Learning about Kaizen in Tokyo, Japan.

Weco (Pty) Ltd received an invitation from the Japanese Productivity Centre (JPC) to join them in Tokyo, Japan to learn more about the Japanese approach to 5s and Lean Manufacturing. We were afforded this opportunity because of the work we have done at our own factory and our membership with Productivity SA. The team was really excited to take this opportunity to learn how we can make even more changes in our factory and cut down on wastages and increase our productivity.

The Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) were attentive hosts and Henry Gomes, our Technical Director had an insightful trip to Japan. He was joined by members of other African companies which turned out to be a fantastic networking and learning opportunity in itself.

In Japan, they focus on 5s and Kaizen Manufacturing which focus on quality, cost, delivery, and service. The purpose of the trip was to promote the Kaizen methodology in other countries, which Weco has embraced and implemented throughout our own factory.

5s is the term used to describe a workplace organization methodology which describes how to organize your workspace for increased effectiveness. This is done using 5 pillars, namely Sort, Set in order, Shine, Standardize and Sustain. Kaizen is what we would refer to as continuous improvement. The idea behind Kaizen is that small incremental changes in processes will improve quality and be easier to both implement and maintain.

Each company represented on the trip had to do a presentation detailing the changes that they have made in their own business in terms of both 5s and Kaizen and what they have learned from the trip and the other delegates. The delegates had the opportunity to visit two model companies, namely, Nissho Motor Enterprise and SASAKI Co Ltd. The CEO’s of these two companies shared their own experiences with the Kaizen methodology and gave some great insight into just how much a business can achieve by implementing the simple ideas behind 5s and Kaizen.

Since implementing the systems in our factory we have become so passionate about the positive changes it can make that we have included 5s introductory training as an offering in the Weco Training Academy. Click here for more information on the 5s and Kaizen training.