Learning Centre

5S Floor Marking: Is Your Warehouse Giving Off The Right Signals?

Written by Alana Graham | Mar 12, 2024 1:45:32 PM

Installing a 5S floor marking solution into your warehouse will solve the problem that all Operations Managers face: ‘How do I effectively manage the movement of products and people?’

5S floor markings provide visual signals to improve flow, promote safety and boost efficiency.

Here are some of the common things people do with floor marking in their warehouses:

    • Mark out zones using different colours for different areas.

 

(Clarity Top Visual Tip – you can also colour code your Cleaning Stations, Tool Boards and tools so that you always know which department that tool is from)

 

  • Define Loading Areas
  • Define Unloading Areas
  • Mark Hazardous Areas
  • Mark the direction of travel
  • Mark out a safe pedestrian walkway

 

(Clarity Top Visual Tip – You can mark this out with non-slip vinyl which not only marks a safe path but also makes the path safer!)

 

  • Mark out pallet locations
  • Set the standards and mark locations for items as part of the 5S Programme.
  • Glow in the dark tape can be used to mark fire exits.

 

 

Once you have made the decision to put floor markings in your warehouse make sure to formulate an effective strategy and communicate it to your team for feedback. Confusing and overly complicated visual management will only cause more problems than it solves.

 

5S Floor Marking: Paint vs Tape

When it comes to 5S floor marking there tends to be two options and that is to paint or mark an area with tape. Painting used to be the favoured option due to the unreliability of tape. However, due to recent technical advancements tape is reigning supreme! Clarity’s Premium 5S Floor Marking Tape doesn’t stretch or break and, due to its extruded edges, you can drive over with a forklift without pulling it up or damaging it in any way.

Our tape doesn’t leave behind any sticky residue so can be easily repositioned or moved should you need to change layouts.

One of the main advantages of using tape over paint is that there isn’t any downtime while you wait for paint to dry. Painting your markings will usually mean roughly 2-3 downtime days for application and drying, with tape simply stick and off you go.

Clarity has a huge range of 5S Floor Marking solutions to help you to optimise your warehouse.

For more information check out our video with Clarity’s very own Jade as she talks you through all the different options and features of our floor markings.

 

 

 

 

Clarity Visual Management, making Lean work…

Here at Clarity Visual Management, we consult with clients both far and wide about how they can use visual management to achieve their goals, exceed their targets and make financial savings which would otherwise be lost to waste. We work with our clients to create a bespoke strategy that ensures visual management is set up for success before providing specific, high-quality Lean products to sustain the visual management programme and make Lean work in the organisation long-term.

You can read more about the work we’ve undertaken with our clients by browsing through our Visual Management Case Studies.

Download our ‘Introduction to Clarity Visual Management’ if you’re unfamiliar with Clarity and want to learn a little more about our products and services.

Download Your Guide Here

 

Further reading on the Clarity Blog: