The 6S framework basically consists of six simple yet effective ideas: Sort (Seiri), Set in Order (Seiton), Shine (Seiso), Standardize (Seiketsu), Sustain (Shitsuke), and Safety (the sixth "S"). If it is used properly, it changes messy working areas into safe, efficient, and well-disciplined places of work. This blog will take you through the way it works, the reasons for its existence, the ways of auditing it, the mistakes that are often made, and the ways in which real businesses are doing it. The aim: to assist you in embedding 6S not as a one-off cleaning exercise, but as a solid layer of continuous improvement.
The 6S method is in fact an extension of the traditional Japanese 5S technique (Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardize, Sustain) that have been the bases of lean production for many years. The additional Safety column was created to directly point out the elimination of risks instead of just suggesting it. The reason organizations evolved from 5S to 6S is that in many high-risk environments (manufacturing, pharma, biotech) cleanliness, order and standardization alone weren’t enough — workplaces also needed proactive safety built into the structure.
So, to recap:
- Sort (Seiri): Remove what’s unnecessary.
- Set in Order (Seiton): Arrange what remains so it’s easy to find and use.
- Shine (Seiso): Clean and inspect regularly.
- Standardize (Seiketsu): Establish routines and standards so those first three stay consistent.
- Sustain (Shitsuke): Make it habitual—embed it in culture.
- Safety: Hard-stop hazards, ensure safe processes and environment.
By including Safety up-front, the framework becomes a more holistic management system — not just cleanliness and efficiency, but of operational discipline, risk control and continuous improvement.
Let’s walk through each pillar so you can see what it looks like in practice.
Sort (Seiri):
- Ask: What items, tools, materials, documents are definitely needed? What is not?
- Remove all unnecessary items from the workspace. Less clutter = fewer distractions; fewer hidden hazards.
- Benefit: Reduces chance of error, trip hazards, excess inventory.
Set in Order (Seiton):
- Organize the remaining items so they’re easy to reach, return, and use.
- Examples: Floor-markings for tool storage, shadow boards, colour-coded containers, logical flow of materials.
- Benefit: Less wasted motion, less search time, smoother operations.
Shine (Seiso):
- Not just cleaning — inspection while cleaning. When you clean regularly, you catch leaks, wear, misalignment, and spillages early.
- Benefit: Improved equipment reliability, fewer surprises, cleaner working environment which supports safety and quality.
Standardize (Seiketsu):
- Develop guidelines, visual standards, checklists, responsibilities so that Sort/Set/Shine becomes routine, consistent, and repeatable.
- Benefit: Everyone knows “how we do it here”, fewer deviations, easier audits and adherence.
Sustain (Shitsuke):
- It’s easy to implement for a while, but the challenge is keeping it up. Sustain means habitual, embedded, owned by operators.
- Actions: regular audits, training, operator ownership, management follow-up.
- Benefit: The improvements last; you don’t just slide back into chaos.
Safety (The Sixth S):
- Recognizes that in many operational environments, cleanliness and organization alone don’t guarantee safe conditions. You need explicit hazard controls, ergonomic considerations, safe material storage, safe work zones, emergency readiness.
- Safety is an important aspect that is facilitated by the interweaving of fewer unnecessary items that reduce trip hazards (Sort); a good layout that reduces collisions (Set in Order); shine that reveals leaks/spills (Shine); standardization that ensures safe practices (Standardize); sustain that keeps safe behavior ongoing (Sustain). Nevertheless, when you take Safety to another level and make it a separate pillar, you give it the attention and the resources that it needs and deserves.
Safety should not be considered optional when these are some of the factors that are at play: high-value materials, regulatory oversight that is very strict, equipment that is complicated and substances that are hazardous. Among the reasons that safety is mission-critical is as follows:
- Among the factors leading to safety issues in pharma and biotech are contamination control, chemical/biological hazards, batch integrity, regulatory audits (e.g., by the Food and Drug Administration or regional equivalents) which in turn mean that a safety incident can escalate to a compliance failure, product recall, financial loss of a serious nature or damage to the company’s reputation.
