5S with Computers

1. 5S with Computers The physical and non-physical assets www.uttana.com

2. Introduction to 5S • In a modern Lean office, keeping your computers organized allows you to focus on value-added activities and minimize the wastes of motion and transportation associated with computers. • Wastes within computers may seem minimal and not worth discussion, however these wastes can add up quickly. www.uttana.com

3. Components • 5S for computers deals with both physical and non-physical components. • Physical components are things like the cables extending from computers and the organization and cleanliness of the computer and area itself. • Non-physical parts of computers are data, naming conventions, and file structures. www.uttana.com

4. 3S • Sorting your computers and devices means removing all non-pertinent wires and other supportive instruments. • Setting in order involves designating spaces, which should be followed by Standardizing the method and placement of the remaining physical components. www.uttana.com

5. Laptop Connectivity • Physical components comes down to laptops’ need for network or hard drive access anywhere. • Commercial grade internet access and well-placed routers reduce the need for unnecessary Ethernet cables. www.uttana.com

6. External Hard Drives • External hard drives are a good idea for backups and storage of information, however standards for them are often left unaddressed. • Transportation and storage of the devices can be addressed with moving data-bays or hardy cases. www.uttana.com

7. Shining the Physical Components • Shining comes down to cleaning the work area and the computer itself. • Fans, keyboard, monitor, and mouse all need simple cleaning activity; this encourages efficiency and morale. www.uttana.com

8. Digital Space • To 5S your digital space, naming conventions and standardized file structures become vitally important. • In order to Sort and Set-in-Order digital assets, a well thought out file structure needs to be created. • Your specific file structure will depend heavily on your office, customers, and colleagues. www.uttana.com

9. Group File Structures • Group consensus and hard work will define a group organizational standard. • You have to create a structure and as individuals have the self-discipline to follow that structure. • In a modern Lean office both upstream and downstream processes should have easy access to your computer. www.uttana.com

10. Group File Structures Cont’d. • When in doubt, always look for commonalities and create subfolders. • Rarely should a folder contain over 20 items without an easy suggestion for further subfolder organization. www.uttana.com

11. Naming Conventions • Folders and files also need rigorous naming conventions. • All like-items should be numbered and have easily searchable and common criteria. • Items like dates or locations are often inadvisable items to include in naming conventions since they rarely directly correlate with the actual content of the files within. www.uttana.com

12. Sorting and Subfolders • Structure and naming conventions allow easy sorting out of data that doesn’t belong in each of your folders. • Subfolders allow you to set-in-order all items that do belong, in an understandable way. • This allows everyone to have the same efficiency when looking for or depositing information. www.uttana.com

13. Digital Health • Shine has to do with the digital health of the remaining items and storage space of the computer. • Clearing internet browser caches allows new data to load and run faster. • Emptying the trash frees resources for your computer. www.uttana.com

14. Digital Health Cont’d. • Virus, spyware, and adware prevention and removal keeps your computer running at its fastest. • The speed possibly lost due to these problems can contribute to wastes including motion and transportation. • Update your computers operating system to reduce errors and contributes to 5S Shine. • Updatesare important to your computers stability and protection of your work and historic data. www.uttana.com

15. Standards and Sustainment • Easy to access and clear, logical standards will be a cornerstone of your long-term computer-related 5S success. • They should be posted at or near workstations, or even included in the work being done. • Sustaining all of these efforts can be key to the success of your organization. • With all 5S elements standardized and followed you can look forward to healthy digital and physical computer interactions. www.uttana.com