Continuous Improvement

Ideas of CI

Continually seeking ways to improve operations

Not unique to quality – also applies to other process improvements

Never-ending process of achieving small wins

CI approaches vary from very structured SPC tools to simple

suggestion systems

Areas for ImprovementMachineryMaterialsLabor utilizationProduction methods

CI MethodsBenchmarksSense of employee ownership Reducing:

Time ScrapInjuriesCustomer problemsSupplier issues , etc.

Reduce or eliminate activities that don’t add value

PDCA Cycle (Deming Wheel):

Conveys the sequential and continual nature of CI

Plan DoCheckAct

Act Plan

Check Do

TQM versus Business Process Design (BPD)

BPD – The fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to bring about dramatic improvements in

performance. – Michael HammerBPD is revolutionary & CI is

incremental!!BPD is NOT restructuring!Driving forces behind BPD:

CustomersCompetitionChange

TQM versus BPDTQM

Large number of small incremental changes

Start with existing system

Changes made continuously.

Implement in as little as one day.

Change starts at the bottom

Change affects workers in a single functional department.

Primary enabler is statistical quality control techniques.

BPD

Large radical change.

Begins with a clean slate.

Major changes are made infrequently.

A long time frame, several months and perhaps a year or more

Changes begin at the top.

Changes affect workers across functional departments.

Primary enabler is new technology.

BPD Algorithm1. Prioritize processes for radical change.

2. Organize and educate.

3. Document the current processes.

4. Develop a vision for the future processes.

5. Starting with the current process, design the future process.

6. Develop an implementation plan.

7. Implement the plan.

Top Ten BPD Mistakes1. Don’t really make radical changes but say you are.2. Don’t focus on processes.3. Spend a lot of time analyzing the current situation.4. Proceed without strong executive leadership.5. Be timid in redesign.6. Go directly from conceptual design to

implementation.7. Redesign slowly.8. Place some aspects of the business off-limits.9. Adopt a conventional implementation style.10. Ignore the concerns of your people. - Michael Hammer © 1995

So you’re not ready for BPD – Steps for TQM Success

1. Train employees in the methods of SPC and other tools for improving quality and other performance measures

2. Make SPC methods a normal aspect of daily operations

3. Build work teams and employee involvement4. Utilize problem-solving tools within the work

team.5. Develop a sense of operator ownership in the

process.

Continuous Improvement/TQM Tools

For Generating Ideas:BrainstormingEmployee Suggestion Box

To Collect & Organize the Data:Check sheet Pareto charts Flow charts (Process diagrams)

For Identifying Problems:Cause & Effect diagram Scatter diagram Histogram – a distribution showing the frequency of

occurrences of a variableStatistical Process Control

Continuous Improvement Approaches we will consider

Deming Approach – Reduce variability

Kaizen Approach – Just Do It

Shingo Approach – Zero Defects

– Poka Yoke

Goldratt’s Approach – Theory of Constraints

These will each be discussed in detail and then compared/contrasted.