What Do the 5 Ms in Manufacturing Stand For?

Taiichi Ohno coined the 5 Ms framework in the late 1940s as part of the Toyota Production System, based on the philosophy of completely reducing waste to ensure optimal efficiency. One of the system’s core principles is “kaizen” — the idea of continuous improvement — but to many, this sounds like a vague concept. After all, how do you practically achieve continuous improvement of your manufacturing process?

That’s the answer Taiichi wanted to answer with 5 Ms. Monitoring the 5 Ms allows managers to improve efficiency and profitability through regular evaluation of five critical factors that impact production. Let’s take a closer look at the 5 Ms of lean manufacturing.

5 Ms in Lean Manufacturing

The 5 Ms represent five key factors that influence production efficiency and quality according to the lean manufacturing philosophy. There’s another variation of the original 5 Ms (the 8 Ms), but our focus here is on the core five, including:

Manpower

Manpower is your greatest asset, so it’s important to invest in building a strong team. Cross-train employees to enable them to quickly adapt to demand shifts, cover absences and reduce bottlenecks. With cross-training, you also reduce dependency on any single worker.

It’s also important to empower your maintenance team with real-time data needed to perform their jobs more efficiently. For example, it helps to give maintenance technicians access to equipment maintenance backlogs to see an overview of an asset’s history and provide context while troubleshooting or performing maintenance.

Encourage workers to participate in kaizen activities. For example, regular Gemba walks — observational tours in which workers share insights — can help identify efficiency tweaks that only workers can spot.

Machine

Using high-quality machinery with the latest technologies is another key part of efficient manufacturing operations. Keeping your assets running at optimal levels requires monitoring equipment health to maximize production efficiency, ensure worker safety and improve production quality. Modern companies use proactive maintenance strategies like condition-based maintenance (CBM) to monitor machine health. CBM reveals signs of wear or malfunction through predictive analytics, helping you prevent failure events and minimize downtime.

Most proactive maintenance techniques require some level of automation to be practical. For example, you can’t have an employee manually monitor data from every sensor on the factory floor for signs of wear. That’s where a reliable computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) software can help. Note: It’s important to choose one that’s mobile-friendly and cloud-based to ensure it’s easily accessible to everyone on your team.

Materials

Lean manufacturing involves maintaining a steady flow of raw materials with consistent quality. Variations in material quality can lead to defective final products and unpredictable production cycles. But monitoring parts inventory is just as critical, as it ensures maintenance technicians never have to delay maintenance because parts are unavailable. Implementing a just-in-time inventory management system creates more efficiency and can reduce costs by aligning raw-material orders directly with production schedules.

What’s more, automated material tracking can help ensure that materials are handled efficiently to support a smooth transition between production stages and maintain a steady rhythm on the factory floor. A CMMS, for instance, can automate will alert the right person when inventory levels reach a minimum threshold to ensure your team never runs out of crucial parts and materials.

Methods

Having a standardized production process is a non-negotiable requirement for effective management. Clear guidelines for each step of a task, from setup to completion, help maintain process consistency and production quality.

If you’re experiencing challenges with standardization, seek input from internal experts to re-engineer standard operating procedures (SOPs). You can even build a centrally accessible repository of SOPs using a CMMS to make sure everyone who needs it has access.

Measurement

You can’t improve what you can’t measure. Tracking the right maintenance metrics tells you whether your strategies are working as intended or if you need to make tweaks to further optimize processes. Some examples of key performance indicators (KPIs) to track include mean time between failures (MTBF), cycle time and defect rates.

A CMMS can monitor various maintenance KPIs in real time using data from predictive maintenance tools. Manual audits and preventive maintenance are just as critical because they help identify key problems before they turn into a crisis.

What About the 8 Ms?

As we mentioned earlier, the 8 Ms is an extension of the 5 Ms. The framework was extended to address the growing complexity and interdependence of modern manufacturing environments. The 8 Ms include three additional factors that affect production efficiency and quality:

• Mother Nature: Mother nature refers to the impact of the immediate and global environment on production. For example, temperature fluctuations can alter material properties, causing certain metals to expand or contract and leading to subtle variations in part dimensions or material stress. Similarly, natural disasters or war can lead to supply chain disruptions and lead to production delays.
• Management: Management identifies sustainable lean initiatives aligned with organizational objectives. They offer direction, set goals and empower teams to execute strategies and build a culture rooted in continuous improvement.
• Maintenance: Effective maintenance through proactive maintenance techniques keeps equipment in optimal condition, minimizes breakdowns and extends the equipment’s useful life. The easiest way to implement and automate maintenance is by using a reliable CMMS.

How to Use the 5 Ms for Root Cause Analysis

The 5 Ms of lean manufacturing, used in combination with five whys, is an effective root cause analysis tool. Here’s a quick overview of how to use it:

Step 1: Define the Problem

A clearly defined problem helps build a foundation for a focused investigation. Observe the problem, gather data and assess the impact of the problem.

Step 2: Apply 5 Whys Within Each M

Repeatedly ask “why” (usually five times) to identify if the root cause lies in one or more of the Ms. You can also use a fishbone diagram to visualize the 5 Ms during root cause analysis. Suppose a critical machine on the production line has stopped unexpectedly, here are the questions you might ask to find the root cause:

• Why did the machine stop? Because the motor overheated and shut down automatically.
• Why did the motor overheat? Because the machine’s cooling system wasn’t working properly.
• Why wasn’t the cooling system working properly? Because the cooling fan had accumulated dust and debris, obstructing airflow.
• Why was there so much dust and debris in the cooling fan? Because the filters weren’t cleaned or replaced according to the preventive maintenance schedule.
• Why were filters not maintained as scheduled? Because the maintenance team wasn’t aware of the updated maintenance schedule for this machine.

Step 3: Evaluate, Test & Prioritize Root Causes 

Start by looking at the potential impact of a cause and the feasibility of fixing it to determine priority. Test them to make sure you’re treating the real cause, not just symptoms.

Step 4: Take Corrective Action & Monitor

Implement corrective measures specific to each of the 5 Ms as needed and track performance metrics to ensure the effectiveness of corrective measures.

How Coast Can Help Implement a 5 M Framework

Data visibility and team collaboration are vital to quickly finding and addressing the root cause, and that’s where Coast can help.

Coast helps you track critical asset and maintenance data, making it easier for you to identify and address problems. It offers customizable workflows to maximize efficiency and built-in communication tools that allow you to collaborate on work orders when necessary.

Not sure if Coast is right for you? Book a demo today to learn more.