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SPRING CLEANING - How STREAMLINING can Lead to Success

Cemeteries and Crematoria can be praised for the work they have done to make their sites attractive and idyllic for the public. Not only have their properties been constantly upgraded with beautiful gardens, lawns and features to encourage memorialisation and visitation but they have also worked hard to improve the level of comfort experienced by grieving families as they enter offices and meet with memorial consultants.

First impressions are lasting and the first impression is the one you give.

Inevitably, the process of improvement goes on and we cannot rest on our laurels. The cold months of winter can have a way of making many of us complacent and we tend to put things off until the spring.  Well, spring is here and it’s time to spring into action. 

To help you give impetus to our improvement program, Arrow used a new process called STREAMLINING. Our experience could easily be encompassed by any business and it can be very useful.

STREAMLINING is a five step inspection and development program that you can implement at your property to help you  update that first impression and drive further improvement of a successful operation. It is a program that was successfully tried at Arrow in our old Cheltenham premises to help lift the amenity of the old buildings, find space and improve productivity. It worked - and even now that we are in our new premises at Dandenong South, we will and still can find ways to improve.

This program is also referred to as 5-S with each step an important and integral path to amazing improvement.

Sort and Remove.  This means you go through your workplace and sort through everything – department by department or area by area – and remove all unnecessary items. 

The key here is to be ruthless and not sentimental. If you don’t need it - get rid of it. You may need a large dump master brought in for the easy removal of items.  You can colour tag items that you don’t want with a RED tag and give the rest of your staff an opportunity to claim the item if they really need it. If not claimed then out it goes.

Work places could include desks, filing cabinets, show rooms, consulting rooms, store rooms, workshops and even company vehicles.

Shine and Inspect.  This involves inspecting all equipment surfaces – inside and out.  It involves fixing everything that needs repaired and restoring the equipment to “like new” condition.  You could just give that old machine a coat of paint or repair a broken door hinge on a filing cabinet. You could clean down and paint the walls in the workshop or erect new and effective signage. The effect is to give the work environment a big lift making it a satisfying place to be and something to be proud of.

Set Location and Visual Cues.  Here you want to designate areas for storing items such as tools, machines, pens, paper trays, telephones and so on. The idea is to ensure that items are easy to find and put away. The old saying –“Everything in its place and a place for everything” applies. In particular you must concentrate on items that are used regularly. There are many things that can be done and here are some examples.  Important tools at work stations must be in easy reach and neatly placed or hung in set spots. The most used machines must be closest to the door. Labeling the items so you can readily locate them when needed is also a good policy.  Build appropriate and labeled shelving for item storage.

System-a-tise.  5-S is not a one-time program, once you complete the first three steps, you will want to keep the program going to maintain your work areas. In fact you may find that you use the process at the same work place more than once before you are finally happy with its functionality and even safety.

Stay the Course is the 5^th and final step.  It is important to keep the benefits in mind and stay motivated through feedback and rewards. If you don’t have notice boards put one up for all to see. Show before and after photographs of work stations and improvement projects.

The beauty of STREAMLINING is its simplicity and relatively low cost of implementation.

Should you use it, many of the projects may be small and seemingly unimportant. However, when you add them up it is amazing how much overall improvement is made. 5-S-ing creates a tone of enthusiasm, optimism and ownership amongst your staff - in itself a very powerful tool in driving out bad presentations and practices. Because all your people can be involved and the changes are visible and tangible, you will be surprised how many good ideas come forward and how much enthusiasm in finding ways to create space, improve product flow, improve productivity and address basic safety issues can be generated. 

Although the process involves small projects, 5-S-ing builds a foundation for further workplace improvements that otherwise may not have been apparent.

Once little bottlenecks and workplace impediments are removed, major long term improvement projects can be discovered. These projects may require significant investment and can become part of management’s long term planning.

However, if with a Spring Clean based on 5-S, the main benefit of the program is merely to upgrade the impression you give your communities and improve the pride of your work force then STREAMLINING is a still a very worthwhile process to follow.