Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) is a methodology designed to integrate equipment maintenance as a part of the standard operating procedures of the manufacturing process. The goal of a TPM program is to reduce or eliminate losses resulting from unplanned downtime.
Established by the U.S. Congress in 1987, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) recognizes United States companies that successfully implement quality management systems. The award not only shines a …
Use: The award promotes the sharing of successful performance strategies. To receive the ‘Baldrige Award’, an organization must have a world-class management system that ensures continuous improvement in delivering products …
In Lean Six Sigma and Six Sigma, poka-yoke (poh-kah yoh-keh) is a tool used to identify steps in a process where an error is likely to occur. This allows companies …
Poka yoke (pronounced (poh-kah yoh-keh) is a mistake proofing approach to eliminating errors or preventing errors that was developed by the Japanese engineer Shigeo Shingo in the 1960s. The phrase “poka-yoke” is derived from the Japanese word that means “to avoid errors.” Poka-yoke makes use of simple, but effective tools and signals to prevent errors from occurring.
An impact effort matrix acts as a decision-making tool to prioritize projects and manage time more efficiently. People can apply the matrix to any group of ideas, strategies and projects, …
A Kaizen Event is designed to support an effective, short-term brainstorming session that focuses on a single challenge and improves an existing process. The term is loosely translated from the …
The impact effort matrix (also known as the effort impact matrix) is used to help the team to decide which of the numerous solutions to implement appear to be the easiest (least effort) while having the most favorable impact.
A kaizen event (sometimes referred to as a kaizen blitz) is a focused improvement project that can accomplish breakthrough improvements in a short amount of time. The most common timeframe for such an event is five days; but there is nothing magic about having a kaizen event that is five days in length. The goal is to deliver a rapid breakthrough improvement. Kaizen events must have a clear and concise objective, along with immediate available resources and rapid results.
Six Sigma project teams use Force Field Analysis to identify and assess the strength of forces that both support and constrain potential improvements in a current situation. The concept is …
