DFSS/Six Sigma News Items

Syndicated from http://www.iSixSigma.com

    Recent DFSS/Six Sigma Blogs

    Syndicated from http://www.SixSig.info
    • How to Handle Statistical Variation in Six Sigma - From Your Articles Six Sigma metrics are more than a collection of statistics. The intent is to make targeted measurements of performance in an existing process, compare it with statistically valid ideals, and learn how to eliminate any variation. Improving and maintaining product quality requires an understanding of the relationships between critical variables. Better understanding of [...]
    • 10 Key Technologies for Lean Process Improvement - Technology has indeed made life easier for all of us. With Web 2.0, sales and marketing have become a breeze. With the latest software, processes have become easier. In the case of Six Sigma, for example, Apple has made Six Sigma applications available to iPhone users and on iTunes. I stumbled upon Nari Kannan’s article on the [...]
    • Innovation of the Week: Cleantech, Silicon Valley?s Next Great Wave of Innovation - This week’s edition of innovation update features Cleantech, Silicon Valley’s next great wave of innovation. This time Silicon Valley is working on clean and green technologies. MercuryNews.com reports: Silicon Valley earned its name and first great fortune as the cradle of the computer age. Then it built a launching pad for the Internet age. Now the valley [...]
    • DHL?s Six Sigma Mandate - Last year, I shared with you DHL’s DMAIC initiative and how the company is successfully satisfying customers because of it. In another article, DHL’s Six Sigma Mandate is described by Jonathon O’Leary, head of First Choice Program in the Asia Pacific as follows: The First Choice approach comes via the Six Sigma DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, [...]
    • Insights from Thomas Farrell, Six Sigma and Business Improvement 2009 CEO of the Year - Last year, The Global Six Sigma & Business Improvement Awards, organized by WCBF, awarded Thomas Farrell as the Six Sigma and Business Improvement CEO of the Year. Now, hear from him. Click here for his insights.

    QFD / House of Quality Articles

    Syndicated from http://www.QFDOnline.com
    • The Psychology of Notation - Just as it is important to tailor a speech or written argument to the needs of the intended audience, it is important to choose the notation for a QFD that is best suited for its target audience.
    • It All Depends - The addition of concepts such as dependencies is evidence that just like products or services, methodologies need to be continually refined in order to ensure their usefulness.
    • Blending the Voices of Disparate Customers - I have received several inquiries about the mechanics of exactly how one blends the voices of conflicting business, consumer, and regulatory groups into a single "VOC" for a Quality Function Deployment. The intent of this article is to answer those inquiries by giving an overview of the two primary processes for blending the requirements from these disparate groups, namely: "Percentage Translation" and "House of Quality Folding".
    • Saving Time by Voting Blind - Although the time saved by reducing unnecessary course corrections far outweighs the additional overhead of implementing Quality Function Deployment, there is definitely a significant upfront time investiture associated with the process. However, there are several time saving procedures that QFD teams can utilize to significantly decrease the arduousness associated with the methodology.
    • Planning for Failure: HOQ vs. FMEA - What is the best tool for prioritizing steps to mitigate potential failures: Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) or the House of Quality (HOQ) tool? Coming from a Quality Function Deployment enthusiast, my answer may surprise you…
    • What?s the Use? - The House of Quality matrix is an almost universal tool that can be used for prioritizing anything from a family budget to the complex engineering tasks of an automobile manufacturer.
    • Where Did QFD Get Its Terrible Name? - The name 'Quality Function Deployment' gives little hint as to what the tool actually is or what purpose it serves. So why is its name so perplexing? The answer lies in two main issues...
    • How Hard Can It Be? - If cost, complexity, and/or difficulty will affect your prioritization, then before you decide that entering difficulty values is too laborious, perhaps you should instead ask yourself, 'how hard can it be?'
    • A Spoonful of QFD Helps the Agile Go Down - There is a sweetener that can assist executive management in swallowing the sometimes bitter pill of 'Agile' development—and that sweetener bears the name 'QFD'.
    • When to Say When - An HOQ can quickly become unwieldy or cease to be useful if requirements are added to it haphazardly or if essential requirements are omitted. Luckily, there are proven guidelines that can assist QFD teams in producing a well-groomed and comprehensive Quality Function Deployment model.