Tips on Designing Custom 5s Shadow Boards for Your Business

If you have been tasked with creating a custom 5s shadow board for your office, you might be feeling more than a little overwhelmed right now. Where do you even start?

Never fear. This post will take you step-by-step through the process of designing an appealing, functional 5s shadow board that will help spread lean manufacturing principles throughout your organization. But first, let's briefly cover what a 5s shadow board is, and why you've been given the job of creating one.

5s Shadow Boards and Lean Manufacturing

Lean manufacturing is a set of principles that seeks to remove waste and increase efficiency in the manufacturing process, thereby delivering greater value to customers and shareholders.

5s shadow boards are a crucial element of the lean manufacturing process. Custom 5s shadow boards help to keep workspaces organized, increasing productivity and efficiency while improving safety standards and workplace morale. Clearly, a 5s shadow board plays a vital role in lean manufacturing. But how do you design a custom one from scratch?

Four Steps to Designing a Custom 5s Shadow Board

Step #1: Decide How many customizations You Need

There are various levels of customization available when creating company 5s shadow boards, and you have the power to choose how involved you want to be in the customization and design process. Several elements go into the creation of a 5s shadow board: there is a material choice, colour, layout, design, and finally, fabrication.

You can control each step of the process. If you simply require a generic 5s shadow board, you may be able to utilize pre-existing, customizable templates. Otherwise, move on to step #2.

 Step #2: Choose a Shadow Board

Before you can begin planning the layout and design of your 5s shadow board, you need to consider where the bored will live. This will help you choose a material, board type (mobile or hanging), and an appropriate hanging system. 

Step #3: Start Planning Your Layout

If you require a fully customized 5s shadow board, your next step is organizing your board's layout. If you are not highly familiar with the department you are creating the shadow board for, make sure you consult with team members during this process.

The design can be the most intimidating part of the process, but your board manufacturer is there to help if you need them.

To plan the customized 5s layout, lay the tools of equipment flat on the ground in the arrangement you would like it to appear on your shadow board. Take many high-resolution pictures making sure to include measurements for length and width. Another important factor to consider here is visibility; you may want to outline for your tools or equipment to be slightly larger than the item itself.

As an alternative to physically manipulating the tools you want to incorporate on your board, you can use one of many available software tools, such as Adobe Illustrator CC, to help you plan your design digitally.

Step #4: Finalize Your Design

Once you have settled on a layout for your custom 5s shadow board, you can work on adding any final touches before submitting the design to the manufacturer for production. Now is where you can pick your colours and include elements like the company logo, written instructions to be included on the board, and any other design elements you wish to see.

Once this step has been finalized, you can send your submission to the manufacturer, and you're done! When your custom 5s shadow board is ready, it will be delivered to your business, ready to be put to use!