Chapter 7  Act

Process Improvement and Six Sigma

Evolution of the Deming Cycle
 Breakthrough is the accomplishment of any Walter Shewhart: specification, production, and
improvement that takes an organization to inspection for mass production.
unprecedented levels of performance.  These steps correspond to the scientific
 Breakthrough attacks chronic losses or, in method of hypothesizing, carrying out an
Deming’s terminology, common causes of experiment, and testing the hypothesis.
variation. “Deming Wheel”
 Process improvement methodologies and 1. Design the product with appropriate tests.
tools provide the foundation for 2. Make the product and test in the production
breakthrough as well as modern Six Sigma line and in the laboratory.
approaches. 3. Sell the product.
4. Test the product in service and through
Quality Profile: Iredell-Statesville Schools market research.
 Classrooms focus on five key questions: Japanese Implementation: Plan-Do-Check-Act
1. “What do students need to know?”
2. “How will they learn it?” Plan
3. “How will we know they have 1. Define the process: its start, end, and what it
learned it?” does.
4. “What will we do if they have not 2. Describe the process: list the key tasks
learned it?” performed and sequence of steps, people
5. “What will we do if they already involved, equipment used, environmental
know it?” conditions, work methods, and materials
 Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycle is used to used.
identify and implement improvements. 3. Describe the players: external and internal
 PDSA is also used throughout the school customers and suppliers, and process
district in operational and support areas operators.
4. Define customer expectations: what the
Process Improvement Methodologies customer wants, when, and where, for both
 Redefining and analyzing the problem - external and internal customers.
Collect and organize information, analyze 5. Determine what historical data are available
the data and underlying assumptions, and on process performance, or what data need
reexamine the problem for new perspectives, to be collected to better understand the
with the goal of achieving a workable process.
problem definition. 6. Describe the perceived problems associated
 Generating ideas - “Brainstorm” to develop with the process; for instance, failure to
potential solutions. meet customer expectations, excessive
variation, long cycle times, and so on.
 Evaluating and selecting ideas - Determine
7. Identify the primary causes of the problems
whether the ideas have merit and will
and their impacts on process performance.
achieve the problem solver’s goal.
8. Develop potential changes or solutions to
 Implementing ideas - Sell the solution and
the process, and evaluate how these changes
gain acceptance by those who must use
or solutions will address the primary causes.
them.
9. Select the most promising solution(s).

Do
1. Conduct a pilot study or experiment to test
The Deming Cycle
the impact of the potential solution(s).
 Plan 2. Identify measures to understand how any
 Do changes or solutions are successful in
 Study addressing the perceived problems.
 Plan
Study Do
1. Examine the results of the pilot study or Check
experiment. Does remeasurement show improvement? If NO,
2. Determine whether process performance has Back to Explore cause theories
improved. Act
3. Identify further experimentation that may be End
necessary.
DMAIC Methodology
Act 1. Define
1. Select the best change or solution. 2. Measure
2. Develop an implementation plan: what 3. Analyze
needs to be done, who should be involved, 4. Improve
and when the plan should be accomplished. 5. Control
3. Standardize the solution, for example, by
writing new standard operating procedures. Six Sigma is a business improvement approach that
4. Establish a process to monitor and control seeks to find and eliminate causes of defects and
process performance. errors in manufacturing and service processes by
focusing on outputs that are critical to customers
Creative Problem Solving and a clear financial return for the organization.
The term six sigma is based on a statistical measure
Creativity is seeing things in new or novel ways. that equates to 3.4 or fewer errors or defects per
million opportunities (dpmo).
Creative Problem Solving Process
Understanding the “Mess”– identify symptoms Evolution of Six Sigma
Finding Facts – gather data; operational definitions  Motorola (mid-1980s)
Identifying Specific Problems – find the root cause o Improve product and services quality
Generating Ideas – brainstorming ten times by 1989, and at least one
Developing Solutions – evaluate ideas and hundred fold by 1991. Achieve six-
proposals sigma capability by 1992. With a
Implementing Solutions – make the solution work deep sense of urgency, spread
dedication to quality to every facet of
Custom Improvement Methodologies the corporation, and achieve a
 FADE: focus, analyze, develop, and culture of continual improvement to
execute. assure total customer satisfaction.
 DRIVE—Define the problem, Recognize There is only one ultimate goal: zero
the cause, Identify the solution, Verify the defects—in everything we do.
actions, and Evaluate the results. (Park Place  General Electric (mid-1990s)
Lexus)  Rapid growth and interests in subsequent
 Some organizations embed the Deming years.
cycle within a broader framework.
Principles of Six Sigma
PDSA in a Process Improvement Model 1. Think in terms of key business processes
Start and customer requirements with a clear
Review the current situation focus on overall strategic objectives.
Describe the process 2. Focus on corporate sponsors responsible for
Explore cause theories championing projects, support team
Collect and analyze data activities, help to overcome resistance to
Is opportunity for improvement apparent? If NO, change, and obtain resources.
Back to Explore cause theories 3. Emphasize such quantifiable measures as
Generate potential solutions dpmo that can be applied to all parts of an
 organization: manufacturing, engineering, 5. Combined Approaches: Process design
administrative, software, and so on. problems involve designing new processes
4. Ensure that appropriate metrics are or substantially revising existing processes.
identified early in the process and that they
focus on business results, thereby providing Project Management and Organization
incentives and accountability.  Projects are the vehicles that are used to
5. Provide extensive training followed by organize and to implement Six Sigma.
project team deployment to improve  The Project Management Body of
profitability, reduce non-value-added Knowledge (PMBOK), developed by the
activities, and achieve cycle time reduction. Project Management Institute, defines 69
6. Create highly qualified process tools that every project manager should
improvement experts (“Green Belts,” “Black master.
Belts,” and “Master Black Belts”) who can  Achieving professional certification in
apply improvement tools and lead teams. project management can significantly assist
7. Set stretch objectives for improvement

