6 sigma in manufacturing

Aamir AnsariTwinkle Choudhary

Quality objective that specifies the variability required of a process in terms of the specification of the product so that the products quality and reliability meets and exceeds the customers requirements• Process of eliminating defects Operate with defect levels below 3.4 defects per million

opportunities

691,462308,538

66,807

6,210

233

3.4

1

10

100

1,000

10,000

100,000

1,000,000

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Sigma Value

Defe

ct

per

mil

lio

n o

pp

ort

un

itie

s

Sigma % Good % Bad

Defects per million

opportunities

1 30.90% 69.10% 691,462

2 61.80% 30.90% 308,538

3 93.30% 6.70% 66,807

4 99.38% 0.62% 6,210

5 99.977% 0.023% 233

6 99.9997% 0.00034% 3.4

**graph shown on logarithmic scale**

Companies that early embraced Six Sigma in manufacturing were

Motorola & General Electric. Their version of Six Sigma is focused

on six key principles which are discussed by Bicheno (2006).

Critical to Quality: The customer is the start and what is important

for the customer needs to be identified.

Defect: Anything that does not deliver exactly what the customer

wants

Process Capability: The processes need to be able to deliver what

the customer wants

Variation: As it is experienced by the customer

Stable Operations: The goal is to secure reliable, robust processes

that improve the customer’s experience.

Design for Six Sigma: The design must meet all the customer

requirements and the capability of the process.

The best way to handle the resistance to

change is increased communication,

motivation and education.

Communication is also crucial to success

with the Six Sigma implementation.

This focus on communication ensures that

all employees are aware of the Six Sigma

activities even though not everyone is

involved in the actual projects.

Reduction in costsReduction in waste chainBetter understanding of customer

requirements Improves quality performanceDevelops robust products and processesProvides critical process inputs

Control

Motorola 3M Lockheed Martin Texas Instruments Bell Helicopter Apple Computer Chevron Citigroup Hewlett Packard

Ford Motor Company Honeywell General Dynamics Adolph Coors Eastman Kodak United States Army Xerox NASA Etc.

Adopting lean and six sigma over a decade ago has allowed General Cable to remain competitive in an extremely price-sensitive and cyclical industry. The company has 6 master black belts, 64 black belts, 211 green belts, 290 lean technicians that enable them to have a consistency of response — in other words, everyone has both the tools and knowledge to handle situations. As a result of this continuous improvement mindset, General Cable is expected to drive down costs by several percentage points annually.

http://www.industryweek.com/articles/lean_and_six_sigma_drive_continuing_improvement_at_general_cable_27421.aspx?sectionid=1

Continuous improvement has been a part of Crown Equipment’s philosophy since its founding in 1945. With decades of success and an impressive history of growth stems, leaders at Crown Equipment strive to find new ways to use Six Sigma and stay aware of changing technology and market trends. Crown’s keen awareness and Lean corporate efforts allow Crown to identify root causes and advance tools to achieve higher desired outcomes.

http://www.reliableplant.com/Read/26209/six-sigma-crown-equipment