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Northwest Analytical Inc. recently released an updated version of its flagship NWA Quality Analyst SPC suite. The solution allows manufacturers to more easily analyze process data to identify process improvements and execute quality initiatives such as Six Sigma, CAPA and ISO standards. It includes…
Rath & Strong recently released a new pocket guide for practitioners of GE Work-Out, a methodology that helps improve Six Sigma and lean projects. GE Work-Out was developed by General Electric as a companion to already-established quality improvement programs. It creates a method to deal with…
Breakthrough Management Group recently launched a publishing initiative to advance its total performance improvement model. The launch coincides with the release of BMG’s vice president of publishing Neil DeCarlo’s book, Six Sigma for Dummies (For Dummies, 2005). The company plans to publish an…
One of the oldest chapters of the Association for Operations Management (APICS) and the Harrington Institute recently made a formal agreement to offer Six Sigma, process improvement and project management certification to APICS members around the world. Founded in 1960, the Golden Gate Chapter of…
The American Society for Quality 12th Annual ISO 9000 Summit will be held in Atlanta April 4–5The event will include three major meetings and conferences. Along with the ISO 9000 conference, it will also feature the U.S. Standards Group Meeting, and Summit course clusters and exams for attendees…
The Associated Press recently reported that a committee in Montana’s state legislature is working toward defining quality in education. The initiative is part of a larger effort to change the state’s school funding process. Following the unanimous vote to begin the process, the measure will next be…
Successful management is analogous to being a fighter pilot in a combat environment, according to Jim Murphy, an F-15 pilot who will deliver a keynote address at Quality Expo.Murphy is the founder and CEO of Afterburner Inc., a consulting company that uses fighter pilots to teach some of the world’…
Leading businesses identify customer satisfaction, cost savings and productivity improvements as the primary drives for their quality improvement initiatives, according to a new study from Best Practices LLC. Based on analyses from 46 major companies, the survey concludes that: There is a…
SigmaXL recently released a new version of its SigmaXL v. 4.0 software. The solution is an add-in for Microsoft Excel.The add-in is designed for statistical and graphical analysis. New features include Recall SigmaXL Dialog, which allows users to recall the last data worksheet they used; run charts…
After two years of steady increases, customer satisfaction with goods and services purchased and consumed in the United States has taken a dramatic downturn, according to the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index. The ACSI for the fourth quarter of 2004 was 73.6, down from 74.3, the largest…
Excellus BlueCross BlueShield recently received Case Management Accreditation from URAC, a Washington, D.C.-based health care accreditation agency that establishes quality standards for the health care industry. URAC’s standards require insurers to establish a process to assess, plan and implement…
Eastman Kodak Co. recently acquired OREX, a provider of nondestructive test equipment for specialty medical facilities. OREX has 84 employees, is headquartered in Yokneam, Israel, and is now part of Kodak’s Health Group’s Non-Destructive Testing group, which produces KODAK INDUSTREX digital systems…
The National Committee for Quality Assurance recently released a draft of its new Quality Plus standard. Comments on the draft are due by April 18. The standard, compliance to which is voluntary, identifies organizations that have adopted innovative practices or that promote quality care. It…
Most experts don’t see an end to the offshoring trend, but with an estimated half of all offshoring operations falling short of expectations, companies considering sending their operations overseas have to consider the risks—not merely the rewards—of doing so. The findings come from a report, “…
PowerSteering has acquired Breakthrough Management Group Inc.’s software assets. The two companies have entered into an agreement in which BMG will offer its project tracking software along with the complete suite of PowerSteering software. BMG will continue to provide Six Sigma solutions worldwide…
It was 25 years ago that Philip Crosby’s watershed book, Quality is Free, was published—a landmark that Philip Crosby Associates will celebrate all year long. At a time when peers such as Deming, Ishikawa and Juran were focusing on the highly technical aspects of quality measurement and control,…
The largest North American trade show dedicated to innovation in manufacturing opens this week in Chicago. National Manufacturing Week features a Manufacturing Town Hall panel discussion with top government and trade officials, the National Association of Manufacturers’ 2005 Annual Survey and the…
The National Committee for Quality Assurance and the American Board of Internal Medicine will offer a new program to physicians seeking to maintain their ABIM certification and the opportunity to more easily earn a new distinction: recognition from NCQA and its partners. The agreement will allow…
Canada’s National Quality Institute will host an April networking event focusing on mental health and addiction in the workplace. The event, titled “Working Toward Mental Health and Excellence at Work in Canada,” will be held April 12 in Toronto. It will include a town hall-style panel and keynote…
Omnex Systems LLC recently released EwQMS 2.0, a software suite aimed at allowing quality managers to quickly build, approve, manage and analyze critical quality documents for continual improvement. By using a centralized repository and interchangeable software modules, EwQMS users can tailor…
The Performance Management Group recently announced plans to upgrade its management training boot camp to include team leadership, metrics and scorecard training. “Technical companies that have promoted new managers because of their technical skills find their new leaders lacking the requisite…
The American Society for Quality announced the following quality leaders as ASQ Fellows: Dr. Inteaz Alli, professor of food quality assurance at McGill University G. Dennis Beecroft, president of G. Dennis Beercroft Inc. Ronald Gary Berglund, Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center quality…
DVT Corp., a provider of innovative machine vision systems, recently upgraded its Intellect software to include new algorithms with simplified user interfaces for plant-floor technicians.The new algorithms include an application-specific toolset dedicated to bead tracking, as well as a fixed-font…
The Juran Institute and i-Solutions recently released the Initiative Deployment Manager, a software program that allows users to monitor all business initiatives in real time.With a 360-degree view of business programs, the IDM can launch projects based on methodology templates; share plans and…
Manufacturing industry analyst Bob Parker predicted in InformationWeek magazine that more manufacturing companies will combine lean and Six Sigma to improve efficiency and quality in 2005.Parker, vice president of the Manufacturing Insights group at the market research and advisory firm IDC, also…