Differences Between Six Sigma and TQM

 TQM is based largely on worker Six Sigma efforts.
empowerment and teams; Six Sigma is  Champions: Senior-level managers who
owned by business leader champions. promote and lead the deployment of Six
 TQM activities generally occur within a Sigma in a significant area of the business.
function, process, or individual workplace;  Master Black Belts: Full-time Six Sigma
Six Sigma projects are truly cross functional. experts who are responsible for Six Sigma
 TQM training is generally limited to simple strategy, training, mentoring, deployment,
improvement tools and concepts; Six Sigma and results.
focuses on a more rigorous and advanced set  Black Belts: Fully-trained Six Sigma
of statistical methods and DMAIC experts with extensive technical training
methodology. who perform much of the technical analysis
 TQM is focused on improvement with little required in Six Sigma projects, usually on a
financial accountability; Six Sigma requires full-time basis.
a verifiable return on investment and focus  Green Belts: Functional employees who are
on the bottom line. trained in introductory Six Sigma tools and
methodology and work on projects on a
Types of Quality Problems parttime basis, assisting Black Belts while
1. Six Sigma: Conformance Problems are developing their own knowledge and
defined by unsatisfactory performance by a expertise.
well-specified system.  Team Members: Individuals from various
2. Lean Tools: Efficiency Problems result functional areas who support specific
from unsatisfactory performance from the projects.
standpoint of stakeholders other than
customers. Factors in Six Sigma Project Selection
3. Creative Thinking: Unstructured  Financial return, as measured by costs
Performance Problems result from associated with quality and process
unsatisfactory performance by a poorly performance, and impacts on revenues and
specified system. market share
4. Special tools (Ch. 7): Product design  Impacts on customers and organizational
problems involve designing new products effectiveness
that better satisfy user needs—the
 Probability of success
expectations of customers that matter most
 Impact on employees
to them.
 Fit to strategy and competitive advantage
Return on Quality (ROQ)  Drill down to a specific problem statement
 The balancing quality costs against expected (project scoping)
revenue gains o Apply Pareto analysis
 Principles  Identify the process
o Quality is an investment o Use a SIPOC diagram
o Quality efforts must be made  Develop a project charter to include
financially accountable. o A simple project definition, the
o It is possible to spend too much on project objective, the project team
quality. and sponsor, the customers and
o Not all quality expenditures are CTQs on which the project focuses,
equally valid. existing measures and performance
benchmarks, expected benefits and
financial justification, a project
timeline, and the resources needed.
DMAIC Tools and Techniques
Pareto Analysis
Define  A Pareto distribution is one in which the
Project Charter characteristics observed are ordered from
Cost of Quality Analysis largest frequency to smallest.
Pareto Analysis  A Pareto diagram is a graphical description
High Level Process Mapping of a Pareto distribution.

