In order to ensure and maintain a safe work environment and appropriate facilities for our employees without affecting the quality of the final product, we’ve implemented the 5S's Program.
This 5S’s program was implemented in 2003 through the training of all personnel, starting from Senior Management to plant personnel. Its application requires for each one of us to be highly committed, making our company an authentic model of organization, cleanliness, safety and hygiene. Managers and area managers must be the first ones to assume this commitment since this is the clearest example of short-term results.
What are the 5S's? It is a quality practice created in Japan referred to the "Integral Maintenance" of the company, not only of machinery, equipment and infrastructure but also referring to the maintenance of the work environment as a whole. The initials of the 5S's mean:
At Grupo Vanguardia we ensure that the following activities, among others, are carried out in the different processes of the company:
The program includes assessments conducted by Human Resources in different areas of the company randomly at least once a month. Since there is no specific dates for such assessments, we encourage for all areas to maintain the proper order and cleanliness of their work space at all times. During the evaluation, the 5S's Program evaluation form and the photographic record are applied. After the inspection, managers and area managers are summoned for the presentation of results. Then, we proceed to present the evaluation results of the 5S's program; reflecting the grades obtained in each of the evaluated areas, the rating scale is from 1 to 4.
The summary of the evaluation includes the commitments acquired from each area manager. The areas that are in trouble should acquire a commitment for improvement; must be corrected immediately and verifying its execution during the next inspection. The publication of results can be observed through the ‘’ 5S's faces ’’ which is a qualitative way to evaluate work areas, so it is common to observe a ‘’5S’s face’’ inside offices, warehouses and in the different productive areas of the company. It should be noted that the 5S inspections are considered as an indicator for Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and ISO 9001: 2015.
On the other hand, the Safety and Hygiene Committee acts as a parallel and support committee for the 5S's program; ensuring the safety of employees, facilities and work environment. This Committee is formed by the company’s employees who meet periodically to carry out activities related to continuous improvement in: