As a quality professional, I am a huge admirer of what the Japanese, and in particular Toyota, have given the business world, and how they have influenced quality improvements like no other in history.

Cars scream around the track at speeds approaching 200 mph, yet a 500-mile NASCAR race can be decided by a few tenths of a second. To be a winner, NASCAR teams seek any advantage they can create.

Most businesses, government, or even nonprofit organizations have business processes. Generally, processes are documented. Most organizations also have performance measurements.

Any way you slice it, the Orlando World Center Marriott Resort is one big place. Total number of rooms? More than 2,000. Massive swimming pool? How about two of the biggest ones you’ve ever seen? Fine dining and refreshments?

A team of researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), George Mason University, and the University of Maryland has made nano-sized sensors that detect volatile organic compounds—harmful pollutants released from paints, cleaners, pestici

(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- Interested in improving your organization’s excellence? Then sign up for one of the two 2011 Baldrige Regional Conferences. This year, they’re being held in Missouri and Alabama.

(GBMP: Boston) -- Conference agenda details have been released for the 7th Annual Northeast Shingo Prize Conference being held at the Mass Mutual Convention Center, in Springfield, M

(FARO Technologies: Lake Mary, FL) -- FARO Technologies, a leading provider of portable measurement and imaging solutions, along with the University of South Florida (USF) has announced that they will partner to provide terrestrial laser-scanning training to purchasers of FARO Laser Scanners.

(NVision: Coppell, TX) -- NVision Inc.’s Engineering Service Division is now offering product-defect analysis, which can potentially be introduced in product liability litigation to prove a manufacturer innocent of producing a defective or harmful product.

(Electro Standards Laboratories: Cranston, RI) -- The Model 4215 Dual-Channel Smart Load Cell Indicator, Catalog No. 304217, measures and controls strain-gauge, transducer-based systems.