All News
(International Organization for Standardization, Geneva) -- ISO has just launched a CD-ROM containing a collection of 24 ISO/IEC standards and one amendment on radio frequency identification (RFID). A wireless technology enabling communication between interrogating devices and embedded…
In a previous column, we discussed the importance of the IECQ quality assessment systems for electronic components, a certification scheme of the International Electrotechnical Commission. The IECQ mission is to provide a business-to-business quality certification scheme that serves industry by…
The U.S. Election Assistance Commission recently accredited SysTest Labs and iBeta Software Quality Assurance to certify and test voting systems software and equipment against the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines. The VVSG are federal standards developed in 2002 by the Technical Guidelines…
Jonathan Spector will become the 10th president and CEO of The Conference Board, a research and business membership organization, on April 16. “Jon Spector has excellent credentials to lead The Conference Board forward,” says Douglas R. Conant, a trustee of The Conference Board, CEO of…
Executives from leading companies will share tactics and strategies for managing and retaining key talent, knowledge and intellectual capital with Global Benchmarking Council members at the conference on Human Capital Management: Facing the Challenges of the 21st Century Workforce, May 30–…
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 also distribute imported products produced by companies in the Far East. They have about…
Mtech’s new Internet-based Quality Inspection Console uses hand-held devices to interface with a hotel’s property management system and automate its quality inspection processes. “Quality inspections, when hotel housekeeping departments inspect the work that room attendants do, have the…
For the last Brain Teaser, in an interesting spin, sample size was defined as a time window. A is the correct response. The underlying data type falls into the category of defect counts (complaints) within a constant area of opportunity (one hour). These data, of course, follow the…
Businesses have lately been focusing on profit and process improvement. However, profit improvement at any cost to make the upcoming quarter look bright has a price. It appears that most improvement effort leads with efficiency measured by head-count reduction. Improvement shouldn’t be measured by…
Several Mexican manufacturing organizations were winners in the recently announced Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing Business Program. The Shingo Prize, called the “Nobel Prize of manufacturing,” recognizes achievements in lean process improvement programs in North America.…
Frost & Sullivan, a growth consulting company, recently recognized CTS Corp. with its 2006 Frost & Sullivan Award for Product Quality Leadership. The award was in recognition of CTS’ products for the aerospace and defense markets, which have attracted increasing numbers of buyers…
Heritage Valley Health System, located in Beaver, Pennsylvania, recently opened its region’s first fully automated clinical laboratory. The hospital’s comprehensive lean and Six Sigma programs, which emphasize automation for patient safety, helped create the state-of-the-art laboratory…
The Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) recently awarded a total of $85,900 to 22 Green Bay-area manufacturing organizations for training and Six Sigma projects, and there is more money available. The Green Bay Press Gazette reports that the money originates with the…
Six Sigma is a powerful tool for driving incremental process improvement, but it’s not the silver bullet many organizations make it out to be. That’s the word from The Hackett Group, which recently released research showing that too many executives try to implement Six Sigma to create…
This column normally originates from the hammock in the woods behind our home. With almost a foot of snow on the ground, though, this month’s contribution would better be titled “Thoughts From a Lounge Chair in My Den.” So, while sitting in my favorite chair and listening to the popping of…
Wilshire Conferences Inc., creators of educational conferences for information technology professionals, honored BMO Financial Group with the fifth annual Wilshire Award for Metadata Best Practices. BMO stood out because of its implementation, architecture and executive support. Eight…
e-TQM College recently announced its successful implementation of Visionaire’s e-learning suite, which allows the college to conduct live virtual classes by streaming real-time lectures on the Web with high-quality voice, data and video capability.The school’s approach to education uses…
The first e-sourcing capability model level 4 service provider and Satyam’s business process outsourcing (BPO) subsidiary—Nipuna Services—recently became the first Indian BPO company to win the Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award. Comparable to the European Quality Award, the Deming…
Harte-Hanks Trillium Software Inc.’s TS Quality Software Version 10.5 was recently certified for integration with SAP Master Data Management (MDM) Enrichment Adapter.The integration allows customers to incorporate data-quality solutions within current implementations of SAP NetWeaver MDM,…
TAGSYS recently introduced a software suite—e-connectware—to manage global radio frequency identification (RFID) networks. A comprehensive set of administrative and management tools, e-connectware delivers the highest quality of service levels, and ensures data integrity and data…
This column normally originates from the hammock in the woods behind our home. With almost a foot of snow on the ground, though, this month’s contribution would better be titled “Thoughts From a Lounge Chair in My Den.” So, while sitting in my favorite chair and listening to the popping of…
Research engineer Phil Santangelo works in professor Gang Bao’s cell culture facility in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University in Atlanta. Photo courtesy of: Phil Santangelo…
Three medical device manufacturers—two in Mexico and one in the United States— recently received Shingo Prizes. Baxter Healthcare Corp.’s North Cove Plant in Marion, North Carolina; Baxter’s Cuernavaca Plant in Morelos, Mexico; and Cordis Corp. of Juarez, Mexico, received the awards,…
Blue Mountain Quality Resources Inc. and eCalibration.com have collaborated on a spring training schedule. The courses are designed to provide unique and leading-edge training for professionals working in regulated life sciences industries. The courses include: • Facilities and Equipment…
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) recently launched a campaign to increase cancer awareness in the United States. Cancer is the second-leading cause of death in the United States, with 1.4 million cases expected to be diagnosed this year, according to PhRMA.…
