In 1991, we came in to contact with Mr. Hidesaburo Kagiyama (Director of NPO Clean Up Japan Association and Yellow Hat founder) who introduced to us “Sojido”, the idea that "Creating a good environment is the foundation for good quality and good human growth" and since then the whole company has been participating in cleaning activities.
To contribute to the local community, we also have regular volunteer activities and cleaning activities for public facilities and areas around the company etc.Therefore, through these activities each employee becomes "a good worker, a family oriented, contributing member of society" encouraged to keep up self-growth and live life fully.
On November 23, 1991, Chairman and CEO Yoshihito Tanaka had a fateful encounter with Mr. Hidesaburo Kagiyama, the founder of Yellow Hat.While sales were declining rapidly due to the collapse of the bubble economy, we miraculously recovered our business performance by incorporating cleaning activities, and since that time we have promoted company reform by cleaning.
In order to share this experience with many people, in 1993 Nihon Taishomura (Akechi-cho, Ena City), invited Mr. Kagiyama, along with 35 participants, to the first "Clean UP Event" where we received training on how to clean toilets.
Those who had participated in Nihon Taishomura's "Clean Up Event" shared their good experiences with others, inspiring 200 people to participate in the spring of the following year, and 400 in the fall. For the first three years it was held in Nihon Taishomura, but afterwards it spread nationwide, it became the "Clean Up Japan Association", and various regions held "Clean Up Events" a citizen's movement with 100,000 people in 124 locations participating each year.In addition, it has spread overseas to Brazil, China, New York, Taiwan, Romania, Italy, and Hungary.
For the schedule of "Clean Up Events" in various regions, please visit the official site of " Clean Up Japan Association ".
Every Tuesday morning, we clean the local shrine toilet, doing so serves as continual training.We also clean the grounds three times a year.
Every month, at the beginning of the month, we start from the nearest station and clean the roads and riverbeds around the company.
We also actively participate the “Taishomura Clean Up Event" and other “Clean Up Events” around Japan.
“Clean Up Event” are now being held every week in various parts of the country, and the “Taishomura Clean Up Event" is the "heart of Clean Up Events” and is still held every October with many people participating.Our employees also participate each year as both "leaders" and "staff".
Visits from overseas observers started from 1997. The President and CEO met Professor Darral G.Clarke, Ph.D, who came from America's Brigham Young University. Around the same time, President Masaaki Imai (of KAIZEN Institute Consulting Group, Ltd.) wrote "GEMBA KAIZEN" (written for overseas readers) and mentioned our company as an example of "GEMBA KAIZEN", that is; "companies that take initiatives for improvement through cleaning" making our company known overseas.After that, more than ten pairs of overseas observer teams have visited us every year.
Currently, observers increasingly arrive one day early to be able participate in the company cleaning from 7am, they stay for tours, and to attend meetings and presentations until about 1pm.Although the main reason many of these observation teams have come to Japan is to see Toyota's KAIZEN activities, after observing our company, they are also very interested in increasing their KAIZEN activities working from "Cleaning", and the 5S' which are the basis of KAIZEN philosophy.
Cleaning does more than just clean an area, it has power to extract more of the original value from the equipment and workspace.Then, we can nurture awareness in our employees, improve communication, and revitalize our workplace.
Finally, here is a memorable comment.
When many managers around the world think about factory management, their first priority is to emphasize machines, then processes, and lastly people.
But, at your company, "people" are the most important thing.Moreover, I learned that at your company, not only are people treated well, but through cleaning many other things are as well. Furthermore, it is wonderful to see top management taking the initiative in cleaning.I have seen many companies worldwide, but no other company firmly defines and practices cleaning like your company.
