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Key Components of Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) Analysis

6/8/2020

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The Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) is also known as the cost of waste and it represents the costs that are incurred by the business or organization due to poor quality and defects in an existing process. 

While many people tend to associate the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) to the Lean six sigma, the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) is actually a tool in six sigma that is frequently used to evaluate potential projects as well as yo prioritize the order they should be conducted. ​
Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) Analysis
One of the things that you need to keep in mind about the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) is that it is a very effective way of identifying non-value. So, when you use it, it will be a lot easier to eliminate those activities and to generate cost savings. 

Notice that the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) is not an exact science. After all, it's not possible to accurately measure them before you begin with the implementation of six sigma.

The Goal Of Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) Analysis

Simply put, the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) is an estimation tool and it should always be seen this way. This tool can help you identify lean six sigma projects, determine their financial viability, and even set priorities among potential projects. 

The main goal of the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) is to determine the financial costs of poor quality or waste that exist in a process. These costs tend to be referred to as failure costs and they can be divided into 4 categories:

  • Internal Failure Costs
  • External Failure Costs
  • Appraisal Costs
  • Prevention Costs

#1: Internal Failure Costs:

Internal Failure Costs
These are the costs that are incurred by a business or organization due to defects that are found before the service or product reaches the customer. You can classify as internal failure costs the following:

  • Rework: These are the activities that are needed to correct the defects that were found.
  • Scrap: This is the material that is seen as waste because it wasn't maximized. 
  • Failure Analysis: These costs include the time and effort that are needed to analyze the defective products or services. 
  • Re-Inspection And Re-Testing: As soon as you correct the errors or defects, the products or services will need to be tested and inspected to ensure they were properly corrected. ​

#2: External Failure Costs:

This category includes the costs that are incurred by a business due to defective services or products. The main difference with the previous category is that these errors or defects are found after the service or product reaches the customer. Some examples include:

  • Adjustments For Complaints: Addition of added value service or items as a way to resolve customer complaints.
  • Warranty Charges: These are the costs that a business has for honoring the warranty that was offered with the service or product. 
  • Allowances: These are usually given to distributors as credits against defective services or products.
  • Returns: These are the costs that are linked to the returns or refunds as well as all the labor costs involved in the process. ​

#3: Appraisal Costs:

Appraisal Costs
What is appraisal cost?
These are the costs that are incurred by a company to inspect and measure the quality of a product or service. Some examples include:

  • Testing: All testing procedures aim to ensure quality levels.
  • Inspection: This cost can occur in multiple stages from the development stage to the delivery and even the manufacturing stage. 
  • Quality Audits: Periodically, companies should conduct random quality audits that also have costs.

Learn more about appraisal cost 6 sigma.

#4: Prevention Costs: 

Prevention Costs
As you can see by its name, prevention costs include all the costs that a company can have when it is trying to prevent all forms of defects in a service or product. These can include:
​
  • Policies And Procedures: These costs may include the quality of materials, labor requirements as well as development and even review of the standards and rules that affect the incidence of defects. 
  • Design Reviews: These are the costs that refer to the assessment and evaluation of a product or service to detect problems and defects before the production. 
  • Training And Education: Training and education are required for employees to increase their skills as well as to decrease the likelihood of defects.
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The Pros and Cons of Implementing Six Sigma In Your Company

6/6/2020

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When you have a company, then you may be wondering if it is a good idea to simply implementing six sigma. After all, you keep seeing and reading about companies that enjoyed a huge success and others that failed miserably. And if you are going to try it, you need to be one of the successes, not failures. 

Learn everything you need to know about six sigma.

Back in 1986 when Motorola decided to implement six sigma, the reactions were pretty mixed. There were mainly two different ideas: the ones that saw this as a complicated process that wouldn't lead to improved profits and the ones that saw it as a revolutionary system that could improve efficiency as never seen before. 

Fast-forwarding some decades, we can now see that the strategy was actually pretty successful. After all, it was a revolutionary tool that allowed Motorola to identify and eliminate the causes of errors and defects in the manufacturing process as a way to meet and even exceed customer requirements. 

Understanding DFSS six sigma.
implementing six sigma
So far, many organizations have tested six sigma, as demonstrated by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln through a study they did to establish underlying factors impacting an organization’s adoption of Sigma, and subsequent long-term success.

Their findings indicated a significant difference between companies that had successfully implemented Six Sigma and those that were yet to do so. About 64% of the successful cases overwhelmingly increased their profits by more than 100%, while 64% of the latter registered comparatively low profits. 

