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I recently read an article about a new dress code being imposed on Walmart employees (effective later this month). The purpose of the new dress code is to help customers more easily identify employees. I don't have a problem with that; given my recent experiences in a few different stores, more…
The regulatory landscape continues to change. One of the quality system approaches defined by regulators and the industry for mitigating risk is corrective and preventive action, better known as CAPA. Companies are often challenged by the CAPA process, which is one of the most important and…
(BioCision: San Rafael, CA) -- BioCision LLC, a developer of advanced thermal technologies for biospecimen handling and standardization, has announced the availability of BioT Temperature Stability Systems, a new portfolio of mobile temperature management products that support transport and…
A recent viewing of a Marx Brothers film caused me to reflect on one of the questions I’m frequently asked: “How do you deal with people who are against lean?”
My stock response is to quote Shigeo Shingo’s advice that “99 percent of objection is cautionary,” that is, people who appear to…
(Verisurf: Anaheim, CA) -- Verisurf Software Inc. announces Verisurf X8 with many new enhancements that make stationery coordinate measuring machines (CMMs), portable CMMs, and 3D scanners more productive for automated inspection, guided assembly, and reverse engineering.
Built on a powerful CAD…
Editor’s note: This article ties in with the new video training series, “Enhancing and Sustaining Lean Improvements While Adding Spark to the Quality Management System” by the author. Click here for more details, or check out the free preview of the series, specifically focused on the topic of…
The adage that “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” has been taken to task probably ever since it was first uttered. ThomasNet.com turned that whole idea on its ear with the newest round of upgrades to its website in 2014. In essence, instead of trying to teach old dogs (in this case seasoned…
(ASM International: Materials Park, OH) — Hillsboro, Oregon-based FEI Co. has released the third generation of its Helios NanoLab DualBeam FIB/SEM microscope, which provides unmatched image contrast and resolution. The new Helios comes in two different workflow-specific configurations for…
Assuming there are still questions about the suitability of a gauge for a particular application after a gauge repeatability and reproducibility (GR&R) study, Measurement Systems Analysis, 4th Edition (MSA-4), published by AIAG in 2010, recommends using an additional study in the calibration…
Any leader or skilled improvement professional knows that metrics are necessary to define what success looks like, to measure progress toward a defined target, and to assess performance against defined standards. Metrics also serve as a powerful way to demonstrate improvement success to people who…
There are only two paths to lean leadership that people can take. One path, based on traditional human resource development models, nearly always results in failure. The second path nearly always results in success, but precious few leaders are willing to take this one.
The following image…
Last month I was conducting a series of Boardwalks with a large company in Australia. The people in the company had an amazing array of kanban and other visual controls guiding their software development. Most important to me, they had achieved a culture not of continuous improvement, but of deep…
At the new NIST Center for Automotive Lightweighting (NCAL), workloads are fraught with stress and strain—all to help the auto industry take a heavy load off future cars and light trucks.
To meet proposed federal fuel-efficiency standards—54.5 miles per gallon by 2025, or nearly double today’s…
Leaders, especially superlative ones, are achievers. They get things done. Typically, they are hands-on, roll-up-the-sleeves types who attack life and its opportunities head on.
It's that sort of attitude, a tenacious, never-say-die pursuit of achievement, that contributes to success. Superlative…
Michael J. Cleary, Ph.D., founder and president of PQ Systems Inc. and a professor emeritus at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, died suddenly on September 10, 2014.
Cleary was born June 3, 1939, in Dumont, New Jersey. He was a graduate of Norwich University and was commissioned as a second…
The 5S System is one of the most powerful activities of lean manufacturing. Focusing on simplifying the work environment, reducing waste, and improving quality and safety, this strategy is a topic of much discussion. Unfortunately, many of those discussing 5S don't really "get" 5S. Including many…
My last column, “Dealing With Count Data and Variation,” showed how a matrix presentation of stratified count data could be quite effective as a common-cause strategy. I’ll use this column to review some key concepts of count data as well as to demonstrate the first of two common statistical…
An important concept within TRIZ is that someone, somewhere, has already solved your current problem. In other words, they have “been there, done that.” Or course, the problem has to be clearly stated, in a generic sense, to enable the recognition of existing valid solutions.
TRIZ is not alone in…
Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for the last two years, you can’t help to have noticed that the ISO 9001 standard is in the middle of its revision process. Seems like people have been talking about this revision for ages. And, it’s not even a whole new standard. They’re not starting from…
This is the fifth installment of our six-part series on common business challenges and the quality management system (QMS) tools that can help alleviate them. Here we’ll focus on the supplier management tool and why it is beneficial for both stakeholder and supplier.
The challenge: No visibility…
The lean community continues to face a problem that hurts efforts to advance progressive lean management: It is the great difficulty in clearly separating and effectively communicating the difference between real lean and fake lean, i.e., lean management done right vs. lean management done wrong…
(SAE: Warrendale, PA) -- Recognizing that additive manufacturing is an emerging technology within the aerospace industry, SAE International is seeking additional participants for its task group which is discussing standardization approaches for process-dependent metallic materials.
The SAE…
(Infor: New York) -- Infor, developer and provider of business application software has released Infor Factory Track, a comprehensive manufacturing process automation solution that helps manufacturers synchronize their enterprise plans with plant activities, bridging the gap from idea to execution…
Are you losing customers? Is your employee morale low? Is your management focused on the wrong things?
Customers come into contact with your culture daily. Culture is shaped by your organization’s perspective on work and how best to do work. Your organizational performance is the result of the…
Medical device manufacturers are facing mounting pressure to better manage the quality of their supply chain. One approach they’ve taken to improve risk management and increase efficiency is to partner with suppliers who are ISO 13485 certified.
ISO 13485 is an internationally recognized quality…