Measure SIPOC Diagram

Run Charts From Suppliers
Check Sheets Inputs
Descriptive Statistics Process
Measurement System Evaluation Outputs
Process Capability Analysis To Customers
Benchmarking
Metal Fabricators
Analyze Stamped Parts
Scatter Diagrams Body Fabrication
Detailed Process Mapping Painting
Statistical Inference Component Suppliers and Parts and Subassemblies
Cause-and-effect Diagrams Can continue (Painting) to Finished automobiles
Failure Mode and Effects Analysis Dealers
Root Cause Analysis
Measure
Improvement  Focus on understanding process
Design of Experiments performance and collecting the data
Mistake Proofing necessary for analysis.
Lean Production  Key data collection questions
Deming Cycle o What questions are we trying to
Seven Management and Planning Tools answer?
o What type of data will we need to
Control answer the question?
Control Charts o Where can we find the data?
Standard Operating Procedures
o Who can provide the data?
o How can we collect the data with
Define
minimum effort and with minimum
 Describe the problem in operational terms
chance of error?
  Operational definitions – clarify inadequate testing of incoming materials and
performance measures prototypes
 Failure to understand the capability of a
Y = f(X) process to meet specifications
 Six Sigma uses the notion of a function in  Lack of training
mathematics to portray the relationship  Poor instrument calibration and testing
between process performance and customer  Inadequate environmental characteristics
value such as light, temperature, and noise
o Y is the set of CTQs (Critical to
quality elements) and X represents Root Cause Analysis
the set of critical input variables that  Root cause -“that condition (or interrelated
influence Y. set of conditions) having allowed or caused
a defect to occur, which once corrected
Check Sheets is a special types of data collection properly, permanently prevents recurrence of
forms in which the results may be interpreted on the the defect in the same, or subsequent,
form directly without additional processing product or service generated by the process.”
 Root cause analysis is an approach using
Analyze statistical, quantitative, or qualitative tools to
 Analyzing a problem starts with a identify and understand the root cause.
fundamental understanding of the process o “5 Why” technique - forces one to
o typically accomplished through redefine a problem statement as a
detailed process mapping, expanding chain of causes and effects to
on the SIPOC diagram that is identify the source of the symptoms
developed in the Define phase. by asking why, ideally five times.
 Value Stream Map - highlights value-added o Cause-and-effect diagram is a
versus non-value added activities, and simple graphical method for
include times that activities take. presenting a chain of causes and
o Value stream maps are an important effects and for sorting out causes and
tool in lean thinking organizing relationships between
variables.
Why Defects, Errors, or Excessive Variation o Scatter diagram - the graphical
Occur component of regression analysis
 A lack of knowledge about how a process
works, which is particularly critical if Improve
different people perform the process. Such  Generate ideas for removing or resolving the
lack of knowledge results in inconsistency problem and improve the performance
and increased variation in outputs. measures and CTQs.
 A lack of knowledge about how a process o Brainstorming – a group problem-
should work, including understanding solving procedure for generating a
customer expectations and the goal of the large number of ideas through
process combination and enhancement of
 A lack of control of materials and equipment existing ideas.
used in a process o Checklists to spawn new ideas.
 Inadvertent errors in performing work
 Waste and complexity, which manifest
themselves in many ways, such as  Evaluation and selection
unnecessary steps in a process and excess o Scoring models to assess possible
inventories solutions against important criteria
 Hasty design and production of parts and such as cost, time, quality
assemblies; poor design specifications; improvement potential, resources
required, effects on supervisors and
 workers, and barriers to  Six Sigma is more concerned with less
implementation such as resistance to visible problems, for example, variation in
change or organizational culture. performance.

Control Lean Six Sigma Metrics in Services

 Maintain the improvements, which includes  Accuracy
putting tools in place to ensure that the key  Cycle time
variables remain within the maximum  Cost
acceptable ranges under the modified  Customer satisfaction
process.
o establishing the new standards and
procedures,
o training the workforce, and
o instituting controls to make sure that
improvements do not die over time
using checklists, status reviews, or
control charts.

Lean Tools
 Lean production refers to approaches that
originated at the Ford Motor Company in the
early 1900s, but which were refined and
modernized by the Toyota Motor
Corporation later in the century.
 Lean approaches focus on the elimination
of waste in all forms, including defects
requiring rework, unnecessary processing
steps, unnecessary movement of materials or
people, waiting time, excess inventory, and
overproduction.

Tools of Lean Production

 The 5S’s: seiri (sort), seiton (set in order),
seiso (shine), seiketsu (standardize), and
shitsuke (sustain).
 Visual controls.
 Efficient layout and standardized work.
 Pull production.
 Single minute exchange of dies (SMED).
 Total productive maintenance.
 Source inspection.
 Continuous improvement.

Lean Six Sigma is an integrated improvement

approach to improve goods and services and
operations efficiency by reducing defects variation,
and waste.
 Lean production addresses visible
problems in processes, for example,
inventory, material flow, and safety.