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I attended a very nice presentation recently by a person who has been leading the lean charge for several years at a major medical center. As he reflected on key elements of his organization’s success, however, he made a statement that set off my hooey detector. “It’s most important to start with…
One focus of the regulations implemented by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) during the past several years has been on quality in batch-to-batch production in the pharmaceutical industry. Batch quality not only ensures safe product for consumers, it also has the added benefit of saving…
Editor’s note: This is part two of a two-part series. To read part one, “Making the Leap from Manufacturing Manager to Consultant,” click here.
Before launching a career in consulting, consider the time away from family and other sacrifices that have to be made, but also consider the potential…
The theme of the recent 2012 Wharton Management Conference, “Changing the Game: Leadership in Crisis,” is an apt one for the auto industry. Daniel Ammann, CFO of General Motors Co. (GM), addressed these leadership issues in a keynote presentation at the conference and in a Knowledge@Wharton podcast…
Compounding pharmacies, where the creation of a particular pharmaceutical product to fit the unique needs of a patient is done, have enjoyed the protection of their state pharmacy board, or they don’t distribute outside their home state (no interstate sales). This means that compounding pharmacies…
While an XmR chart is commonly used as a process behavior chart, it may also be used as a test of homogeneity for a finite number of values. This column explains the difference in these two uses of the XmR chart and compares the homogeneity chart with the W-ratio test, which I presented in my June…
(Carl Zeiss: Maple Grove, MN) -- Carl Zeiss has announced a new entrustment agreement to support Dunwoody College of Technology, located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, with two Zeiss coordinate measuring machines (CMMs) and CALYPSO metrology software. Two of Dunwoody’s programs, Engineering Drafting…
(Olympus: Center Valley, PA) -- InHelp, the new inspection data management and reporting software for Olympus IPLEX videoscopes, streamlines many aspects of on-site remote visual inspections. The software greatly improves work efficiency and simplifies inspections by organizing stored images on the…
Since W. Edwards Deming and the quality revolution, numerous quality management software systems have emerged during the past several decades. However, the quality software market in general has been ill-defined, making it difficult for quality professionals to discuss the space and compare vendors…
With China’s electronics manufacturing industry developing in leaps and bounds each year, the country has become a hub for this industry. Yet with this ascent comes a multitude of new challenges.
Rapid technological development, pressure from rising operational costs, and growing demand for…
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, each year one in six people becomes sick, more than 127,000 are hospitalized, and about 3,000 die of foodborne illness. The annual economic cost in the United States alone is about $77 billion.
Adding to the risk, the food supply…
(Kistler: Novi, MI) -- Kistler, a global supplier of precision sensors, systems, and instrumentation for the dynamic measurement of pressure, force, torque and acceleration, has introduced to the North American market two multi-channel connectors with onboard sensor and mold identification…
Much of my career has been spent helping manufacturing companies improve their profitability. Although most improvement experts in the world use lean Six Sigma to initiate improvements, it’s been my experience that the element of focus is missing.
By focus I simply mean where I focus my improvement…
The late, great basketball coach John Wooden maintained that, “When you improve a little bit each day, eventually big things occur. Don’t look for big, quick improvement. Instead, seek small improvement one day at a time. That’s the only way it happens—and when it happens, it lasts.”
Wooden was…
Recently I was talking to a friend of mine. He had been treated shabbily by the university for which he worked and was trying to decide what he would do next.
This person is a successful business school dean and a proven developer of talent and programs. Although he had been at this particular…
Company X was a new entrant in its industry. There were quite a few established players that X had to compete against. The current top three companies had each taken between seven and 10 years to reach their current size and position. X’s ambition was to become the industry leader in size during…
(MoreSteam.com: Columbus, OH) -- On Thurs., Nov 8, 2012, MoreSteam.com, a global provider of online lean Six Sigma training and blended learning technology, and Air Academy Associates, a recognized leader in delivering client results through various improvement methodologies, will sponsor a one-day…
Auditing is a powerful tool for improving management systems and achieving sustainable results, but many organizations do not maximize the return on their audit program investments. Why? Because many audits fail to uncover information that management can use to achieve performance excellence.
A…
A new white-light 3D scanner using hybrid positioning to scan large objects and output a file with no post processing has recently been released.
The Go!SCAN 3D can scan up to 10 times faster than standard 3D scanners. It also has a large 15 in. by 15 in. scanning field of view and a measurement…
(Kistler: Novi, MI) -- Kistler, a manufacturer and worldwide supplier of precision sensors, electronic systems, and instrumentation for measuring pressure, force, torque and acceleration, has announced the availability of its lightweight miniature accelerometers for automotive component durability…
W. Edwards Deming spoke at length on the importance of psychology to quality. It’s important because psychology provides a theoretical framework for understanding the differences between people. However, Deming did not consider the Asch Effect—the effect of group pressure on the modification and…
With state-of-the-art technology emerging in the life sciences industry, regulatory requirements continue to become more strict. It’s vital that companies manage their manufacturing processes in accordance with their surrounding governing agencies. Supplier management is a key factor that will help…
Papering the walls with printed charts might impress visitors, but anyone who wants to get the most from SPC charting must make the right chart available in the right place at the right time. Consider the weekly or monthly quality review meeting. The right people may be in the room, and the right…
Day in and day out, we talk about quality, whether it’s the quality of production, testing, calibration, or some other company function. Typically, emphasis is on developing and implementing policies and procedures, but what is more important is follow up. It’s a mistake to prepare dozens of…
Within the last week I have had two conversations representing two sides of the same challenge. I first conversed with an engineer who recently became a member of his company’s process improvement team. He lamented that he sometimes missed the relative simplicity of engineering challenges compared…
