Unit of competency details

Elements describe the essential outcomes of a unit of competency.

Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element. Where bold italicised text is used, further information is detailed in the required skills and knowledge section and the range statement. Assessment of performance is to be consistent with the evidence guide.

1

Facilitate the set-up of 5S

1.1

Assist others to determine what are necessary and unnecessary items in the work area

1.2

Assist others to determine optimum assigned location for all necessary items

1.3

Liaise with relevant production and occupational health and safety (OHS) personnel in determining optimum locations

1.4

Assist others to determine optimum location for unnecessary items

1.5

Assist others to determine 5S schedule

1.6

Ensure procedures reflect 5S practices

1.7

Assist others to achieve the required level of skill

2

Facilitate the implementation of 5S

2.1

Ensure procedures reflect 5S practices

2.2

Assess skill base of team or work group members in 5S and arrange for any required training

2.3

Ensure that any damage and/or safety risks reported by the team or work group are addressed through correct mechanisms

3

Monitor 5S

3.1

Check work area for 5S implementation as part of normal routine

3.2

Identify non-conformances

3.3

Negotiate solutions to non-conformances

4

Improve 5S

4.1

Work with others to find areas for improvement

4.2

Assist others to develop improvement solutions

4.3

Facilitate the availability of resources required for the improvement solution

4.4

Facilitate the implementation of the improvement solution

This section describes the skills and knowledge required for this unit.

Required skills 

Required skills include:

• communicating with other employees and managers to engender commitment to achieving 5S outcomes, conduct formal and informal meetings and to explain 5S and related concepts
• facilitating team or work area goals, activities and communications and accessing resources
• visualising normal operational procedures in terms of flow and contribution to customer outcomes
• planning and prioritising activities
• problem solving to determine potential improvements to the 5S system
• reading and interpreting the application of operating procedures for jobs within team or target work area
• analysing work practices, procedures and 5S principles to facilitate setting up the 5S system and to identify improvements
• identifying gaps in skills and/or knowledge and options to address them

Required knowledge 

Required knowledge includes:

• principles and purpose of 5S
• methods of identifying waste in the work area, such as:

• waste walk
• document tagging
• tracking/log sheets
• spaghetti diagrams
• existing information technology and enterprise resource systems (e.g. Systems Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) software, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, Materials Resource Planning (MRP) and proprietary systems

• organisational policies, plans and procedures
• processes for identifying and addressing skill gaps
• ways of encouraging team members to find and suggest areas for improvement
• methods of identifying and evaluating options and making/recommending improvements
• methods of accessing required resources
• OHS requirements relevant to team and work area

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit 

A person who demonstrates competency in this unit must be able to provide evidence of the ability to:

• identify the scope of the services and/or functions supplied to and by the team or work area and the deliverables expected by customers, including the ultimate customer
• facilitate a systematic approach to implementing 5S
• lead and motivate others in achieving 5S outcomes and making improvements to the 5S systems
• set up systems for monitoring and improving 5S implementation
• manage non-conformances in implementation of 5S.

Context of and specific resources for assessment 

Assessment of performance must be undertaken in a workplace using or implementing one or more competitive systems and practices.

Access may be required to:

• workplace procedures and plans relevant to work area
• specifications and documentation relating to planned, currently being implemented, or implemented changes to work processes and procedures relevant to the assessee
• documentation and information in relation to production, waste, overheads and hazard control/management
• reports from supervisors/managers
• case studies and scenarios to assess responses to contingencies.

Method of assessment 

A holistic approach should be taken to the assessment.

Competence in this unit may be assessed by using a combination of the following to generate evidence:

• demonstration in the workplace
• workplace projects
• suitable simulation
• case studies/scenarios (particularly for assessment of contingencies, improvement scenarios, and so on)
• targeted questioning
• reports from supervisors, peers and colleagues (third-party reports)
• portfolio of evidence.

In all cases it is expected that practical assessment will be combined with targeted questioning to assess underpinning knowledge.

