All Features
Donald J. Wheeler
Measurement error is ubiquitous. As a result, over the past 250 years, different areas of science and engineering have come up with many different ways to deal with the problem of measurement error. One approach to the problem of measurement error was developed during the 1960s within General…
Chip Bell
When you played cowboys and Indians as a kid, did you want to be the cowboy or the Indian? I wanted to be the Indian. All the ones I saw in comic books had super-cool moccasins and could move around with their bow and arrows without making a sound. And there were plenty of famous Native Americans…
Quality Digest
(Siemens: Plano, TX) -- Siemens Digital Industries Software announces the establishment of JEP181—a neutral file, XML-based standard from the JEDEC Solid State Technology Association, which is the global leader in standards development for the microelectronics industry.
The JEP181 standard…
James Bossert
When we talk about measurement system analysis (MSA), people tend to focus on attribute agreement analysis because it is usually quicker and easier to do than a gauge repeatability and reproducibility (gauge R&R) study. This article is a review of the fundamentals for gauge R&R to remind us…
Iffet Turken
We need instant adaptability to the new skill sets in the unknown future of work. The Covid-19 pandemic is a prime example of how change is accelerating and requiring us to adapt quickly. We often hear about the skill sets we will need but not enough about how executives will adapt to them. A “…
Manuel Müller
(Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence: North Kingstown, RI) -- Probe-based machine tool inspection has a well-deserved reputation for delivering clear productivity gains. But when it comes to capturing a full digital image of a clamped freeform workpiece, it can fall short.
A probe only records a…
William A. Levinson
Measurement systems analysis (MSA) for attributes, or attribute agreement analysis, is a lot like eating broccoli or Brussels sprouts. We must often do things we don't like because they are necessary or good for us. While IATF 16949:2016, Clause 7.1.5.1.1—“Measurement systems analysis,” does not…
Peter Dizikes
When bringing technologies into the workplace, it pays to be realistic. Often, for instance, bringing new digital technology into an organization does not radically improve a firm’s operations. Despite high-level planning, a more frequent result is the messy process of frontline employees figuring…
Duke University
Price discounts and other promotions on consumer goods can boost a product’s sales in the short term, but that same strategy may destroy a brand’s equity, according to research from Carl Mela, a marketing professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.
Brands often focus on the short-term…
(Harrington Management Systems: Los Gatos, CA) -- Harrington Management Systems has announced the webinar entitled “Using the ISO 56002 Innovation Management System.” The webinar will run three times on July 8, 2021, to accommodate worldwide interest in the topic:
Americas: 12:01 p.m Pacific…
Jim Hardeman
Customer complaints about service or food safety, and general quality incidents for delivered products, are bound to happen. It’s how brands use these incidents to further enhance product quality and the customer experience that matters.
Restaurant and grocery customers will—and should—report…
Kate Zabriskie
Regardless of their intentions, people who micromanage often create an environment of fear, mistrust, and disengagement. The constant oversight, checking in, and nitpicking wears down even the strongest employee. Turnover goes up, engagement goes down, and all the while, the managers who…
Quality Digest
(Detection Technology Inc.: Billerica, MA) -- Detection Technology, a global leader in X-ray detector solutions, has unveiled the Aurora XS to address the cost efficiency and reliability requirements of the urban security screening market. The Aurora XS adapts to versatile X-ray imaging systems,…
Steve McKee
Have you noticed gas prices going up? Is your company having a hard time finding new employees? Are you paying more (and waiting longer) for parts? The experts say inflation may be upon us. If it isn’t yet, it soon will be, given all the funny money the federal government has pumped into the…
Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence
A 3D-printed replica of Michelangelo’s famous David sculpture, reproduced with the use of scanning technology by Hexagon, was unveiled during a ceremony at the Italy Pavilion at Expo 2020 in Dubai.
The event was attended by the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation,…
Eliot Dratch
Owning and operating a top-quality manufacturing business comes with a multitude of challenges. To help outline points of improvement and give your business a road map to success, California Manufacturing Technology Consulting (CMTC) offers these quality strategies to help you achieve premium…
Dawn Bailey
In 2020, MESA, a small business in Oklahoma, became to date the first and only three-time Baldrige Award recipient.
From a one-person consulting firm founded in 1979, MESA has grown to support a workforce of more than 250 people. The largest privately owned company in its market, it is a…
MIT News
First published June 7, 2021, on MIT News.
It’s no secret that a manufacturer’s ability to maintain and, ideally, increase production capability is the basis for long-run competitive success. But discovering a way to significantly increase production without buying a single piece of new equipment—…
Kimberly Merriman, David Greenway, Tamara Montag-Smit
As vaccinations and relaxed health guidelines make returning to the office a reality for more companies, there seems to be a disconnect between managers and their workers about remote work.
A good example of this is a recent op-ed written by the CEO of a Washington, D.C., magazine that suggested…
Anne Trafton
First published June 7, 2021, on MIT News.
MIT engineers have discovered a new way of generating electricity using tiny carbon particles that can create a current simply by interacting with liquid surrounding them.
The liquid, an organic solvent, draws electrons out of the particles, generating a…
Michael Lee Stallard
Astronaut crews living and working in space experience as a matter of course what many of us experienced unexpectedly during the coronavirus pandemic. Consider these similarities.
Astronauts are physically isolated for a long period of time from family, friends, and the majority of their work…
Carlos Valdes-Dapena
In my work in collaboration and team effectiveness, I am sometimes approached about helping with a “dysfunctional team.” People use the word “dysfunction” liberally and can mean various things by it. I’ve learned some lessons about team dysfunction, and the most important one is that it isn’t what…
Karla Raines
Total quality management (TQM) was in vogue during my undergraduate years and early career in industrial engineering. The United States was catching up to the Japanese in manufacturing production as their Toyota vehicles outperformed our Fords. A company couldn’t deliver a competitive product…
Wayland Additive
Metal additive manufacturing (AM) is a process with demanding requirements for in-process material management, specifically with regard to the use of powdered metals. The Calibur3 system from Wayland Additive, enabled by the NeuBeam process, not only redefines how the electron beam (eBeam) process…
(Volume Graphics: Charlotte, NC) -- The latest version of Volume Graphics’ high-end computed tomography (CT) data analysis software suite, v. 3.5, brings enhanced capabilities to manufacturers looking for better ways to inspect parts and improve designs—however they are made.
Particularly in the…
