Simpson's paradox occurs when a trend appears in several different groups of data but disappears or reverses when the data from these groups are combined. In this video, Guillaume Riesen, currently a Ph.D. student in neuroscience at Stanford University, gives examples of how combining data from two disparate groups can lead to a different and [...]
How well do your inspectors agree with one another? How well do they agree with a standard? What about people who review documents? How would several reviewers rate the same document? Do they agree with one another? These are just several of the situations where Attribute Agreement would answer these questions. In this simple video, [...]
Do you have a problem with an objective to maximize, minimize, or perhaps you want to hit a target value? Is achieving your objective based on the provision of several resources for which there are constraints? Then you have an optimization problem on your hands, which requires mathematical programming. But don’t worry. You most likely [...]
A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) divides a project into smaller, manageable pieces. It helps organize the work required. A PERT chart works in concert with a WBS to organize and schedule required tasks. PERT stands for Program Evaluation Review Technique. Nathan Garrett, a professor at Woodbury University in Burbank, California, uses a simple example [...]
Andon is a manufacturing term referring to a system to notify management, maintenance, and other workers of a quality or process problem. Andon, in Japanese, means “paper lantern.” So, it is an appropriate term for “illuminating” a problem. Ensto, a Finland-based energy company, uses an Andon system to ensure world-class quality. Whenever a problem arises [...]
TRIZ is a systematic approach to solving problems. It was invented by Soviet inventor Genrich Altshuller and his colleagues, starting in 1946. Altschuller reviewed 40,000 patents to determine the principles that were used for the inventions. As a result, he developed 40 principles of invention, coupled with a Contradictions Matrix. These are just a few [...]
In this YouTube video, Tom Huckabee, Development Specialist for Processes and Information Systems, explains Jidoka or autonomation and its basic principles. He defines Jidoka as a “device to auto-stop a process to prevent a defect or a problem.” The key is the automatic part. Huckabee breaks the principle of Jidoka into a few simple steps: [...]
Bill Waddell, Lean manufacturing expert with over 30 years of experience and co-author of “Simple Excellence: Organizing and Aligning the Management Team in a Lean Transformation,” discusses the benefits of pairing Theory of Constraints (TOC) with Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE). TOC focuses on determining the bottleneck on the overall performance of the process. It is [...]
Error Proofing, Mistake Proofing, or in Japanese Poka-Yoke. Shigeo Shingo developed Poka-Yoke while working for Toyota. Poka-Yoke is first and foremost the prevention of an error before it could have occurred. That is, you cannot do it wrong. It can only be done one way. A three-prong plug can only be inserted one way. Baring [...]
Process mapping is a technique which is used in the Six Sigma methodology. The tool allows the user to visualize the steps that are involved in any given process or activity. In simple terms, Six Sigma process mapping is a flowchart that illustrates all the inputs, steps, and outputs in a process. It is important [...]
