All Features
Quality Digest
The Juran Institute is offering Six Sigma training at a reduced cost this summer. The training consists of: Step One: A two-day interactive introduction to lean on July 18 and 19. Step Two: A four-day Yellow Belt workshop that includes a review of the skills learned in step one…
Quality Digest
WCBF will host a design for Six Sigma (DFSS) conference in Las Vegas in September. The keynote address—“Design for Six Sigma: A Key to Growth”—will be delivered by Martha Gardner, GE Global Research global quality leader. Other expert speakers include Kamal Ayoub, Tyco Healthcare vice…
Quality Digest
The Society of Manufacturing Engineers’s lean certification bronze-level exam will be used as an outcome assessment as part of the 360vu Research and Education Foundation’s Lean Enterprise Certification Program, the companies recently announced. The exam will be used for lean enterprise…
Steven Ouellette
I
n Dirk Dusharme’s First Word in the April 2006 issue of Quality Digest, he sneaks into the back of the “Church of the Six Sigma” and cannily reports the goings on. In this column, I will burst in through the doors dressed in motley and try to pry the scales off of your eyes, chanting, “DMAIC…
Quality Digest
The International Register of Certificated Auditors and RABQSA have agreed to recognize each other’s training certifications. Both organizations are currently performing evaluations to identify which of their certifications are mutually acceptable. They expect to add continually to the…
Quality Digest
Rising fuel costs seem to be affecting customer perceptions of quality in the energy and airline industries, according to the American Society for Quality’s Quarterly Quality Report. The QQR examines the perceived quality of goods and services, as measured by the American Customer…
Quality Digest
The Baldrige National Quality Program’s annual Improvement Day is approaching, and the organizers are seeking comments to improve its processes. Improvement Day will be held July 26, 2006, at the National Institute of Standards and Technology offices in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Comments on…
Craig Cochran
Last year I had the good fortune of doing some consulting with B&C Specialty Products in Hopeulikit, Georgia. B&C does light manufacturing, primarily plastic molding and assembly, and they distribute products produced by companies in the Far East. They have about 150 employees and are by…
Quality Digest
TÜV America Inc. and Product Safety Engineering Inc. have entered into a partnership in order to expand their product safety and electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) testing services. PSE will provide EMC testing, product safety services and global certification services to TÜV’s customers in…
Quality Digest
Flexible Learning Ireland recently formed a partnership with AssurX Inc. to distribute AssurX’s CATSWeb software in Europe. FLI is a provider of consulting, training and software to the life sciences sector, and will focus the distribution of CATSWeb on this market. The company works with…
Quality Digest
Fluke Corp. recently added nine new products and enhanced features to its family of pressure calibrators. Designed to provide a compact, lightweight pressure calibration solution for transmitters, gages and switches, the Fluke 718 Pressure Calibrators feature a new design that protects…
Quality Digest
Kotem Technologies recently released an enhanced version of SmartFit 3D, its best-fitting and analysis software.Taking measured-part data from popular coordinate measurement machine, video and laser metrology systems, SmartFit 3D troubleshoots manufacturing processes and finds the best coordinate…
Quality Digest
An upcoming metrology course will focus on the practical use of vibration and shock testing, measurement, analysis and calibration. The course will be held Oct. 16–18 at the Amerisuites Las Vegas. Wayne Tustin, an expert on vibration and shock testing, and president of Equipment…
Quality Digest
InterTech Development Co. has released new software designed to optimize test conditions for leak-testing applications. InterTech’s S3085 monitoring software helps provide users with the means to show real-time traces of how their test instrumentation transducers are performing, versus…
Quality Digest
Renishaw recently released QuickView, software that makes the company’s widely used ML10 laser interferometry system more powerful and flexible.The resulting system combines the accuracy and resolution of Renishaw’s interferometer system with the ease of use of a conventional oscilloscope…
Quality Digest
An upcoming metrology course will focus on the practical use of vibration and shock testing, measurement, analysis and calibration. The course will be held Oct. 16–18 at the Amerisuites Las Vegas. Wayne Tustin, an expert on vibration and shock testing, and president of Equipment…
Denise Robitaille
"For want of nail a shoe was lost For want of a shoe a horse was lost For want of horse a rider was lost For want of a rider a battle was lost For loss of a battle a kingdom was lost And all because of a horseshoe nail." In researching the origins of this familiar cautionary maxim, I…
Quality Digest
The United States National Committee (USNC) to the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) will host the 2010 IEC General Meeting in Seattle.The 10-day event, scheduled for Oct. 6–15, is expected to draw more than 1,500 delegates from around the globe for technical and policy…
Quality Digest
The International Organization for Standardization recently published a new international standard for the market research industry. Market research is now a global industry and the cross-border trade will be standardized by the implementation of ISO 20252, which encourages consistency…
Quality Digest
An International Organization for Standardization subcommittee recently discussed the development of standards to improve crisis management for natural and man-made disasters. Approximately 70 delegates from 30 countries, including 12 developing countries, attended the first meeting of…
Quality Digest
The National Institute of Standards and Technology will host a meeting to help strengthen U.S. standardization efforts that help developing nations build their economies.The Options for Actions Summit will include trading partners’ assessments of U.S. standards-setting activities provided…
Quality Digest
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to form a task force to develop standards to facilitate interoperability of communications equipment used by various emergency personnel. A recent DHS report highlights the need for interoperable emergency communications devices. The…
Quality Digest
Most large U.S. multinational companies have undergone—and are currently undergoing—great changes, according to a recent study. The typical company is using an average of five change-management strategies to navigate internal barriers, indicates the report. Predictably, the vast majority…
Quality Digest
A new book defines quality using the fictional story of an eclectic group of characters trapped inside a train car during a snowstorm. Written as a business fable, On Track to Quality (Lighthouse Point Press, 2006) uses a casual narrative and character dialogue to examine and define the…
Quality Digest
The National Committee for Quality Assurance and Pfizer Inc. have jointly released a publication that profiles strategies and recommendations for improving the quality of care for older adults. Quality Profiles: The Leadership Series—Focus on Enhancing Care for Older Adults offers a…
