William A. Levinson

Principal, author, auditor, and engineer

Levinson Productivity Systems

William A. Levinson, P.E., FASQ, CPIM is the principal of Levinson Productivity Systems P.C. He is the author of Reshore Production Now: How to Rebuild Manufacturing and Restore High Wages, High Profits, and National Prosperity in the USA, and other books on quality, productivity, and management.

Thu, 04/11/2019 - 09:06
Dockworkers Strike, Resisting AutomationReturn of the Luddites?
Tue, 10/15/2024 - 12:03
The Associated Press, reporting on the strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association, noted, “Local ILA president Boise Butler said workers want a fair contract that doesn’t allow automation of their jobs.” The report added, “The union had…
Understanding the Taguchi Loss FunctionNever take any model for granted
Wed, 08/28/2024 - 12:03
Most quality practitioners are familiar with the Taguchi loss function, which contends that the cost of any deviation from the nominal follows a quadratic model. This is in contrast to the traditional goalpost model, where anything inside the…
ISO’s New Climate RequirementsRemoving material and energy waste from supply chains reduces costs, supports continuity
Wed, 06/19/2024 - 12:03
The International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and ISO have published a joint communiqué to require organizations to “consider” climate change in the context of risks and opportunities relevant to the management system. Although this is pursuant to…
The Past and Future of the Quality ProfessionWhy it requires a new focus on value
Mon, 06/10/2024 - 12:03
Although quality management has been around in some form or another for thousands of years—a cover of Joseph Juran’s Quality Handbook depicted Egyptians making very precise measurements for the construction of pyramids—this article will show that…
Profit Isn’t Everything, But It’s the Final ScoreESG metrics divert attention from the only metric that counts
Wed, 05/08/2024 - 12:03
The famous football coach Vince Lombardi purportedly said, “Winning isn’t everything; it’s the only thing.” (According to Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, in a 1962 interview Lombardi said, “Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.”) In…
All My Sons: A Short Ethical Case StudyWhen shortcuts and cheating risk lives
Wed, 05/01/2024 - 12:03
The current alleged quality problems with the Boeing 737 underscore the importance of zero tolerance for poor quality. No manufacturing or quality professional should ever compromise on this issue. Most importantly, the potential consequences to…
How to Lose a War Before It StartsWe can’t allow our manufacturing capability to atrophy
Wed, 03/27/2024 - 12:03
What do quality and productivity have to do with World War III, which we all hope will never happen? The answer is everything. A massive loss of American manufacturing capability between 1945 and 2024 has conceded enormous advantages to aggressor…
Direct Air Capture Is a Waste of Carbon and MoneyCarbon sequestration makes no more sense than pumping money into the ground

Mon, 03/18/2024 - 00:03
In his Quality Digest article published in February 2023, Michael Mills1 reported that the next version of ISO 9001 will add to clause 4.1, “Understanding the organization and its context” the words, “the organization shall determine whether climate…
Needed: A Few Good Men and WomenManufacturers do better with high-wage workers
Thu, 10/12/2023 - 12:03
Valuable American manufacturing jobs were sent offshore under the dysfunctional belief that low-wage labor would result in lower product costs and higher profits. Although it may seem counterintuitive, manufacturers do better with high-wage workers…
When Assignable Cause Masquerades as Common CauseDeciding whether you need CAPA or a bigger boat
Wed, 09/27/2023 - 12:03
The difference between common (or random) cause and special (or assignable) cause variation is the foundation of statistical process control (SPC). An SPC chart prevents tampering or overadjustment by assuming that the process is in control, i.e.,…