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Editor’s note: This continues Jack Dunigan’s series about unsung heroes in the workplace, and the 16 traits they all share.
One stormy night many years ago, a man and his wife entered the lobby of a small hotel in Philadelphia. Trying to get out of the rain, the couple approached the front desk…
Pitch is a representation of takt image—a visual and often audible management time frame that lean practitioners use to pace and monitor value stream performance. It’s typically driven by, and linked to, a value stream or line’s pacemaker process.
Pitch performance is routinely tracked and…
Few quality professionals would want to hear somebody call their quality policies propaganda, but they are exactly that by definition. “Propaganda consists of the planned use of any form of communication designed to affect the minds, emotions, and action of a given group for a specific purpose,”…
(SICK: Minneapolis) -- SICK, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of sensors, safety systems, machine vision, encoders, and automatic identification products for factory and logistics automation, has launched the Dx35 line of laser distance measurement sensors.
These mid-range distance…
I live and work in Germany, and I recently learned a useful German phrase: “Service Wüste.” Well, half-German; the service part is actually English. Translated into English it would mean “service wasteland” or “service desert.” That’s how many Germans describe Germany.
In general, I’ve found the…
(METTLER TOLEDO: Columbus, OH) -- METTLER TOLEDO’s Good Weighing Practice (GWP) was introduced in 2007 and presents a scientific approach to safe selection, calibration and operation of weighing equipment. Now, for the first time, that knowledge is open to the users across several different…
My latest recommended reading for people who care about getting things done is Craig Weber’s Conversational Capacity: The Secret to Building Successful Teams That Perform When the Pressure Is On (McGraw-Hill, 2013). The awareness and ability to improve our conversational capacity is essential,…
With the publication of my humorous children’s novel, The Annoying Ghost Kid (Robert Evans Wilson, Jr., 2011), I have had the opportunity to go into elementary schools and teach kids a game that shows them how the creative process works. It’s a great way to come up with story ideas for books and…
Editor’s note: This is Part 2 of Matthew May’s “Elegant Solutions.” Read Part 1 here.
I’ve written before about traditional “specs.” How they’re old school. How they rarely help define and describe what we judge our satisfaction by: the experience.
Now comes routehappy.com, which is an intuitive…
(Spectral Evolution: Lawrence, MA) -- The worldwide counterfeit drug market continues to expand, both in developing and developed countries. From fake antimalarial drugs in Africa to counterfeits sold over the Internet, these drugs are detrimental in three primary ways: • Patients don’t receive the…
Even though modern industrial robots are becoming more nimble and capable, they still need to get a good grip on things, literally, with the equivalent of hands that are as agile and dexterous as the human variety.
How to tackle this thorny challenge, known in robotics speak as dexterous…
I believe that 5S is one of the most effective tools within the realm of workplace organization. Since its inception, 5S has gained a loyal following in many different types of work environments. Companies that have truly embraced 5S enjoy high levels of organization and efficiency.
For those of…
I can’t believe he said that. Well, wrote that. I’m reading another reader’s comment to an article about quality in manufacturing. The reader says, “We shouldn’t drag politics into this!” Really?
First of all, how can you drag something into where it already is? Somebody tell me one facet of…
In 2006, when Tomás Palacios completed his Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering at the University of California at Santa Barbara, he was torn between taking a job in academia or in industry.
“I wanted to make sure that the new ideas that we were generating could find a path toward society…
In a new 47-page guidance the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) appears to be doing its best to cover the waterfront for medical device manufacturers who need to better understand the complex medical device reporting (MDR) requirements. Topics range from the big picture (who is subject to this…
Editor’s note: This continues Jack Dunigan’s series about unsung heroes in the workplace, and the 16 traits they all share.
The tasks of evaluation, decision making, and determining action are continually recurring for leaders and managers. We leaders must, from the start of the day to its close…
Artec scanners were used to create realistic 3D models of Brazilian national football team players for an upcoming multimedia project produced by Globo Internacional, a mass media group in Latin America. Globo has yet to unveil the details of its project, but Artec wanted to share some insightful…
Last month we ventured into a new realm of integrated management systems in the article, “Stop Wasting Everyone’s Time with a Disjointed QMS.” What does it take to implement an integrated management system that cuts across traditional silos such as quality, service, production, environmental,…
In the small world of 3D metrology, we all have heard the same questions in various contexts countered with some wildly different answers. This new column will explore these frequently asked questions, and address what is and what is not proper 3D metrology practice. Over the coming months, I will…
I recently ran across a great quote in Quality Progress by Govind Ramu of SunPower Corp. He wrote, “Processes without results are useless, and results without processes are unsustainable.” (“Experts and Answers,” Quality Progress, December, 2012). Ramu is correct, of course, but his quote prompted…
(Brunson: Kansas City, MO) -- Brunson Instrument Co., manufacturer and provider of 3D measurement and alignment solutions, will exhibit their portable metrology accessories at the 29th annual Coordinate Metrology Systems Conference (CMSC), which runs July 22–25, 2013, in San Diego. This conference…
(CMSC: Benbrook, TX) -- The Coordinate Metrology Society (CMS) announced its final schedule of events for the 29th annual Coordinate Metrology Systems Conference (CMSC) from July 22–26, 2013, at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina in San Diego. The conference is known for its superior slate of…
When you overhear a person five spots ahead of you at the coffee shop ordering a mocha light decaf, no whip, one pump, it might be enough to make you abandon your place in line and walk out. But what if the context is different and what’s at stake isn’t a hand-crafted drink, but your health—or…
Based on some recent inquiries there seems to be some need to review the four capability indexes in common use today. A clear understanding of what each index does, and does not do, is essential to clear thinking and good usage. To see how to use the four indexes, to tell the story contained in…
Not all user conferences are created equal. I’ve been to so many I’ve lost count. Some are simply boring with over-filtered information, and others are pure marketing events. Then there are a few that enchant, delight, and add true value for attendees. And I know why.
As I began writing this…
