Standardize before Seiri Seiton

5S outside Japan is often mistranslated and misleading.

Especially, translating Seiketu as Standardization is frustrating. It's impossible to translate it that way. More importantly, why does standardization appear so late?

In the early seventies, there was such thinking: “Standardize before Seiri Seiton.”

At the start of the 5S activities in Japan during the mid-1970s, there was a man named Kameo Aoki. In 1976, Aoki wrote a series of monthly articles for the magazine “Management,” published by the Japan Management Association. The series focused on the Science of Seiri and Seiton. At that time, Aoki was an independent consultant supporting factories. He mentioned that he only offered advice on Seiri and Seiton because those were sufficient. In 1989, he published a book titled “Origin of 5S Fixed Position Management Scientific Seiri Seiton.” 【５Sの原点 定置管理 科学的整理整頓】

He begins the book by explaining why many Seiri Seiton, or 5S, fail. He has compiled a list of poor Seiri Seiton practices.

Showoff Seiri Seiton

Doing the Seiri Seiton to demonstrate that they are taking action. In some cases, they organized things neatly, but later they couldn’t find the materials.

Bored, therefore Seiri Seiton

You start Seiri Seiton when you have free time, like during machine downtime or a material shortage. Yes, it’s better than doing nothing. However, this activity is not sustainable.

Time is up, Seiri Seiton

You start when the time for Seiri Seiton begins and finish when the time is up. It doesn’t matter if you are in the middle of Seiri Seiton or not.

Slogan Seiri Seiton

Slogans and posters are everywhere, but no action is being taken.

Random Seiri Seiton

You start when you feel like doing something. You visited another plant, read a book, or had an accident due to poor Seiri Seiton. But only for a short period.

As long as you do Seiri Seiton

You're doing it because we've been doing it all along.

I admit I enjoyed this list.

So, what does Aoki identify as necessary before Seiri Seiton? He states that standardization is missing. He discusses the standardization of;

Objective

Direction

Detailed steps of what, when, where, and how

Evaluation of the results

He emphasizes the importance of standardizing the information that connects humans and materials, such as material names, locations (name), details on genbutu, return, and material packages. He considers a fixed position the foundation—a key element of the science of Seiri Seiton. He called it the “location system,” which includes a fixed and a free location system.

Aoki’s work predates the 5S era. He was applying these principles before 5S became more popular in Japan, making him one of the pioneers. (5S gained popularity from the late seventies to the early eighties.) The link between Aoki’s work and what later became widely adopted is unclear. (For example, I’ve heard about the “Location System” in Japan, but haven’t found any sources besides this book.) However, I don’t believe anyone has challenged his statement: "Standardize before Seiri Seiton." I think this is a fundamental principle of 5S in Japan. One unclear aspect of Aoki’s work is that he did not mention anything about Standardized work. No material will move without human effort. Therefore, Standardized work should precede Seiri Seiton, or Seiri Seiton should be carried out in line with Standardized work. But other than that, Standardize before Seiri Seiton is the truth.

I wonder what Aoki will say about today’s global 5S—or more Ss. But instead of dwelling on what I can’t do, it’s helpful to think about what Aoki wrote: “Standardize before Seiri Seiton.” The “Science of Seiri Seiton.” It’s a powerful quote to reflect on the 5S.

Reference

Aoki, Kameo. (1989). 定置管理 : 5Sの原点 科学的整理・整頓. 日刊工業新聞社.