One of the most interesting facts that were recorded is the fact that about 81% of the companies that were yet to successfully implement Six Sigma had registered significantly higher profits before adopting the strategy. 

So, should you implement six sigma in your company?

Learn more about the DFSS methodology.

The Upside Of Six Sigma

benefits of six sigma implementation
Implementing six sigma is a gradual process that evolves to all organization levels. As you include six sigma in your business' culture, you will then be able to monitor closely your processes as a way to identify and correct problems as they emerge.

Ultimately, you will try to identify and eliminate problems before they even occur. And this leads to savings in both time and money. So, you should then start seeing increased profits and reduced operational costs within your business.

One of the main advantages of using six sigma is the fact that it relies a lot on data. So, you will be able to monitor your processes in real-time allowing you to make decisions faster.

Finally, by documenting your processes and defects, you’ll be setting up a learning platform, where lessons are shared by experts and other employees in a bid to improve their individual assembly lines.
​
Take a look at DFSS explained.

The Downside Of Six Sigma

The Downside Of Six Sigma
One of the things that you need to keep in mind about six sigma is the fact that it is mainly a strategy to improve quality and not to reduce costs. Therefore, you may not even be able to see a cost reduction or you may even see them increasing when you implement six sigma. ​
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How To Measure Cost Of Quality (COQ)

6/5/2020

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One of the first things that you need to understand about Cost Of Quality (COQ) is that the calculating method varies from company to company. 

One of the methods that is sometimes used is to determine the Cost Of Quality (COQ) by calculating total warranty dollars as a percentage of sales. Unfortunately, this method is only looking externally at the Cost of Quality and not looking internally. So, when you want to get a better understanding, you need to ensure that you take a closer look at all the quality costs. 

Looking to know more about six sigma?
Cost Of Quality (COQ)
Ultimately, the Cost Of Quality (COQ) can be divided into 4 main categories: Prevention, Appraisal, Internal Failure, And External Failure. As you can imagine, all these categories are very broad and there are numerous sources of costs that are related to both good and poor quality. 

So, let's take a look at some of the typical sources of Cost Of Quality (COQ).

Typical Sources Of Cost Of Quality

The Cost Of Good Quality:

The Cost Of Good Quality
#1: Prevention Costs: These are the costs that are incurred from activities that intend to keep failures to a minimum. These may include:

  • new product development and testing
  • quality planning
  • development of a Quality Management System
  • establishing product specifications
  • proper employee training.


What is appraisal cost?
#2: Appraisal Costs: These are the costs that are incurred by a business to maintain product quality levels that are acceptable. These include:

  • check fixtures
  • process controls
  • quality audits
  • incoming material inspections
  • supplier assessments.

Learn more about the appraisal cost.

The Cost Of Poor Quality

The Cost Of Poor Quality
#1: Internal Failures: These are the costs that are linked with defects that are found before the service or product reaches the customer. These may include: 

  • product re-work
  • waste due to poorly designed processes
  • machine breakdown due to improper maintenance
  • excessive scrap
  • costs associated with failure analysis.

Discover more about appraisal cost 6 sigma.
#2: External Failures: These are the costs that are linked with defects that are found at a later time. They are found after the customer receives the service or product. These may include:

  • customer complaints
  • warranty claims
  • incomplete BOMs 
  • service and repair costs
  • shipping damage due to inadequate packaging
  • incorrect sales orders
  • product or material returns.

How to Measure Cost of Quality (COQ)

How to Measure Cost of Quality (COQ)
As you can easily understand, all these costs that we have mentioned above have an influence on the Cost Of Quality (COQ). So, they need to be applied to the original Cost Of Quality (COQ) equation.

In case you don't know or don't remember, the original equation of the Cost Of Quality (COQ) is equal to the sum of the Cost of Good Quality and the Cost of Poor Quality. So, we now need to add the different categories of costs that we mentioned above. Therefore:

The Cost of Good Quality is the sum of Prevention Cost and Appraisal Cost:

CoGQ = PC + AC

The Cost of Poor Quality is the sum of Internal and External Failure Costs:

CoPQ = IFC + EFC

So, when you combine both equations, you can then get a more accurate Cost Of Quality (COQ):
​
Cost Of Quality (COQ) = (PC + AC) + (IFC + EFC)
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5 Most Popular Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) Methodologies

6/4/2020

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As you probably already know, Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) is an approach to product development that complements the Six Sigma problem-solving methodology. Ultimately, it includes redesigning or changing the core structure of a product or process.​

So, the Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) has one main goal - to design it right the first time. And this is to ensure that there are any painful downstream experiences.

