All Features
Mike Micklewright
In part 1 of this series, I blamed myself for the recession. Actually, I blamed all quality professionals but I was trying to be polite. I also explained what one of our challenges is, if we hope to have a hand in turning the economy around.
I asked, “Why don’t we have more quality-type people…
The Infrared GPS system (iGPS) from Metris Inc. can be used to locate and track any point in a rugged indoor environment precisely and accurately. It was used by the Systems, Controls, and Components Research division at Caterpillar Inc., to calibrate the various sensors on a 420 E-series backhoe…
Robert Clem
Hello readers! 2009 brings CMSC into its 25th year. CMSC has grown from a small gathering of users and developers who had a common problem to solve—the standardization of theodolite targets. Today, CMSC has morphed from a conference-based organization into a society whose focus is on the promotion…
Olkiluoto, the world’s largest and most modern nuclear power station, with an output of 1.600 Mwatts, relies on German technology. During the final assembly of turbine manufacturing at Siemens, blades are installed to the rotor and measured in the housing. This is a balancing act between optimal…
Steven Ouellette
As you read this you will, no doubt, have already made (and perhaps broken) your New Year’s resolutions. I’d like to propose one that we, as business leaders, have a special responsibility to follow and whose failure we hear about in the news almost every day.
Of course, I’m talking about…
(Delcam International Inc.: Windsor, Ontario, Canada) -- Version 5 of Delcam’s PowerINSPECT software includes support for five-axis scanning with Renishaw’s REVO probe. This new release of the world’s most successful hardware-independent inspection software also features the ability to use…
(Metris: Leuven, Belgium) -- Metris (MTRS, Euronext Brussels) releases Laser Radar Driver 5.1 software to set new precision standards for automated, noncontact inspection of holes in large measuring volumes. Depending on hole diameter, Metris allows Laser Radar customers to reach accuracy and…
(Hexagon Metrology: North Kingstown, Rhode Island) -- Hexagon Metrology (London, U.K.) has announced the acquisition of Technodigit SARL (Lyon, France), developer of 3DReshaper software, a software package designed for 3-D point cloud and 3-D mesh manipulation for reverse-engineering, rapid…
(Geomagic: Research Triangle Park, North Carolina) -- Geomagic software has been selected by Team North American Eagle in its quest to set a new land speed record by reaching 800 mph. Project engineers will use Geomagic Studio software to digitally recreate the 56-foot-long Eagle vehicle for…
(FARO Technologies Inc.: Lake Mary, Florida) -- FARO, the world leader in portable 3-D measurement and imaging technology, announced that it has won the Defense Manufacturing Excellence Award from the National Center for Advanced Technologies (NCAT).
The National Center for Defense…
Bipin Roy
During a recession, the concept of lean should make absolute sense to an information technology (IT) manager who wants to pursue every channel to increase efficiency and productivity.
We have seen a procession of quality standards adopted by software services organizations in the last two…
(Smarter Solutions Inc.: Austin, Texas) -- Business management governance needs reinvention now. Current management practices didn’t prevent occurrence of the current financial crisis and often permitted creation of detrimental policies without risk assessment, says Forrest Breyfogle, CEO and…
(Moresteam.com: Columbus, Ohio) -- Cardinal Health, a global manufacturer and distributor of health care supplies and technologies, uses innovative lean Six Sigma training methods to pursue their goal of total process and safety excellence. In a Feb. 19 web cast available to the public, Cardinal…
Bill Kalmar
Anyone who has ever purchased merchandise from L.L. Bean is no doubt aware of this rock solid guarantee:
“Our products are guaranteed to give 100% satisfaction in every way. Return anything purchased from us at any time if it proves otherwise. We do not want you to have anything from L.L. Bean…
(ISPE: Tampa, Florida) – The International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering, a global not-for-profit association of 25,000 pharmaceutical science and manufacturing professionals, will hold the 2009 Tampa Conference at the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida, March 2–5.
Among the many…
(ECCB: Milwaukee) -- The Electronic Components Certification Board (ECCB) and the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB) will partner to develop a program for accredited certification to ensure that manufacturers have effective processes for controlling the hazardous materials in their…
Thomas R. Cutler
Plan-do-check-act (PDCA) is an iterative four-step problem-solving process typically used in business process improvement. It’s also known as the Deming Cycle. When W. Edwards Deming postulated this process, there was no such system as e-commerce.
PDCA has been rarely applied to websites or to the…
William A. Levinson
Carbon dioxide emissions are symptomatic of energy consumption in manufacturing, especially in transportation. Therefore initiatives to reduce them often cut supply chain costs as well. However, the exaggerated focus on carbon emissions is dysfunctional and it may overlook other cost-reduction…
(FDA: Rockville, Maryland) -- In an effort to combat counterfeiting and contamination, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is launching a voluntary pilot program for drug makers to determine the practicality of developing a secure supply chain program.
The goal of the program is to allow the…
(GAO: Washington) – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was added to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) biennial update list of federal programs, policies, and operations that are at “high risk” for waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement, or in need of broad-based transformation…
Richard Strouse
Internal auditing, when effectively implemented, can arguably be considered the most important tool in the quality system tool box. It’s the primary method for continuously monitoring a company's quality management system (QMS). In fact, the feedback from internal auditing is critical to the growth…
Daniel M. Smith
Why would anyone start a new metrology business in this economic climate? Why would they do it in Michigan, the epicenter of the automotive industry recession? The short answer is that if you can identify a clear need in the marketplace for your product and have the ability and expertise to bring…
(NIST: Gaithersburg, Maryland) – The United States has 1 million miles of water mains, 600,000 bridges and 4 million miles of public roadway. Experts have pointed to serious gaps in the nation’s ability to monitor these networks adequately to ensure timely maintenance and repair. Twenty-five…
(ISO: Geneva) -- The field of nanotechnologies is advancing rapidly and is expected to influence virtually every facet of global industry and society. International standardization contributes to the potential of this technology for the betterment and sustainability of the world through economic…
