The 5 Ss of Japanese efficiency

5S is the acronym for five Japanese words, seiri, seiton, seiso, seiketsu and shitsuke, which signify order, cleanliness, purity and commitment.
The 5S philosophy focusses on effective workplace organisation, helps simplify the workplace environment and reduce waste, while improving quality and safety.
Seiri (sort) means to put things in order. Seiton (systematise) means proper arrangement. Seiso (clean) implies keeping things clean and polished in the workplace. Seiketsu implies purity and focuses on maintaining cleanliness and perpetual cleaning. Shitsuke is commitment. This is a typical teaching and attitude towards any undertaking to inspire pride and adherence to standards established for the four components.
The principles underlying a 5S programme appear to be common sense -- and they are. But until the advent of 5S, many businesses ignored these basic principles .