5 Most Popular Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) Methodologies

Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) methodologies

#1: DMADV (Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, Verify):

According to this Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) methodology, you will need to mainly focus on developing new products, services, or processes instead of redesigning them. So, you can then use this approach when you are actually executing new strategies or initiatives.

This methodology can be applied to non-existent processes or products requiring development as well as to existing products or processes that still need to meet the Six Sigma level.

Learn more about design for six sigma.

#2: IDDOV (Identify, Define, Develop, Optimize, And Verify):

IDDOV (Identify, Define, Develop, Optimize, And Verify)
Ultimately, this methodology involves all the main framework for product development as well as it uses steps to accomplish Six Sigma.

According to this strategy, you will need to first identify the client needs and translate them into design product, define all the product specifications the consumer needs, develop the actual product based on all the requirements, and, finally, optimize the design at the output to create the idea.

Looking to understand more about DFSS?

#3: DCOV (Define, Characterize, Optimize, Verify):

DCOV (Define, Characterize, Optimize, Verify)
According to this methodology, you will need to first identify the Critical to Satisfaction (CTS) drivers and establish an operating window. Simply put, in the first stage, you are required to create a complete distinction between 3 different areas: inputs, actions, and outputs. On the next step, you will need to complete, using a two-step approach, system design, and functional mapping. The goal here is to characterize the design robustness. You will then need to optimize to improve the robustness and, finally, you are required to verify. The goal is to confirm both the capacity and product integrity over time. ​

#4: IDOV (Identify, Design, Optimize, Validate):

IDOV (Identify, Design, Optimize, Validate)
IDOV is definitely one of the most popular Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) methodologies. When using this strategy, you will start by getting a formal design that involves your development team gathering competitive analysis, performing, VOC, and developing CTQs. On the next step, you take what you got from the CTQs highlights and include classifying functional requirements, evaluating alternatives, developing substitute concepts, and selecting the best-fit. You will then need to optimize the design using different tools such as forecasting performance, process capacity data and statistical method to tolerancing, and even developing large design elements. Finally, you will need to test and validate the design.
​

Learn more about DFSS six sigma.

#5: DCCDI (Define, Customer, Concept, Design, Implementation):

When looked at closely, you will see that this methodology is very similar to the SMADV. However, it is worth pointing out that the implementation stage is the only addition to this methodology that is linked to the formation and commercialization of a good or service.
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Is Six Sigma Still Relevant Today?

2/28/2020

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When you have a business, then it is likely that you have been reading about Six Sigma. However, and since this approach has been being applied for such a long time, you may b wondering if it is still effective.

Learn Six Sigma for free.
Six Sigma

​Besides, as it happens with everything in life, it's hard to please everyone. And Six Sigma is no different. The truth is that there are many critics who have been questioning the wisdom of relying a lot on Six Sigma. Joining these critics are business owners who have failed to implement this approach within your organization.
​


​A Brief History Of Six Sigma

In case you don't know, Six Sigma started being discussed in the 1980s and many manufacturers started applying it right away as a way to reach the zero-defect ideal.

When you look at Six Sigma at a high level, you need to keep in mind that it uses the DMAIC (define, measure, analyze, improve, and control) cycle to eliminate process variation. This way, you should reduce product defects since you are making all processes predictable and consistent. Obviously, this would lead to substantial cost quality reductions for the ones implementing it.

Check out this brief introduction to Six Sigma.

The reality is that when multi-billion dollar companies decided to use Six Sigma within their organizations, these companies were able to save billions of dollars.
Brief History Of Six Sigma

​Statistically speaking, a Six-Sigma level of quality should theoretically achieve 99.9997% yield and equate to 3.4 defects per million opportunities. If these numbers make you raise an eyebrow and wonder precisely where these figures come from, you are not alone in your skepticism. Without delving into the intricacies behind the mathematics too deeply, Six Sigma statistical methods hinge on a standard deviation of plus/minus 1.5, the "Six-Sigma shift." As such, the fundamental veracity of its statistical presumptions has been questioned time and time again.


​The Main Criticisms Of Six Sigma Today

Main Criticisms Of Six Sigma Today

While many companies (both large and small) have already experienced success when they implemented the Six Sigma method, the reality is that not all have succeeded. And there are some main criticisms that are made to the Six Sigma approach.


The main criticisms of Six Sigma today include:

#1: Six Sigma as a one-dimensional philosophy:

According to this argument, the cost reductions that Six Sigma allows are too narrow. Besides, it also includes the fact that not all quality management woe can be separated in terms of quality metrics.

These are the basic Lean Six Sigma metrics.

