1st Monthly Knapp and Air Logic Company Newsletter - March 2025

Happy 80/50 Anniversary -This year marks Knapp’s 80th year in business and Air Logic’s 50th!

---

6S - What Is It and What Can It Do For You?

• Safety: Safety

• Sort: Remove unnecessary items

• Set in Order: Organize and arrange

• Shine: Clean everything

• Standardize: Workplace consistency

• Sustain: Maintain

Creates sustainable culture of safety, Reduces wastes, Improves productivity, Improves focus, and Reduces stress.

Our goal is to implement 5S into KAL - Calling it 6S by incorporating safety directly into all aspects of our company!

To incorporate safety into the 5S methodology we need to consider safety concerns during each of the 5S stages:

• Sort - removing unnecessary clutter that could cause tripping hazards

• Set in Order - placing tools and materials in easily accessible locations

• Shine - regularly cleaning work areas to identify potential hazards like spills

• Standardize -establishing clear safety procedures and visual cues

• Sustain - consistently monitoring and maintaining the safe work environment through regular audits and employee training; essentially, making safety a priority throughout the entire 5S process.

In-House Examples - What have we done so far?

Kanban Locations

A visual management system that helps keep you organized & improve workflow.

Shadowboard

A board with shadows. When tool is not in place a shadow will show up in its place. Can be used to organize tools, cleaning supplies, or frequently used items in a direct work space.

Most Recent Project - Newly Improved Colorant Area

Several issues led us to this most recent project. These issues included overbuying due to inventory inaccuracies, clutter from years of storage issues, the need for adequate space, and the opportunity for us to update safety items.

List of updates:

• New mixing cage

• Added bays and shelves to accommodate colorants and removing the old

• Moved oven into location

• Purchased desk

• Purchased overhead storage for desk area

• Purchased new ladder

• Added electrical

• Added Kanban cards

Coming Soon:

• 6S Warehouse desk – Terry Reed's area

• Review Standard Work for mixing colorants

• More electrical work including possible addition of increased lighting

• 6S Area by Area, we will work together. We will come to your work area, share our knowledge, and help you become lean, as a team.

  • While plant-wide 6S will not happen overnight, we are excited about the benefits it will bring to your work area. We look forward to helping you safely sort, set in order, shine, standardize, and sustain your location, making it a more efficient and safer workplace.

---

Final Thoughts...

Don’t let perfection stand in the way of improvement!