🐢 You are reading The Long Start — Module 6 of 10
This module is about walking around and looking at things with a checklist. It's more exciting than it sounds. Missed Module 5?
Why Audits?
An audit sounds scary. It sounds like the IRS showing up. But in manufacturing, an audit is just a structured walk around your workplace with a checklist. You look at specific things, score them, and note what needs fixing. That's it.
SymplProcess has two types of audits:
- 5S Audits — Is the workplace organized, clean, and standardized?
- Safety Audits — Is the workplace safe? Are there hazards?
The Money Why
OSHA fines average $16,131 per serious violation (2024 rates). One recordable injury costs a company an average of $42,000 in direct costs and 3-5x that in indirect costs (training a replacement, lost productivity, insurance premium increases). Regular audits catch hazards before they become injuries. Companies with mature 5S programs report 20-30% reduction in safety incidents.
5S Audits — Keeping Things Organized
Where to find it: 5S Audit
What Is 5S? (The Full Explanation)
5S is a system for workplace organization that comes from Japan. The 5 S's are:
| S | Japanese | English | ELI5 Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seiri | Sort | "Throw away what you don't need." Go through your work area. Everything that doesn't belong there — get rid of it. If you haven't used it in a month, why is it here? |
| 2 | Seiton | Set in Order | "A place for everything, everything in its place." Every tool, every supply, every piece of equipment has a labeled, marked home. When you need it, you know exactly where it is. |
| 3 | Seiso | Shine | "Clean it." The work area is visibly clean. Floors, machines, tables — all clean. Not because we're neat freaks, but because clean workplaces reveal problems. You can't see a leak on a dirty floor. |
| 4 | Seiketsu | Standardize | "Make it consistent." Create standards so everyone does it the same way. Cleaning schedules, labeling rules, shadow boards for tools. Not just "this shift does it well" — every shift does it the same. |
| 5 | Shitsuke | Sustain | "Keep it going." The hardest part. Anyone can clean up once. Sustaining it means audits, habits, accountability, and leadership that walks the talk. |
How a 5S Audit Works in SymplProcess
Safety Audits — Keeping People Safe
Where to find it: Safety Audit
What it is: A structured safety walkthrough checklist with zone-by-zone scoring, similar to 5S but focused on hazard identification, PPE compliance, and regulatory items.
How It Differs from 5S
| Aspect | 5S Audit | Safety Audit |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Workplace organization and cleanliness | Hazard identification and safety compliance |
| Typical checkpoints | "Are tools in designated spots?" "Is the area clean?" | "Are guards in place on machines?" "Is PPE being worn?" "Are exits clear?" |
| Frequency | Weekly or monthly | Daily or weekly (depending on your industry/regulation) |
| Stakes | Productivity and morale | People's lives and OSHA fines |
Safety Audit Features
- Zone-by-zone scoring — same as 5S, walk through checkpoints for each area
- Custom checkpoints — your admin can add checkpoints specific to your facility (forklift areas, chemical storage, confined spaces, etc.)
- Auto-generated action items — failed checkpoints create tasks just like 5S audits
- Severity levels — safety findings can be flagged as Critical, Major, or Minor
- Score trending — track safety scores over time across all zones
- Cross-reference with shift reports — safety incidents logged in shift reports are linked to audit findings for full traceability
The Mindset Shift
Most people think of audits as "gotcha" exercises — someone looking for what you did wrong. That's the wrong way to think about it. Audits are preventive maintenance for your workplace. You're not looking for blame. You're looking for hazards, waste, and opportunities. The person who finds and fixes a problem before it causes an injury is a hero, not a snitch.
How Audits Connect to Everything Else
Audits don't live in a vacuum. Here's how they connect to the rest of SymplProcess:
| Connection | How It Works |
|---|---|
| Audits → Action Items | Failed checkpoints auto-create action items. Those items appear on My Day for the assignee. |
| Audits → Trends | Audit scores over time show up in Performance Trends. You can see if 5S is improving or declining. |
| Audits → Shift Reports | Safety incidents in shift reports can be cross-referenced with safety audit findings. |
| Audits → Pareto | The most common audit failures show up in Pareto analysis — focus on the 20% of issues causing 80% of failures. |
| Audits → Leader Standard Work | Completing audits is part of your daily tasks on My Day. It's a habit, not an event. |
What's Next?
Module 7 gets into the power tools: the Engineering Task Tracker, Monte Carlo simulation, Value Stream Mapping, Yamazumi charts, and all the advanced features that make continuous improvement engineers very happy. These are the features that separate "we use software" from "we use software well."
Continue to Module 7: Power Tools & Engineering →
← Back to The Long Start · Module 6 of 10 · ← Module 5
Stop reading, start doing
Model your process flow, optimize staffing with Theory of Constraints, and track every shift — all in one platform. Set up in under 5 minutes.