#2: Six Sigma as a short-sighted business approach:

According to this critic, and even though most business owners agree that Six Sigma can bring cost reductions in the short-term, it is also true that in some cases it may lead to a proverbial wall. ​

#3: Six Sigma as an outsourced service:

The last main criticism made to Six Sigma is the fact that it only serves to hire outsourced companies and individuals who need to be certified as Black Belts or Master Black Belts. And this can be a very problematic process.


Discover why you should get Six Sigma certification.


​Is Six Sigma Still Relevant Today?

In our opinion, yes, Six Sigma continues to be incredibly relevant nowadays. And the main reason is due to the fact that any new manufacturer (or quality manager) hopes to gain credibility as a high-quality business partner. Besides, its continuous improvement philosophy aligns with ISO 9001 standards well. However, it needs context. After all, we also believe that Six Sigma isn't applicable to every quality issue. ​
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The Tools Of Lean Six Sigma

2/28/2020

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As you already know, Lean Six Sigma is the fusion or combination of Lean Manufacturing with Six Sigma. his complex system goal is to allow you to remove wastes and reduce process variation for streamlined manufacturing and optimal product output.

Learn more about Six Sigma.
Lean Six Sigma

​One of the things that you need to keep in mind about Lean Six Sigma is the fact that it uses Six Sigma processes and methods as the backbone of the system to drive focused improvements in manufacturing while incorporating many techniques and tools from Lean to reduce wasteful steps and processes.

The Tools Of Lean Six Sigma

#1: The 5 Whys:

5 Whys

The 5 Whys is the first tool of Lean Six Sigma that you will need to use. The goal is to ensure that you can determine the root of problems within your organization. 


Ultimately, you will need to start by writing down the problem you're having so that everyone in your team can focus only on it. Then, you will need to ask why it occurred. Notice that in case the first answer you get isn't the root of the problem, you will need to ask for it up to 5 times.

Understanding the 5 Whys.


​#2: The 5S System:

5S System

The 5S System is another method of Lean Six Sigma that you can use to organize your workplace materials. This way, they will not only be more accessible as well as the maintenance will be easier. 


Notice that this system is crucial to eliminate waste within your organization. 

Simply put, the 5S's refer to:

  • Seiri (Sort) – Remove all unnecessary items for your current production, leaving only what is necessary.
  • Seiton (Set In Order) – Organize remaining items and label them accordingly.
  • Seiso (Shine) – Clean and inspect your work area and everything in it every day.
  • Seiketsu (Standardize) – Write out your standards for the Sort, Set In Order, and Shine steps above.
  • Shitsuke (Sustain) – Apply the standards you’ve set for your company and make them habits for everyone in your organization.​

Discover the 6 big losses of lean manufacturing tools.


​#3: Value Stream Mapping:

Value Stream Mapping

Another tool of Lean Six Sigma that you can use is value stream mapping. 


Simply put, the value stream map shows you the flow of information and materials in each one of your processes. This allows you to get a better perspective of your workplace and improve and optimize this flow throughout your organization. 

Keep in mind that the value stream map should allow you to easily identify the value-enabling activities, the value-adding activities, and the non-value adding activities. 

The goal of this tool is to eliminate all the non-value adding activities as well as eliminate all the wait times between consecutive steps in your processes. 

Why should you get a Six Sigma certification?


​#4: Regression Analysis:

Regression Analysis

Simply put, a regression analysis is a statistical process that allows you to estimate and understand the relationship between different variables. 


The truth is that when you graph these inputs and outputs, you will be able to visualize patterns that you wouldn't see in another way. ​
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When To Use Histogram And The Benefits To Your Business

1/12/2020

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When you look at a glance at a graph with bars, it may look like you are looking at a bar graph when you are looking at a histogram. The truth is that they are both very similar but there is a huge feature that sets the difference between the two. The reality is that in bar graphs, the bars are always separated by continuous intervals. However, in histograms, this doesn't happen and the bars are always touching. Besides, it is also worth to mention that in a histogram, the x-axis is measured in ranges to define various parts of the data. ​

When To Use Histogram

histogram
One of the things that you need to know about histograms is that they are an excellent way of describing numerical x-value data. Here's an example: graphing the height of several merchants on the x-axis versus weight on the y-axis. But why should you use a histogram? Well, the reason is that the x-values have arithmetic values.
​
Learn to make a histogram.
Usually, bar graphs are used when relating uncompromising data, and histograms are used when linking arithmetical data. At times when not sure of what to do with a big set of measurements shown in a table, you can use a histogram to arrange and display the data in a more user-friendly and understandable format. It makes it easy to see where most of the values fall in a measurement scale, and how much difference there is. It is also helpful to create a Histogram when you want to perform the following activities.

