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Let’s revisit two scenarios from my July 2012 column, “The Sobering Reality of ’Beginner’s Mind.’” First, a medical center’s Harvard MBA COO insisted on nothing less than 100-percent computer uptime, no excuses. His IT department’s inability to get 100-percent uptime consistently has resulted in…
Only 11 percent of employees worldwide are engaged in their jobs, according to Gallup. That’s an alarmingly low number and suggests profound problems for workplaces in almost every corner of the world. Low engagement results in lower productivity and profitability—and damages a company’s future…
One of the greatest misunderstandings in leadership and coaching is the term “micromanaging.” Most leaders never want to be thought of as a micromanager; that would be considered an insult or a weakness. When micromanaging is used as a coaching or leadership style, it will most likely deliver bad…
(Verisurf: Anaheim, CA) -- Verisurf Software Inc. and select resellers worldwide have introduced the 3DGage coordinate measuring machine (CMM). “The new 3DGage enables manufacturers to quickly implement lean model-based inspection right on the shop floor that yield real improvements in production…
MIT researchers have developed a new technique for magnetically separating oil and water that could be used to clean up oil spills. They believe that, with their technique, the oil could be recovered for use, offsetting much of the cost of cleanup.
The researchers will present their work at the…
Has international trade come to a standstill with the crisis that started in 2008? Things are not that simple, says Pascal Lamy, the director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), during a recent joint interview with ParisTech Review and Knowledge@Wharton. Although protectionist pressures…
A refined method developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for measuring nanometer-sized objects may help computer manufacturers more effectively size up the myriad tiny switches packed onto chips’ surfaces. The method, which makes use of multiple measuring instruments…
When implementing a new management system based on ISO standards, experts usually invoke the grandfather clause as a way to relieve the enforcement of some requirements. When, where, and how often can the grandfather clause be invoked?
The grandfather clause is a statement that an organization…
(Cognex: Natick, MA) -- Cognex Corp., a global leader in industrial ID, has integrated advanced 2DMax+ code-reading software technology into the compact DataMan 100 and 200 fixed-mount barcode readers. With 2DMax+, the readers can now identify and decode severely damaged or poorly marked 2D matrix…
The United States already has one of the highest direct fire loss rates among developed nations, and progress in reducing this tremendous burden is slowing.
Fires claim more than 3,000 lives a year, injure more than 90,000 firefighters and civilians, and impose costs and losses totaling more than…
Admit it; if you follow the National Football League (NFL), both of the following statements are likely true: When talking about the preseason with friends, you say that the preseason doesn’t matter and doesn’t mean anything for the regular season, so you’re not really worried or excited about your…
I want you to see your customers in a (lucrative) new light. The old paradigm works like this: Your company produces goods and services that help customers get a job done. In return, the customers pay you money. You take that money and invest a good portion of it in traditional sales and marketing…
I’m back, writing about another Toyota dilemma of mine. In part one, interestingly titled “My Toyota Dilemma,” I wrote how I, as an avid fan and supporter of the Toyota Production System (TPS) have never owned a Toyota. I ended that column vowing I would use Toyota’s greatest gift—the 5 Whys—to…
(Hexagon: North Kingstown, RI) -- Hexagon Metrology has released the new Brown & Sharpe TWIN-CAL IP67 calipers with an innovative built-in output connection, which are on display this week at Hexagon Metrology’s booth E-5202 at IMTS 2012, Sept. 10–15, at McCormick Place in Chicago.
This…
Joseph M. Juran was a seminal 20th-century figure in the field of quality; his many contributions broadened the field from its original, narrow, and statistically-based focus. As early as the 1970s, he recognized the value and importance of regularly reviewing a business system and its ability to…
Joseph M. Juran was a seminal 20th-century figure in the field of quality; his many contributions broadened the field from its original, narrow, and statistically-based focus. As early as the 1970s, he recognized the value and importance of regularly reviewing a business system and its ability to…
Our Northeast Region Shingo Conference, held Sept. 25–26, 2012, is all about sharing information, ideas, problems, plans—all of those things that can make the sum of the parts greater than the whole. So a story about the power of sharing ideas seems appropriate.
As a new vice president of…
Sometimes the chain of measurement traceability—the unbroken series of links between a calibrated instrument and the official NIST standard—can get pretty long. But 250 million kilometers is remarkable, even for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
That’s the current distance…
My title this month is a funny metaphor for a common opinion I saw written on a bathroom wall. The gist of the graffiti was that the first mouse must die springing the trap before the second one gets the prize.
After observing big failures, it’s human nature to be a little wary of trying new…
At creative werks (cw), a manufacturing and co-packing business in Illinois, production is nonstop. Lines run 24/7 and data constantly accumulate. Accuracy and timeliness are crucial, but without an automated quality control system, the quality team relied on manual auditing for weight checking,…
(Pinpoint: Peabody, MA) -- Pinpoint Laser Systems, designer and manufacturer of measuring and alignment tools and solutions, is exhibiting this week, Sept. 10–15, at the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) held at McCormick Place in Chicago.
Pinpoint’s booth (No. E-4769) is featuring…
(Siemens: Plano, TX) -- Siemens PLM Software, will release in October 2012 the latest version of NX software, the company’s integrated computer-aided design, manufacturing, and engineering analysis (CAD/CAM/CAE) solution. NX 8.5 includes customer-driven enhancements and new capabilities that…
(LVMC: Chester, UK) -- The Large Volume Metrology Conference and Exhibition 2012 (LVMC) is accepting submissions for presentations for this year’s show, which is being held Nov. 28–29 at the Chester Racecourse in Chester, United Kingdom. The LVMC is the only European event dedicated solely to the…
America’s healthcare system has become too complex and costly to continue business as usual, according to the report, “Best Care at Lower Cost: The Path to Continuously Learning Health Care in America” from the Institute of Medicine.
Inefficiencies, an overwhelming amount of data, and other…
My mother started teaching piano when she was in her teens. She still does as a matter of fact, even though she is about to celebrate her 91st birthday.
When I was a boy she thought I should learn to play. Don’t get me wrong; I love the piano. I grew up listening to my mother play classical pieces…