Where applicable, reasonable adjustment must be made to work environments and training situations to accommodate ethnicity, age, gender, demographics and disability.

Guidance information for assessment 

Assessment processes and techniques must be culturally appropriate and appropriate to the oracy, language and literacy capacity of the candidate and the work being performed.

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

Competitive systems and practices 

Competitive systems and practices may include, but are not limited to:

• lean operations
• agile operations
• preventative and predictive maintenance approaches
• monitoring and data gathering systems, such as SCADA software, ERP systems MRP and proprietary systems
• statistical process control systems, including six sigma and three sigma
• Just in Time (JIT), kanban and other pull-related operations control systems
• supply, value, and demand chain monitoring and analysis
• 5S
• continuous improvement (kaizen)
• breakthrough improvement (kaizen blitz)
• cause/effect diagrams
• overall equipment effectiveness (OEE)
• takt time
• process mapping
• problem solving
• run charts
• standard procedures
• current reality tree

Competitive systems and practices should be interpreted so as to take into account:

• the stage of implementation of competitive systems and practices
• the size of the enterprise
• the work organisation, culture, regulatory environment and the industry sector

Procedures 

Procedures may include:

• work instructions
• standard operating procedures
• formulas/recipes
• batch sheets
• temporary instructions and similar instructions provided for the smooth running of the plant
• good operating practice as may be defined by industry codes of practice (e.g. good manufacturing practice (GMP) and Responsible Care)
• government regulations

Procedures may be:

• written, verbal, computer-based or in some other format

5S 

5S is a system of work organisation originally developed in Japan based around a close translation of the five stages in the housekeeping approach is:

• sort
• set in order
• shine
• standardise
• sustain

Sort 

Sort involves keeping only what is absolutely necessary for the work processes that comprise the job and includes:

• clearing the work area of all non-essential items

Non-essential items are items not required to either produce product, conduct process or operations or make required adjustments to equipment during process or operations

Set in order 

Set in order includes:

• assigning required equipment and materials appropriate locations in the work area

Shine 

Shine includes:

• keeping the work area clean at all times. This should be carried out to a regular daily schedule against allowed time, usually at the end of the day or of a particular process

Cleaning includes:

• noting any signs of wear, damage, leakage, safety risks or other issues that require immediate attention

Standardise 

Standardising includes:

• activities that help maintain the order and the housekeeping standards
• using procedures and checklists developed from a procedure

Sustain 

Sustain includes:

• making sure that daily activities are completed every day regardless of circumstance
• undertaking inspections, including:

• informal inspections that should be carried often, at least weekly

• generating continuous improvement actions from daily activities
• formal inspections that should be carried out at least monthly

Items in work area 

Items in work area may include:

• tools
• jigs/fixtures
• materials/components
• plant and equipment
• manuals
• personal items (e.g. bags, lunch boxes and posters)
• safety equipment and personal protective equipment
• other items which happen to be in the work area

Team 

The term team is used to apply to all individuals in the target work area who are involved in the implementation of 5S. The team may or may not be a formally designated team working to a team leader

Work area 

The work area includes:

• all areas where aspects of the job are performed and that are under the direct control of the employee. In a team environment 5S should be applied to all work areas under the control of the team

Target work area 

The target work area may be identified as a physical and/or virtual work space:

• used by a person, a team or a cross-functional group
• common to part/s of a process or value stream (already defined)
• shared by people who undertake a defined procedure or set of procedures
• needed to support a particular function

Appropriate place 

Appropriate places may include areas designated for:

• recycling
• rubbish removal
• staff room/lunch room/kitchen
• storage
• holding area until status is confirmed

Optimum assigned location 

The optimum assigned location may include:

• making changes to the layout of furniture, equipment and personnel in order to facilitate the smooth and continuous flow of work through process steps taking into account OHS considerations

Non-conformance 

Non-conformance includes:

• incorrect or incomplete application of 5S procedures, including any daily tasks, scheduled inspections and continuous improvement procedures

Unit sector

Competitive systems and practices