5S Checklists: A Practical Way to Keep Your Audits on Track

As we’ve written about in the past, 5S is one of the cornerstone practices of lean manufacturing. It is often used as a systematic framework for workspace organization based on the idea that a better work environment results in better operations, which in turn leads to better products.

The 5S framework, developed and popularized in Japan, provides five key steps for maintaining an efficient workspace in order to improve the quality of products. In Japanese, these steps are known as seiri (Sort), seiton (Set in order), seiso (Shine), seiketsu (Standardize), and shitsuke (Sustain). In North American manufacturing environments, these 5S’s are broken down as follows:

• Sort - Sort through all tools, equipment, furniture, etc. in an area and determine what should be kept and what should be removed

• Set in order - Organize remaining items and determine how they will be stored

• Shine - Proactively clean work areas and perform maintenance on equipment on a regular basis

• Standardize - Create a standardized operating procedure for 5S tasks

• Sustain - Keep your 5S system running smoothly by maintaining the procedures you’ve developed and updating them if necessary

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5S is one of the basics of lean. It’s about keeping work areas safe, efficient, and reliable by following five steps mentioned above. When those steps become routine, the shop floor runs smoother and problems don’t stay hidden for long.

A 5S checklist is simply a structured way to check that those routines are actually happening. Instead of relying on memory or one person’s judgment, the checklist makes sure every step gets looked at the same way, every time. That means fewer blind spots, fewer “we forgot to check that” moments, and clearer results you can track over time.

The real value goes beyond the inspection itself. A checklist helps reinforce the habits that keep 5S alive, and it ties directly into continuous improvement. It’s not a one-and-done form, it should adapt as your processes evolve and as your team finds better ways to work.

In the world of manufacturing, businesses are often looking for ways to reduce errors and increase productivity. This 5S audit provides a framework for performing a comprehensive analysis of your work processes and your ability to produce a quality product. By going through a 5S audit, companies have been able to reduce defects, meaning fewer errors, fewer returns, and fewer complaints from customers.

A 5S audit is not simply a visual inspection of your facilities. A 5S audit is a systematic check of your work environment with the goal of identifying opportunities for improvement. A 5S audit identifies how well you are implementing Kaizen (continuous improvement) on the shop floor.

Conducting a 5s audit involves evaluating current work conditions and making changes to improve the workplace. The result is an organized, clean, and efficient work environment.

Finally, 5S audits are used to support the implementation of standard work. It’s important to note—the audit was not developed for the purpose of making recommendations. It is simply an analysis of the standards and suggestions outlined by supervisors at a given manufacturing site.

Now that we've reviewed 5s audits at a high level, let's dive into some of the benefits of incorporating 5s into your operations.

Some of the key benefits to 5s audits are as follows:

• Reduction in space needed for storage - Removing unwanted and unorganized items from the work space not only reduces unneeded clutter on the shop floor, but also creates more space for value-added work.
• Improved maintenance processes - By following daily processes for cleaning and fixing machines and equipment within your facility, maintenance activities become simpler and more streamlined and breakdowns become less common.
• Improved safety - The process of cleaning and organizing a work space inherently reduces the potential for safety incidents within the work environment.
• Increased employee morale - When employees are bought into the 5s audit process, they demonstrate a higher commitment to the values that 5s outlines. This ensures that everyone across the org does their part to maintain a clean, organized, and efficient work space.

After the initial implementation of 5S, companies often develop checklists of things they need to check to ensure standards and suggestions are being followed. These checklists are called 5S Checklists.

While maintaining top-notch safety standards in a work environment can be an ongoing challenge for manufacturers, streamlining the process with a 5S checklist can make it easier and more efficient to stay up to date on your safety measures.

It’s important to note that no two 5S audits are the same. This is why checklists can be a handy tool to help guide operators from task to task without missing any steps along the way.