- In manufacturing: Large machines, chemicals, energy systems, moving material—hazards are everywhere. Poor housekeeping or disorganized layout can lead to major accidents, downtime, and regulatory fines.
- Safety incidents cause downtime, investigations, lost production, increased insurance and recovery costs — which all detract from operational performance and quality.
- On the human side: A workforce that sees safety taken seriously is more engaged, reports near-misses, supports improvement. If safety is neglected, morale drops, mistakes creep in, culture suffers.
In short: The “S” in Safety is not decorative — it’s strategic. Embedding safety via 6S ensures you’re not only efficient and clean, but resilient and risk aware.
Real benefits emerge when 6S is done well — not just for tidiness, but for performance, cost, safety and culture.
- Improved efficiency & reduced defects: A clean, well-organized environment means less time wasted searching, less movement of parts, fewer errors.
- Enhanced safety culture: Safety becomes visible, proactive rather than reactive. The “Safety” pillar reminds teams to view hazards as part of standard work.
- Better workflow & reduced downtime: Material, tools, equipment in the right place; layout optimized; fewer interruptions for maintenance or cleanup.
- Lower cost of poor quality (COPQ): Defects, scrap, rework, accidents — these all drop because you’ve controlled the work environment, the tools, the routines, and the safety risks. Quality improves, cost declines, value strengthens.
When you sum these up, 6S becomes more than housekeeping — it becomes an operational enabler. It lays the groundwork for higher-level lean, quality and continuous improvement programmes.
6S is usually the very first step in lean manufacturing. Here is the explanation of how it links with other lean practices and the reason it is important:
- Supports waste reduction: It is waste reduction that 6S chiefly supports. In lean terminology, waste (muda) is made up of waiting, transportation, motion, inventory, defects, over-processing, over-production, unskilled workers. 6S is directly cutting most of them through arranging the place, lessening the time for the search, standardizing the work, cleaning and so on.
- Relation with TPM (Total Productive Maintenance): The main aim of TPM is to have the highest possible equipment uptime and reliability. A clean and organized workspace (from 6S) is a great support for autonomous maintenance, prompt detection of faults, less disguised issues — thus TPM getting more effective.
- Relation with Kaizen and value-stream mapping: Before you map flows or optimize processes, you need stable, standard work and a clean, organized floor. 6S provides a stable base. Without it, process improvements tend to collapse or revert.
- 6S as foundation for continuous improvement: Since it is something that can be seen and touched and also gives the result very quickly, 6S contributes to the creation of culture, engagement and discipline. After that, you can use more advanced tools (SMED, one-piece flow, pull systems) without any doubt.
Therefore, 6S should be considered not as a final point, but as the base that supports lean culture and continuous improvement.
Executing the 6S is great. But auditing it is what keeps it alive. Here’s how to do that.
Audit checklist content:
- Layout: Are aisles marked? Are tools placed logically? Is the equipment in the correct location?
- Signage & equipment labeling: Are items labeled? Is tool storage clear? Are materials visually controlled?
- Safety compliance: Are hazard zones marked? Is PPE available? Are emergency exits clear? Are spills addressed?
- Housekeeping & Workflow: Are floors clean? No clutter? Is the flow of materials and people unobstructed?
- Standardization & Sustainability: Are checklists visible? Are audits done? Are corrective actions tracked?
- Visual control: Are the standards visible (e.g., shadow boards, color codes, floor tape)?
- Ownership: Are persons responsible identified? Are late findings addressed?
Scoring criteria & frequency:
- Use a scoring scale (e.g., 0-5, green/yellow/red) for each item so you can track trends.
- Frequency: High-risk/work-intensive areas may be audited weekly; other areas bi-weekly or monthly.
- Track trends over time: scores slipping indicate culture drift or process issues.
Roles & responsibilities:
- Auditors: Lean/quality team, cross-functional members, or supervisors. They conduct the audit, fill out the checklist, and attach evidence.
- Team leads / Operators: Own the area. They respond to findings, implement corrective actions, and sustain standards.
- Management: Reviews audit data, provides resources, holds follow-up, ensures results get visibility.
