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Two new resources from Pivotal Resources promise to streamline operations for quality professionals. nLighten is an interactive e-learning course that teaches foundational Six Sigma concepts and process improvement. The Flash-based program introduces the principles that drive Six Sigma and…
Sypris Test & Measurement plans to move its Franklin, Tennessee primary standards lab to its headquarters in Orlando, Florida, the company recently announced.
The new Orlando lab will feature enhanced capabilities and equipment, and NIST-traceable calibration. Mobile service offerings will be…
Pilgrim Software Inc. announces that Blood Systems successfully implemented its SmartCAPA deviation and nonconformance management solution at 35 sites across the United States. SmartCAPA is a fully integrated part of Pilgrim’s Microsoft .NET-based SmartSolve Integrated Compliance Management…
I’m a huge proponent of both Six Sigma and lean manufacturing. I’ve been teaching the tools used in Six Sigma for more than 15 years, and I make a portion of my living from consulting and training in these areas.
However, Six Sigma and lean manufacturing are business improvement processes that…
Launching a Six Sigma initiative starts with a lot of enthusiasm from the “champion” who’s found courage and conviction to persuade management to commit to it. With enough resources, interest, excitement and the help of some consultants, the Six Sigma initiative gets off the ground. After initial…
Representatives from last year’s Baldrige Award-winning companies will address two upcoming conferences for quality professionals. The conferences will be held in Oak Brook, Illinois, and San Antonio, Texas, on Sept. 10 and Sept. 30, respectively. Representatives from 2003 Baldrige Award…
Excel Partnership recently announced that it’s the first and only organization to have all three AS9100 courses for the aerospace industry accredited by the Registrar Accreditation Board. The company’s accredited offerings will make it easier for industry employees to receive and…
TÜV America Inc. recently announced a new subsidiary, TÜV Canada SÜD Group Inc., which will expand the global company into Canada. TÜV Canada SÜD Group Inc. will offer Canadian companies registration services to ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 13485, TS 16949, AS9100 and OHSAS 18001. The new…
The International Federation of Standards Users will meet in Amsterdam this fall to discuss managing international standards and related topics.
Now in its 11th year, the IFAN conference will focus on boosting awareness of and compliance to international standards. More than 300 participants from…
Fluke Corp. is teaming up with educators to bring the latest test and measurement expertise into the classroom. The new Fluke Education Partnership Program includes colorful graphics and a step-by-step orientation to solving real-world problems for students. The tools are combined with…
A new partnership between NCQA and the GeoAccess division of Ingenix will provide consumers with a comprehensive listing of quality health care. A searchable database, available on NCQA’s Web site, allows visitors to search for a physician by area of expertise, location and other criteria…
A book published this month details how organizations can use lean management tools to improve productivity by 400 percent. In The Complete Lean Enterprise: Value Stream Mapping for Administrative and Office Processes (Productivity Press, 2004), authors Beau Keyte and Drew Locher…
WCBF will hold a Six Sigma conference in Las Vegas this October, the company recently announced. “Successfully Implementing Six Sigma in Service and Transactional Environments” will be held Oct. 19-21 at the Venetian. It is being billed as the premier conference for expert advice…
Rath & Strong recently introduced its Lean Booster course, a system designed to supercharge existing Six Sigma programs. The company reports that organizations will see results from the course teachings within two weeks—without starting over from scratch. Lean Booster is designed to…
Several well-known Six Sigma practitioners will speak at a September Six Sigma conference in Chicago. Gayle J. Gibson, a Six Sigma champion at DuPont Electric and Communication Technologies, will open the Worldwide Conventions and Business Forums-sponsored conference with a keynote…
The American Association for Quality will host an exclusive two-day briefing for top Six Sigma practitioners in September. The roundtable is limited to 150 participants to give each person greater one-on-one time with attendees and presenters, more in-depth learning and more networking…
Six Sigma is an expensive initiative with a huge potential for return on investment. However, there are risks associated with it. False starts, lack of commitment or lack of planning may lead to unsatisfactory results. Considering the complexity of the Six Sigma process, one must minimize the risks…
Six Sigma. Lean. What do these initiatives have to do with the supply chain? The short answer is everything. The origins of these approaches are based, in Six Sigma’s case, on continuous improvements in quality and variation control, and in lean’s case, on production velocity and…
Economists and analysts speculate that a recent rash of recalled high technology products might be due to the poor economy. In January, Kyocera Wireless recalled 140,000 of its cell phone batteries, citing concerns that they could overheat. In September, 6,000 Segway Human Transporters…
A new partnership between MetricStream and Documentum will integrate two of the companies’ most popular software sets. The integration will help clients maintain compliance with the content-centric requirements in quality initiatives like ISO 9000 and FDA regulations by combining…
Alvarez & Marsal and the American Productivity and Quality Center recently announced the formation of a collaborative performance improvement effort. The Business Consulting Group of Alvarez & Marsal and APQC will offer benchmarking advisory services to companies that participate…
Consumers who want to give their health care providers a “check up” can easily do so with a new resource accessible in minutes. Quality Check, a Web-based database of thousands of health care providers, lists their accreditation status, latest performance report and accreditation history,…
ReliaSoft’s “Master the Subject, Master the Tools” seminar will be held Aug. 9-13 in San Diego. The seminar will feature intensive training courses ranging from the basic tenets of reliability engineering to advanced subjects in the field. This includes comprehensive examinations of…
Preliminary findings from a landmark study on the impact of workstations on employee productivity show clear associations between performance and environmental conditions. The study was conducted by Alan Hedge, a renowned Cornell University professor and ergonomics expert. He placed…
GE recently announced the development of the world’s best performing diode built from a carbon nanotube, a device the company claims is the smallest functioning tool ever made. The GE Nanotechnology Advanced Technology program reports that the new device could be used to build the next…