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A recently released book illustrates how to apply Six Sigma to improve sales and marketing teams’ ability to generate viable leads and improve customer service. In response to these concerns, we formed a new organization, the International Quality Federation (IQF). The IQF is an all volunteer…
An innovative four-week Six Sigma Black Belt training course sponsored by Excel Partnership will begin in July. The course will take place one week a month for four months, beginning July 25–29, followed by Aug. 15–19, Sept. 19–23 and Oct. 24–28. Courses will be held in San Francisco and will…
A new Six Sigma course offered at the University of Notre Dame is specifically designed for health care professionals. “Lean Six Sigma Black Belt for Health Care Professionals” addresses the complex challenge of controlling costs while improving quality in the medical field. A blended-learning…
Voltaix Inc.’s employees have recently received lean manufacturing training in an effort to improve the company’s semiconductor performance.The training was provided by the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Program Inc. Earlier this year, 15 Voltaix employees received Six Sigma Green Belt…
Iowa’s Easter Seals nonprofit organization recently adopted Six Sigma practices and it now expects to save thousands of dollars in ongoing Six Sigma projects. The organization partnered with Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. in 2000 to begin Six Sigma training, and to address production and supply…
PowerSteering Software Inc. and Computer Sciences Corp. have formed an alliance to offer a new line of Six Sigma and strategic program management services based on PowerSteering’s software. “Executives in charge of strategic initiatives are increasingly looking for solutions like Six Sigma that can…
A recently released book examines new insights and perspectives on how Six Sigma process management can be used to achieve business process leadership. What is Six Sigma Process Management? (McGraw-Hill, 2005) by Rowland Hayler and Michael Nichols, outlines the use of Six Sigma process management,…
Six Sigma Qualtec recently launched a new program for achieving its advanced Master Black Belt certification. The newly revised offering is designed tot meet the evolving needs of today’s businesses, placing a higher emphasis on meeting specific objectives, achieving dramatic improvements in…
JLG Industries Inc. recently implemented a new strategic plan that diversifies its operations and increases the focus on its Six Sigma program. The company’s new vice president of Six Sigma quality processes and training is now John Louderback, who has been with the company since 1993, when he…
MoreSteam.com recently introduced an online design for Six Sigma training program that uses a video game to illustrate design techniques. MoreSteam.com’s DFSS simulation incorporates the Roller Coaster Tycoon computer video game as an engaging learning platform. The simulation includes rich voice…
Brookfield Engineering Laboratories was the recipient of the 2005 Northeast Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing.The award was presented by the University of Massachusetts’ College of Management’s Greater Boston Manufacturing Partnership. The Shingo Prize has been dubbed the “Nobel Prize of…
Executives who wish they had a more practical and detailed outline for implementing and sustaining their lean management system, may benefit from David Mann’s recently released book. Creating a Lean Culture—Tools to Sustain Lean Conversions (Productivity Press, 2005), provides leaders with a lean…
Executives from Automated Engineering Corp., a small electronics design and manufacturing firm in Florida, knew that to land lucrative subcontracting opportunities, the company needed to implement established quality methods, but couldn’t afford the necessary training. That’s where the Florida…
Albertson’s Inc. recently attributed Six Sigma as one of the causes to its significant profit increases for the first quarter of 2005. The company reported net earnings from continuing operations rose 93 percent to $107 billion, compared to $56 million in the first quarter of last year. Total sales…
Bechtel Communications recently received the Most Innovative Six Sigma Project Award honorable mention for a process improvement technique using its Virtual Survey Tool for network deployment. Bechtel uses the VST in its alternative site selection process improvement process, enabling the…
CenterBeam recently completed another phase of an ambitious Six Sigma training plan. The IT outsourcing company is training all of its staff in the fundamentals of lean and Six Sigma. While everyone in the company has received Six Sigma training, about 15 percent of its staff has graduated as lean…
A new Six Sigma book outlines the use of the methodology with an up-to-date approach to enhance the produce development cycle. Graham Wilson’s Six Sigma and the Product Development Cycle (Butterworth-Heinemann, 2005), looks at the common steps companies follow to create the companywide culture that…
Reliance Industries Ltd. received the Silver Award for the Six Sigma project it performed at the American Society for Quality’s Team Excellence Competition on May 18. The competition was held at ASQ’s World Conference on Quality & Improvement. Reliance Industries’ Color Control Team tackled the…
Pyzdek Consulting Inc. has announced a Six Sigma Black Belt training course designed for busy professionals. PCI President Thomas Pyzdek will lead the first TravelFree Training class. TravelFree Training will be delivered on the Web by live instructors to small groups of students in a classroom-…
The second annual Crystal Ball User Conference will be held June 13–15 in Denver. The event will be hosted by Decisioneering Inc. and will feature two days of technical tracks and a third day for workshops. Risk-modeling professionals and simulation experts will present more than 30 case studies,…
Minitab Inc. recently released MINITAB 14.2, the latest update of its award-winning statistical analysis software. The updated version includes new statistical capabilities, including chi-square goodness-of-fit tests for single categorical variable and Poisson distribution; enhanced quality tools,…
New curriculum from MoreSteam.com focuses on the use of Six Sigma in the financial services industry. Six Sigma and e-learning are increasingly popular vehicles for process improvement. With this in mind, MoreSteam.com developed the financial services package in response to demand for industry-…
Quality Technology Co. recently introduced its Corporate Performance Improvement framework, a multifaceted approach to business management. The framework comprises four elements: business scorecard, Six Sigma, innovation and management systems. The integrated approach to improving corporate…
EMS Consulting Group Inc. will host a public lean manufacturing certificate program in San Diego this fall. The program includes six course modules designed to provide participants with targeted managerial and technical competencies in lean manufacturing. Participants will learn how to apply value…
Decisioneering Inc. recently announced that Breakthrough Management Group Inc. has joined its Six Sigma Partner Program. The partnership will allow BMG and Decisioneering to work together to promote Decisioneering’s Crystal Ball software program in Six Sigma training initiatives. Decisioneering…