All Features
Lean Frontiers
(Lean Frontiers: Indianapolis) -- Lean Frontiers, provider of events in support of the lean enterprise, presents two 8-hour workshops on implementing lean principles across the manufacturing and logistics interface and within the supply-chain network on Dec. 7 and 8, 2011, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. EST.…
The Un-Comfort Zone With Robert Wilson
“L et me drive the boat.” It was the one statement from the creative director I’d come to dread. It usually came within moments of his reading over my shoulder as I wrote advertising copy on my computer.
It meant, “Get out of your seat. I’m going to start changing your work.”
The changes were…
MoreSteam.com
(MoreSteam.com: Columbus, OH) -- MoreSteam.com, a global provider of online lean Six Sigma (LSS) training and blended learning support technologies, will host “The Art of Distance Coaching,” a free, one-hour Master Black Belt (MBB) webcast, on Thurs., Oct. 13, 2011, at 1:30 p.m. EDT. Peg…
FARO
(FARO: Lake Mary, FL) -- FARO Technologies, a global provider of portable measurement and imaging solutions, has launched the Real Men Wear Pink campaign, which includes an online message board to raise money for breast cancer research. Visitors to the board are invited to add their name and…
Jay Arthur—The KnowWare Man
Ask almost anyone what is the No. 1 requirement for Six Sigma success, and he will say: top leadership commitment. It’s easy to look at Six Sigma successes like General Electric (GE) under Jack Welch and use them as evidence of the power of leadership commitment. The belief is so often repeated…
MIT News
There’s good news and bad news about the United States’ ongoing deficit and debt problems, according to high-profile economists who discussed the subject recently at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The good news is that the country’s long-term debt is a less pressing economic…
Paul Naysmith
My wife and I were waiting near the departure gate at a miniature regional airport in Louisiana when the announcement blared: “Due to weather in Atlanta, your scheduled flight will not be disembarking for 15 minutes.” Dismayed by the news, we exchanged worried looks and prepared for the worst.…
Banner Engineering
(Banner Engineering: Minneapolis) -- Banner Engineering Corp., manufacturer of the most complete, integrated, and advanced line of photo eyes, sensors, wireless sensors, vision sensors, vision lighting, machine safety, and indicator lights, has introduced the L-GAGE LH Series laser sensor, a…
ISO
A series of groundbreaking case studies by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and partner organizations shows that implementing standards can provide economic benefits from between 0.5 and 4 percent of companies’ annual sales revenues. The studies are based on the…
Mike Micklewright
Igor Centric, CEO of Dysfuncompany of America Inc., is lolling behind his desk with his legs crossed on top of it. He is staring up at the ceiling with his hands clasped behind his head.
ADVERTISEMENT
Igor has just called Miyagi, holder of a thin…
AIA
(AIA: Ann Arbor, MI) -- A new camera interface standard that is based on the USB 3.0 interface (SuperSpeed USB) is being developed specifically for the global machine vision market. Called USB3 Vision, this new standard will take advantage of the soon-to-be prevalent USB 3.0 ports that will be…
Advanced Thermal Solutions
(ATS: Norwood, MA) -- Advanced Thermal Solutions Inc. (ATS), an engineering/manufacturing company focused on the thermal management of electronics, now provides a flexible, robust candlestick sensor, the MS 1000-CS-WC, that can simultaneously measure both temperature and air velocity for…
Newport Corp.
(Newport: Irvine, CA) -- Newport Corp. has announced that it has completed the acquisition of Ophir Optronics Ltd. (“Ophir”), a global leader in precision infrared optics, photonics instrumentation, and 3-D noncontact measurement equipment, for $8.43 per share in cash.
“We are delighted to…
Elysium Inc.
(Elysium: Southfield, MI) -- With almost 250 participants already registered for the third annual Boeing/Northrop Grumman Global Product Data Interoperability Summit, the list of speakers has now been released (see below). Industry-leading aerospace, automotive, software, and IT experts will…
AIA
(AIA: Ann Arbor, MI) -- The International Conference for Vision Guided Robotics (ICVGR), sponsored by the Automated Imaging Association (AIA) and the Robotic Industries Association (RIA), focuses on the successful implementation of vision-guided robotics for a variety of industries. From proven…
Mark R. Hamel
Reflection, or hansei in Japanese, is a critical part of lean. Without purposeful reflection it is difficult to improve our value streams, processes, or ourselves. Socrates’ oft-referenced, “The unexamined life is not worth living,” rings true within lean. But may I be so bold to add a twist?…
Quality Digest
1.
Wild craziness
No one knows diddly here
Going homeward bound
2.
We have an issue!
Looking for the root cause?
Go to the gemba!
3.
5 Whys finds root cause
Corrective action needed
Must sustain changes
4.
My quality plan
Seven kids and wife at hand
Life is paradise
…
EPA Alliance Training Group
(EPA Alliance Training Group: Houston) -- The EPA Alliance Training Group, provider of cost-effective environmental training to the private and government sectors, is offering the “ISO 14001 EMS Workshop: Auditing and Conformance” in Orlando, Florida, Jan. 11–13, 2012. The international…
ASQ
(ASQ: Milwaukee, WI) -- Global responsibility and consumer awareness lead the list of key forces that provide opportunities and challenges for quality to influence and affect change in the future, according to the 2011 Future of Quality Study from the American Society for Quality (ASQ), which…
Kistler
(Kistler: Novi, MI) -- Kistler, a worldwide supplier of precision sensors, systems, and instrumentation for the dynamic measurement of pressure, force, torque, and acceleration, has introduced its K-Beam high-sensitivity, low-noise MEMS capacitive accelerometer family. The K-Beam family is…
Olympus
(Olympus: Waltham, MA) -- Olympus NDT has introduced the Industrial Tech Guide App for iPhone and iPad. This free mobile application contains two knowledge-based sections designed for technicians performing ultrasonic flaw detection and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) inspections. Available for…
Meggitt
(Meggitt Sensing Systems, San Juan Capistrano, CA) -- Meggitt Sensing Systems, a Meggitt group division, has announced the global market introduction of the Endevco model 4830A, a handheld, lightweight, battery-operated electronic instrument designed to simulate a variety of transducer outputs…
Michael Causey
Under pressure from all sides, the beleaguered Food and Drug Administration (FDA) keeps announcing new reorganization initiatives, name changes, and all sorts of stuff that would be funny if it was scripted by the same team handling Steve Carell’s departure from The Office and the ushering in…
Bill Kalmar
We are told that St. Peter has the keys to the kingdom of heaven, and that he stands in front of a wrought iron gate only allowing in certain people who have lived exemplary lives. I suspect that he has only one large key (maybe a skeleton key—heh, heh), unlike the millions of Americans who…
William A. Levinson
Frederick the Great stated that a general who tries to defend everything defends nothing. The same principle applies to business performance metrics: He who tries to measure everything measures nothing because it is impossible to focus effectively on “everything.”
The Defense Acquisition…
