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George Trachilis
George Trachilis, P.Eng. lives in Canada and consults throughout the world. He started his career at Motor Coach Industries in 1994 where he received Lean coaching by the best consultants in ERP systems, Just-in-Time manufacturing, and Total Quality Management. Having lead change for over 10 years, he decided to start his own consulting firm in 2003. It grew to become one of Canada’s Fastest Growth Companies by 2006. George is a Shingo-research Award-winning Author and Coach. He co-author of Lean Construction Leaders: A Trade Partner’s Guide to Lean.
Articles By This Author
Preparing The Team to Implement 5S
I usually share with people that 5S is a countermeasure. It solves the problem of a workplace having no standard or stability from which to improve. This means that 5S is not the goal but merely a starting point for improvement.
Introduction to the 5S System
This system was created by Ford and later improved upon by Toyota. Ford called it the CANDO system. CANDO is an acronym developed by Henry Ford to make the work area more organized and efficient.
Sort–the First “S”
Sort is to categorize all materials and remove what is unnecessary. The concept of sorting is simple. You simply remove all materials that are more than what is classified as the strategic amount for your job site. The good thing is that you get to decide what a strategic amount means to you.
Straighten–the Second “S”
Straighten is to make sure that there is a place for everything, and everything is in its place. The only way to guarantee this is to think about the visual controls needed right at the beginning of the process.
Sweep or Shine–the Third “S”
Sweep is the activity of bringing your area up to a standard and then using that standard -daily - to inspect and keep that area clean.
Standardize–the Fourth “S”
Standardize is the activity of making Sort, Straighten, and Shine part of the project routines. When the general contractor realizes how much benefit they receive from doing 5S, they introduce other standards as statements.
Sustain–the Hardest “S” of All
Sustain is the hardest S of them all. This makes sense because of two main reasons. One, it encompasses all the other Ss. You should ask many questions that start with how we should sustain.
Why You Should Start with the 5 Where’s Before the 5 Whys
Those of us dedicated to Lean learning know that Taiichi Ohno, the manufacturing genius from Toyota, was very famous for his Ohno circle.
The Future of Construction Based on the Values of the General Contractor
Looking Down on the Empire State Building I think to myself, “What values constructed the One World Trade Center in New York?” From the observatory I remember looking down on the Empire State Building. I also remember thinking about how this building across from me was constructed.