The 5S Doctor is In - Part 2 of 3

Thanks for waiting.  The 5S doctor will see you now.  

Recall from my previous post the definition of  horizontalitis is the accumulation of 'stuff' on any horizontal surface.  'Stuff' is anything not required to do the task being performed.  

Symptoms - The most common symptoms are found on desks, work surfaces, tables, counters, work benches and shelves.  Less common, but no less serious, are found on tops of control panels, tops of refrigerators or microwaves, tops of printers, window sills, top edges of door frames and any horizontal surface around equipment.  

One of the sneakiest examples of horizontalitis is the floor.  The floor is the ultimate horizontal surface, right?  Why wouldn't you store stuff on the floor?  You can and should store important items on the floor.  However, this too can lead to horizontalitis.  Classic cases are under tables, desks, work benches, or even under chairs.

The ultimate cure is simple, but challenging to execute, and that is to eliminate the horizontal surface entirely.  Take a look at what is stored and determine a better way to store what is absolutely necessary.  Ideally, covert it from horizontal to vertical storage via shadow board, hanging from pegs or in bins.  Make sure everything you are storing is as close to point-of-use as possible.  After all, 5S is about productivity improvement.  If you can't eliminate the horizontal surface, another approach is right-sizing.  Right sizing is having just the right amount of  horizontal surface for the requirement.  Most common example of misuse of this is computer tables.  I was at a client last month and they had a 6 foot table to store a computer. The computer was there, but so was about 5 feet worth of horizontalitis.  Solution - get a table or cart that only fits the computer or what ever is required for the task.  Another potential solution to horizontalitis is to angle the tops of many surfaces, thereby preventing anything from resting on it.  This can be done simple with some wood or sheet metal attached to the surface.  

Obviously, you can't eliminate the floor as a horizontal surface and ultimately, there is nothing wrong with storing things on the floor.  However, if you do, make sure the space is clearly marked with what should and should not be there.  Put a border around the items, mark inside the border what should be there, and mark the item with its 'home address.  These are requirements of most industry standards such as ISO, GMP, HAACP, or SQF so incorporating this within a 5S program is very complementary.

 The image above is the 'Before' version of a work area affected with  a severe case of horizontalitis compounding with a case of over-sizing.  The image below is the 'After' version showing the right-sized cure.  

I have tons of other before and after examples I would be happy to share with you. Feel free to contact me and we can discuss your needs.