All Features
Dave Heberling
When my daughter, Anna, was in the fifth grade, her teacher asked the students to write down their personal goals. Anna’s goals are still displayed in our home, so we obviously feel that there was something special about this assignment. Not bad for a fifth grader, huh? Could you do better? How? Is…
Fred Mason
When thinking about measurement devices and systems, the subject of accuracy comes up. Accuracy has been discussed in past columns of “Measurement Matters.” In the context of measurement system specifications, there’s more concern about the uncertainty of measurement, not its accuracy. So, what is…
Fred Mason
When thinking about measurement devices and systems, the subject of accuracy comes up. Accuracy has been discussed in past columns of “Measurement Matters.” In the context of measurement system specifications, there’s more concern about the uncertainty of measurement, not its accuracy. So, what is…
Robert W. Baird amp Co.
(Robert W. Baird & Co.: Milwaukee) -- The Test and Measurement (T&M) industry Spring 2008 report, created by Robert W. Baird & Co.’s investment banking department, highlights capital market and merger and acquisition (M&A) trends and events that affect middle-market companies…
Dassault Systmes
(Dassault Systèmes: Paris, France, and Providence, Rhode Island)– Dassault Systèmes, a leading supplier of 3-D and product life cycle management (PLM) solutions, has announced the availability of Abaqus 6.8, its technology-leading unified finite element analysis (FEA) software suite from…
Malvern Panalytical
(PANalytical: Almelo, The Netherlands) -- PANalytical has introduced a series of new petrochemical standard sets for X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy that make reliable and accurate calibration a simple, convenient, and cost effective procedure. The standard sets are made to PANalytical…
Deloitte
(Deloitte: New York) -- Heightened publicity over product recalls has made product safety, as well as product quality and environmental standards in emerging markets a hot-button issue. According to a new “Innovation in Emerging Markets” annual study by the Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (Deloitte)…
ISPE
(ISPE: Tampa, Florida) -- The June 2008 issue of the Journal of Pharmaceutical Innovation (JPI) is publishing the first scientific papers outlining the progress made on the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering’s (ISPE) product quality life cycle implementation (PQLI) initiative…
Denise Robitaille
I recently had a client who went through a pre-assessment in anticipation of his company’s certification audit. It’s kind of like a dress rehearsal for the real thing. Over the years, I’ve discovered that organizations tend to garner more value from pre-assessments than I had originally thought…
Joseph J. Caylor
ABC Company Work Instruction Purpose: To initiate a DMR for internal nonconformance, subcontractor nonconformance, rework, or sorting.Work description: A DMR is used to determine the nature of defect(s), establish a temporary remedy, determine the apparent root cause, establish corrective action,…
Joseph J. Caylor
ABC Company Work Instruction Purpose: To determine root cause for external nonconformance (customer complaints), internal nonconformance (rework, sort, subcontractor), and quality audit nonconformance findings.Work description: Nonconformance-generated CPARs and DMRs are analyzed for apparent…
Joseph J. Caylor
ABC Company Work Instruction
Purpose: To initiate corrective and preventive action for customer complaints, vendor nonconformance, and internal quality audits.
Work description: A CPAR is initiated to determine apparent root cause, corrective action, and preventive planning for customer complaints…
Joseph J. Caylor
ABC Company Work Instruction
Purpose: To determine root cause for external nonconformance (customer complaints), internal nonconformance (rework, sort, subcontractor), and quality audit nonconformance findings.
Work description: Nonconformance-generated CPARs and DMRs are analyzed for…
Joseph J. Caylor
As a consultant, I have been asked numerous times by management teams that are considering quality management systems (QMSs) such as ISO 9001, QS 9001, ISO/TS 16949, AS 9001, or TL 9000, “What’s in it for me? Companies complain that QMSs, such as ISO 9001, take up their employees’ time and cost too…
Photograph of circuit used in NIST’s Johnson noise thermometry system. The system relies on the “noise” of jiggling electrons as a basis for measuring temperatures. It is extremely precise in part because it is based on the predictable quantum effects of superconducting elements…
(ISO: Geneva) -- Because inadequate information technology (IT) systems can hinder the performance and competitiveness of organizations or expose them to the risk of not complying with legislation, the new ISO/IEC 38500 standard provides broad guidance on the role of top management in relation to…
(NCQA: Washington) -- The National Committee for Quality Assurance today released for public comment proposed standards and measures for a new Wellness and Health Promotion (WHP) product evaluation suite. The program will examine organizations that provide services to employers and health plans…
Joseph J. Caylor
As a consultant, I have been asked numerous times by management teams that are considering quality management systems (QMSs) such as ISO 9001, QS 9001, ISO/TS 16949, AS 9001, or TL 9000, “What’s in it for me? Companies complain that QMSs, such as ISO 9001, take up their employees’ time and cost too…
Joseph J. Caylor
ABC Company Work Instruction
Purpose: To initiate a DMR for internal nonconformance, subcontractor nonconformance, rework, or sorting.
Work description: A DMR is used to determine the nature of defect(s), establish a temporary remedy, determine the apparent root cause, establish corrective…
A thorny question lies at the heart of meaningful health care reform. How much is human life worth? New research from Wharton and Stanford based on Medicare kidney-dialysis data shows that the average figure—$129,090 per additional year of quality life—is higher than prior studies have shown.…
National Quality Forum
(NQF: Washington, D.C.) -- Recognizing that patient safety remains a major hurdle in the United States, the National Quality Forum (NQF) endorsed 48 voluntary consensus standards focused on measuring the performance of acute-care hospitals, including measures addressing pediatric safety, hospital…
(NCQA: Washington, D.C.) -- The Quality Crossroads Group, a group of stakeholders drawn together to identify strategies to address the complex challenges confronting the United States health care system, recently proposed a five-point agenda that examines quality in patient safety, the…
Medtral
(Medtral: Auckland, New Zealand) -- With a growing number of international medical travelers concerned about hospital accreditation, Medtral New Zealand, a health care organization based in New Zealand that coordinates medical travel packages from North America, addresses some of the pressing…
Americaaposs Health Insurance Plans
(AHIP: Washington, D.C.)-- The U.S. could reduce total health care spending and improve the quality of patient care if the plan recently proposed by America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) is implemented. PricewaterhouseCoopers reviewed AHIP’s proposals and estimates, and concluded that if…
Abe Eshkenazi
With increasing productivity and focus on efficiency, good manufacturing jobs can still be found in the United States, but they are becoming more complex, and the people who succeed in the field need advanced training, education, and support.According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative…