Sort

1. Are there any unneeded materials or parts around?

2. Are there any unused machines or other equipment (jigs, tools, pallets, dies, or similar items) around?

3. Are the vital controls clear and definitive enough to see when something is out of place?

4. Only documents to the job are stored at the work zone. Are these documents stored nicely and visible?

Set in order

5. Are shelves and other storage areas marked with location indicators?

6. Is everything in its home with exception of things currently being used for the job?

7. Are the machines wiped clean often and kept free of shavings, fibers, and oil?

8. Are maximum and minimum allowable quantities indicated (Kanban)?

9. Are lines or markers used to clearly indicate walkway and storage areas?

Shine

10. Are floors kept shiny, clean, and free of waste, dust, and/or oil?

11. Are the machines wiped clean often and kept free of waste, dust, and/or oil?

12. Is there a cleaning checklist being followed that is effective?

13. Is it clear (understood and communicated) who is responsible for cleaning?

14. Do workers habitually clean their workstations without being told (sweep floors, wipe equipment, etc)?

Standardize

15. Are standard procedures clear, documented, and actively used?

16. Was the 5S audit completed for this area last month?

17. Was the 5S audit completed for this area the month before last?

18. Are improvement memos/newspaper memos regularly being generated?

19. Were the improvement ideas from the last audit acted upon?

20. Are standards used uniformly across the area?

21. Are the first three S’s (Sort, Set Location, and Shine) being maintained?

Sustain

22. Is everybody adequately trained in 5S?

23. Are procedures updated and regularly reviewed?

24. Are audit results and findings communicated adequately to everyone?

How to Score a 5S Audit

Scoring a 5S audit isn’t just about checking boxes, it gives you a baseline to see where you are and where you need to improve. Most teams use a simple 1–5 scale, with each number tied to a clear level of performance. Some plants also roll those numbers into a percentage so results are easier to compare across shifts or over time.

Here’s a common scoring guide you can adjust to fit your operation:

On paper, these scores usually get scribbled down and tallied later, a process that’s slow and easy to mess up. Digital tools clean this up. With something like Tulip, operators can tap in scores on a tablet, send them instantly, and see results roll up into a dashboard in real time. That makes it easier to spot trends, follow up quickly, and keep audits from turning into busywork.

The point isn’t to make scoring another chore. If done right, it’s just a quick way to see where things stand and keep the focus on improvement.

Digital vs Paper 5S Checklists

If you’re still walking the floor with a clipboard, you’re in good company but the gap between paper and digital is getting harder to ignore. Paper feels simple, but it’s tough to scale and doesn’t give you the visibility most plants need today.

Here’s how the two stack up:

For a small team, paper might be fine. But once you need to compare results across shifts, track improvements, or run multiple sites, digital quickly pays off. With Tulip, checklists live in a simple app. Operators tap through an audit, scores update in real time, and nothing gets buried in a stack of binders.

Common Challenges in 5S Audits (and What to Do About Them)

Even with a good checklist, 5S audits can stall out. The problems usually aren’t the paperwork, it’s the day-to-day reality of keeping people engaged and actually fixing what’s found. Here are a few of the usual hang-ups and ways teams work through them:

1) Audits start strong, then fade
The first few weeks look good, then people drift back to old habits.
Fix: Don’t treat 5S like a side project. Leaders have to walk the walk, and teams need regular reminders of why it matters, not just another checklist to fill out.

2) Issues get logged but nothing happens
The same problems show up every week because no one owns the follow-up.
Fix: Assign names, not just notes. Whether it’s on a whiteboard or in a digital system, somebody has to be clearly on the hook, with reminders until it’s done.

3) No one sees the results
Audits happen, but the scores sit in a binder. The floor never knows if things are getting better.
Fix: Put results where everyone can see them. A dashboard, a team board, or even a five-minute huddle update makes progress visible and keeps folks engaged.

A checklist by itself won’t change much. The real shift comes when leaders back it up, people are held accountable, and results are shared out in the open. That’s when 5S sticks.

Digitizing 5S Audits with Tulip

Keeping a workspace clean and organized only works if the process is consistent. That’s where Tulip comes in. Instead of clipboards and spreadsheets, you can build a simple 5S audit app that runs on tablets or kiosks - set up in minutes, no IT tickets needed.

The no-code builder is what makes it practical. Engineers, supervisors, or team leads can put together digital audit forms, add scoring rules, assign follow-ups, and even set alerts when something’s overdue. If you want to tweak the checklist, you don’t wait weeks for a developer - you just update it yourself.

Here’s what a digital audit with Tulip can include:

• One-tap scoring for each question

• Automatic time stamps and sign-off

• Dashboards that show trends without manual reporting

• Follow-up tasks that don’t get lost in the shuffle

It takes the busywork out of audits so the focus stays on fixing issues and improving the floor not chasing paperwork. You can try it free for 30 days and see how it fits into your audits.