Impact of the 5S methodology in the optimization of resources in metalworking companies

Authors

Velasquez-Costa, José

Abstract

The metal mechanical industry plays a very important role in the economy of Peru and the vast majority are micro and small businesses. Regardless of their size, there is a common denominator in this sector that limits their growth and is the lack of order, empowerment and discipline of the workers. The objective of this article is to communicate the implementation of continuous improvement of manufacturing processes through the execution of five key activities such as seiri (classify), seiton (order), seiso (clean), seiketsu (maintain), shitsuke (discipline) . For this, the 5S methodology was applied. These 5 activities are known as 5S and it was this methodology that was applied in the plant, warehouse and office areas in a metalworking company for a period of 12 months. The results reveal average savings of US$75 per week for labor in the tooling area in the activity of developing assembly guides, recovery of a production area of 10 m2, reduction of tool search times by 85%, equivalent to savings of US$ 2661 per month.