All Features
Greg Fox
I was playing around with the power and sample size graphs in Minitab recently, and I noticed something interesting. Power, for the uninitiated, is usually described as the likelihood that you will find a significant effect or difference when one truly exists. But rather than simply describe…
As You Sow
A first-of-its-kind framework released Dec. 6, 2011, offers recommendations to food and food packaging companies on how to identify and evaluate nanomaterials in products. Not only is this technology unregulated and untested for its implications on public health but companies may not even be…
ASQ
(ASQ: Milwaukee, WI) -- The results of ASQ’s 25th annual Salary Survey show strong average salaries for quality professionals in 2011 and fewer lay-offs as companies continue to see the value of quality and its positive impact on an organization.
The survey results also show that experience…
Donald J. Wheeler
Many times measurements are made using measurement increments which are too large for the job. Fortunately this problem is easily detected by ordinary, production-line process behavior charts. No special studies are necessary; no standard parts or batches are needed. You simply need to…
ISO
The latest edition of “The ISO Survey of Certifications—2010,” from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) underlines the global market relevance of ISO’s management system standards for quality, environment, medical devices, food safety, and information security. The survey…
The Property and Emergency Communications Divisions of the Houston Police Department (HPD) achieved certification to ISO 9001 in September 2011. The HPD pursued certification to this international standard from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in part because it establishes…
MIT News
For many scientists working in the field of climate research, one of the most alarming trends has nothing to do with the climate itself: It’s the poll numbers showing that even as scientific projections of global climate change get ever more certain, public perceptions about climate change are…
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
In order to separate human-caused global warming from the “noise” of purely natural climate fluctuations, temperature records must be at least 17 years long, according to climate scientists.
To address criticism of the reliability of thermometer records of surface warming, Lawrence Livermore…
MIT News
Most technologies for harnessing the sun’s energy capture the light itself, which is turned into electricity using photovoltaic materials. Others use the sun’s thermal energy, usually concentrating the sunlight with mirrors to generate enough heat to boil water and turn a generating turbine. A…
TÜV Rheinland of North America
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) introduced the ENERGY STAR program in 1992 to encourage the production and use of energy-efficient devices in more than 60 different product categories. Program results have been dramatic—a desktop computer that once consumed 30 watts in sleep mode…
ISO
Evidence that publication of ISO 50001 was eagerly awaited is borne out by the number of organizations worldwide claiming to be the first in their country or sector to have adopted the new ISO international standard on energy management. What’s more, several are already reporting significant…
Ryan E. Day
A plant manager, an ISO auditor, and a soccer mom all walk into a bar. The bartender asks the manager, “What’s your No. 1 priority?” Much to the bartender’s surprise, the manager answers, “The environment.” The bartender turns to the auditor, asks the same question, and gets the same answer. Next…
NVision Inc.
A national marketing services provider recently used NVision Inc.’s Engineering Service Division to reverse-engineer an essential part in a store display for one of the nation’s largest optical retailers. NVision was able to quickly scan the part and provide the CAD files necessary to mass-…
Jim Frost
In a recent blog post, “Assessing Variability for Quality Improvement,” I showed how measuring variability is as important as measuring the mean for a product or service in a quality improvement initiative. The mean, by itself, often tells an incomplete story. Additionally, quality management…
John R. Treace
As a senior sales officer charged with effecting business turnarounds for bankrupt private and pre-IPO companies, I witnessed firsthand the importance of core values. A strong set of core values is crucial to driving corporate performance, and without them, companies suffer.…
Georgia Institute of Technology
Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a prototype wireless sensor capable of detecting trace amounts of a key ingredient found in many explosives.
The device, which employs carbon nanotubes and is printed on paper or paper-like material using standard inkjet…
Wiley
(Wiley: Hoboken, NJ) -- If a manager wants her staff to perform at its best, then she needs to become the best manager she can be: someone who can ignite employees’ passion for their jobs, enabling them to execute their duties at a high level whether the manager is there or not. Offering a…
Today, solid rockets dominate most military applications because they take up relatively little space, can be launched on a moment’s notice, and offer a high thrust-to-weight ratio. Meanwhile, liquid bipropellant rockets enjoy the lion’s share of orbital launch vehicle and spacecraft propulsion…
ISO
A selection of center-page spreads from ISO Focus+, the magazine of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), filled with colorful graphic art conveying the benefits of international standards, provides the theme for the ISO 2012 calendar. Topics covered include motor vehicle…
The objective of our improvement project was to contribute to more fuel-efficient air transportation. As explained in this article, transportation by air comes with strong regulatory constraints, and there’s a need for careful stakeholder management. We nearly abandoned the project when the efforts…
Paul Naysmith
Oh no, it’s happened again! Why do I do this to myself time and again? Do I need to seek help, professional assistance of a psychological nature? I must stop doing this; it’s is as if I don’t have control over myself. It’s a habit. No, it’s not that; it’s something different. It’s worse, a…
NIST
A team of university researchers, aided by scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), have succeeded in integrating a new, highly efficient piezoelectric material into a silicon microelectromechanical system (MEMS). This development could lead to significant…
Bruce McDuffee
Ask any metrologist, and you’ll likely get quite a diatribe about the challenge of making a good measurement of humidity. There are, however, some specific steps or best practices you can follow that will help improve your measurement of humidity through better accuracy, better repeatability,…
Bill Kalmar
The 2011 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award winners were announced last week, and for the first time, three recipients are in the health care category.
The recipients of the 2011 Baldrige Award are:
• Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis (nonprofit)
• Henry Ford Health System, Detroit (…
Knowledge at Wharton
In a world of endless information sharing, consumers have become the product. Platforms such as Google, Facebook, Foursquare, and Twitter are the new factory floor, and online users who leave digital crumbs as they browse the web and tap into social networks generate data that can be bought and…
