals that may pose significant risk to the environment, hence preventing or minimizing the risk of environmental pollution. [14] The 5S is an environmental management tool that may be used to introduce good environmental management practice effectively and subsequently be used to improve environmental performance continually alongside housekeeping and health and safety. Firm's culture, communications and employee attitudes are the factors that will influence success or failure in the use of the 5S. Awareness of the potential barriers from the onset leading to top management taking appropriate action is the most potent means of introducing this technique quickly and effectively. Poor communication is one of the most important barriers to full and effective implementation of the 5S. Communication methods and their effectiveness are rarely assessed and evaluated or the route causes of communication failures addressed in an industrial environment. The effect of poor communication, however, is evident in wasted resources, time and money, with resultant lowered moral amongst employees. Many communication systems in business and industry have evolved over time in an uncontrolled fashion. The resulting systems may be complex, cluttered and confusing; therefore, there should be a scope for further investigation into the application of the 5S as a means of improving communication systems in a business context. In addition the influence of other factors such as company size and structure, on the effectiveness of such an application of the 5S should produce interesting finding. Finally, it is clear that the scope for the 5S application is wide ranging and when implemented effectively, the resulting business improvement can be dramatic. The full benefits of the 5S, however, cannot be experienced in business until the barriers associated, fully understood and addressed. References [1] Crawford, M.," Air pollution Control Theory" McGraw-Hill, Inc, 1976 [2] Ho.S.," Japanese 5_S practice", The Manufacturing Manager, Vol.2 NO.8, 1998 [3] Tsuchiya, K."Super 5S is for Everyone: A Nation Grows with Improved Productivity". Japan Productivity Centre for Socio-Economic Development, 2000 [4] Osada, T. "the 5-S, five keys to a Total Quality Environment", Asian Productivity Organization, Tokyo, 1991 [5] Ho, S.k., Fung, C. and cicmil, S. "The Japanese 5-S practice and TQM training", Training for quality Journal, Vol. 3 No. 4, 1995 9

[6] O heocha, M." A study of the influence of company culture, Communication and employee attitudes on the use of 5S for environmental management at Cooke Brothers Ltd. The TQM Magazine, Vol. 12 No. 5, 2000 [7] Bs 8800, "Guide to Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems", 1996 [8] OHSAS 18001,"Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems Specification", 1999 [9] Ortolano, L. "Environmental Planning and Decision Making", New York, and Chichester, England: John Wiley and Sons, 1984 [10] Technical Report NPR 5001: "Guide to An Occupational Health and Safety Management System", 1997 [11] Ward, B. "Human Settlements, Crisis and Opportunity", Ottawa: Information Canada, 1975 [12] Westman, W." Ecology, Impact Assessment and Environmental Planning", New York, Wiley Interscience, 1985 [13] Wiliams, G.B. "Autonomous steps to world class manufacture at Hoogovens Aluminium UK Ltd", in Ho, S.K.M. (Ed.), TQM and Innovation, Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on ISO 9000 and TQM,1999 [14] Glynn, H J., & Gary, W H." Environmental Science and Engineering." Prentice- Hall International, 1989 10