5s: First Vital Step Towards Operations Excellence

The book on 5S is a practical guide to building awareness and enabling implementation of 5S in the workplace. It is based on several decades of experience of the author in industry and consultancy. 5S is a Japanese Management approach and a commitment towards improvement of Quality, Productivity, Delivery, Cost, Safety and Morale. The first five words in Japanese-Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu, Shitsuke- written in English start with S, hence the term 5S.
5S has to be seen as the very basic tool for improvement. It is not limited to housekeeping. There is a cause behind every dirt in the floor. 5S opens our eyes to these minor problems. It is these minor problems when ignored result in major problems like a fire, machine breakdown or big quality defect resulting in customer returns.
5S is not only for a manufacturing plant. In fact, it does wonders for service industry. The author has put together in one place his experiences and practice of 5S gained through his training and consultancy assignments as a facilitator and coach. In addition, the author is available on line to coach the readers in implementation of 5S in their plant, office or personal life.