- Operators: Daily self-checks, clean-up routines, returning tools, maintaining order — this makes sustainment real.
Well-run audits become a tool for engagement, improvement and culture building — not just a fault-finding exercise.
When you conduct audits, you’ll often find recurring themes — here are the common gaps and tips to address them:
- Poor labelling or tool organization: Tools are stored anywhere, no return logic, no shadow boards. Result: wasted time, tool loss, process delays. Fix: Implement tool storage with visuals, designate owners, track return times.
- Unsafe material handling practices: Materials stored too high, spillage, unmarked hazards, blocked exits. Fix: Include safety inspection in each walk-round, train staff to spot hazards, and integrate material-handling standards.
- Inconsistent cleaning schedules: Cleaning done sporadically rather than part of daily routine; Shine becomes reactive and not proactive. Fix: Build cleaning into shift routines, assign owners, including inspection of cleaning in audit checklist.
- Training gaps & behavior issues: Staff don’t understand “why” 6S matters — they view it as extra work. Result: habits fall back. Fix: Regular training, involvement of operators in building standards, recognitions and rewards for good 6S behavior.
- Lack of accountability / corrective follow-up: Audits identify issues, but no resources or owner assigned. Result: drift returns. Fix: Use CAPA-style follow-up, assign owners, set deadlines, and review results in management meetings.
By recognizing these gaps early and addressing root behavioral & process causes (not just “fix the mess”), you ensure that 6S remains sustainable rather than a one-time blitz.
Here is a real company example:
- Geely Auto Group (China – Automotive): While the specific “6S” label may not be front-and-centered in public literature, one case-study site shows that a Geely automotive factory introduced a 6S management system. They cleared work areas, reorganized tool/storage locations (Sort/Set in Order), launched enhanced cleaning (Shine), rolled out standard work and visual controls (Standardize), embedded sustaining mechanisms (Sustain) and improved the work environment and employee satisfaction.
These illustrate how 6S is adaptable across industries and can produce real gains in order, safety, and business performance.
For regulated industries (pharma, biotech, medical device, high-complex manufacturing) integrating 6S into your QMS (Quality Management System) helps you scale, standardize, and control.
- Audit management module: Digitize your 6S audit checklists; schedule audits; capture photos; score and trend across zones. This gives visibility to leadership and operators.
- CAPA (Corrective & Preventive Action): When audits find non-compliance (missing labels, unsafe storage, clutter), you log it, assign an owner, set a deadline, track verification. Embedding in QMS ensures follow-through.
- Document control: Standards for 6S (tool-boards, flow diagrams, inspection criteria) are version-controlled, reviewed, cross-referenced with training and audits.
- Training management: Staff need to understand 6S and how to apply it. Training records, certification, and refresher training are linked to the QMS.
- Compliance alignment: Many organizations must meet ISO standards (e.g., ISO 45001 for occupational health & safety, ISO 9001 for quality) or regulatory agencies. Having 6S audit data, CAPA data, training and document control in one system helps internal audits and external audits and shows you have control.
In other words: A QMS platform doesn’t do 6S for you, but it makes 6S data-driven, visible, controlled and auditable. That supports higher maturity.
The 6S framework—Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardize, Sustain and Safety—is quite a simple idea, but it can turn into a powerful tool for achieving excellence in operations if you do it properly. The results of implementing 6S are the same in any kind of industry, whether it is a car factory, a pharmaceutical lab, or a warehouse. 6S leads to fewer errors, safer work areas, better flow, cost reduction, and a stronger culture.
The biggest benefit of 6S comes when it is regularly checked, supported, merged with the digital tools and QMS, and is performed naturally by the employees’ daily routine rather than being a one-time event. Real companies like Geely Auto and the ink-manufacturing study above show that tangible gains can be achieved when 6S is implemented with discipline and ownership.
If you’re serious about turning your workspace into a strategic asset — not a liability — 6S is a smart place to start. With the right checklist, audit system, operator ownership and leadership support, you’ll not only see the difference (cleaner, safer floor) but feel it (fewer disruptions, better morale, stronger results).