So, when you need to summarize large data sets graphically, you should use a histogram since it will be a lot easier to understand. Besides, when you need to compare process results with specification limits, you can do it easily with a histogram. This way, you will be able to quickly know if the current procedure was able to produce good products. The specification limits may be the length, weight, density, the quantity of the materials to be delivered, or any other that may be crucial for the product of a given process.
​
Are you trying to construct a histogram?
When To Use Histogram
In what concerns to communicate information graphically, a histogram is very intuitive for everyone. Besides, a histogram is also a great tool to help you in decision making. However, and even if you use a histogram, it is important to always make sure that the data that you have in hand is current. When it isn't or you simply don't know how or when it was collected, you shouldn't even consider wasting time trying to chart it. 

Discover all you need to know to construct your histogram.

Benefits Of Using A Histogram

Benefits Of Using A Histogram
  • When you use a histogram, you will be able to improve your decision-making process since it will be easier to view the data graphically. 
  • A histogram allows you to display the frequency of occurrences of data within an interval.
  • When you use the data that is displayed in a histogram, you can regulate statistical information.
  • A major benefit of histograms is that they allow you to determine trends. 
  • You can use a histogram to make your picture clearer to read and to categorize your data into many diverse classes.
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What Is a Histogram?

1/12/2020

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Simply put, a histogram is a type of graph that has a wide range of uses in statistics.
One of the best things about histograms is that they deliver a visual interpretation of numerical data. And they do it by showing the number of data points that lie within a range of values.
The frequency of the data which falls within each class is then shown by the use of a bar. So, the higher the bar in the histogram, the greater the frequency of data values.

Histogram Vs Bar Graph

histogram
Many people tend to confuse a histogram with a graph bar. However, and even though they are similar in shape since they both use vertical bars to display data, they are different.

Discover how to make a histogram.

Overall speaking, the height of a bar corresponds to the relative frequency of the amount of data in the class. So, the higher the bar, the higher the frequency of the data. On the other hand, the lower the bar, the lower the frequency of data. However, appearances may be deceiving. It is here that the similarities end between the two kinds of graphs.
Histogram Vs Bar Graph
The truth is that both graphs are different and the main difference is related to the level of measurement of the data.
If you think about it, bar graphs tend to be used for data at the nominal level of measurement. So, as you can easily understand, bar charts measure the frequency of categorical data, and the classes for a bar graph are these categories.

Not sure how to construct a histogram?

In what concerns the histogram, histograms are used for data that is at least at the ordinal level of measurement. The classes for a histogram are ranges of values.
However, this isn't the only difference between a histogram and a bar graph. After all, there is also a different way to order the bars.
When you are using a bar graph, it is normal that rearrange the bars in order of decreasing height. However, when you are using a histogram, you simply can't reorder the bars. They need to be displayed in the order that the classes occur. ​

Histograms And Probabilities

Histograms And Probabilities
One of the uses of a histogram is related to probabilities. The truth is that discrete probability distributions can be represented with a histogram.
In case you are looking to construct a histogram that represents a probability distribution, then you will need to start by choosing the classes first. Notice that these should be the outcomes of a probability experiment. In terms of the width of each one of these classes, it should be only one unit. Looking at the heights of the bars of the histogram, you will be able to see the probabilities for each one of the different outcomes. So, when you construct such a histogram, you can also say that the areas of the bars are also probabilities.

Learn more about constructing a histogram.

Other Applications For Histograms

types of histograms
The truth is that histograms can be quite handy in a wide range of areas and not only for probabilities. In fact, when you are trying to compare the frequency of occurrence of quantitative data, you can use a histogram to depict your data set. ​
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8 Supporting Activities Of The TPM

1/12/2020

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TPM or Total Productive Maintenance program has the main goal of helping professionals achieve the goals that are set for a higher rate of utilization and productivity.

However, in order to start implementing TPM, there are 8 supporting pillars that you need to know about. ​

8 Supporting Activities Of The TPM

#1: Focused Kaizen:

TPM
During this first activity, you need to identify the problems related to equipment failures as well as set improvement goals in the kaizen event. The most important aspect during this stage is to ensure that the entire team is working together so that they can be able to discover the root of the problem and apply the solutions needed to the continuous improvement.

Learn more about TMP here.

#2: Autonomous Maintenance:

Autonomous Maintenance
During this second activity of the TPM, the operators of the machines are the ones responsible for any machine adjustments that are required as well as for the minor maintenance of that specific machine. This may include cleaning, inspection, and lubrication. ​

#3: Planned Maintenance:

This activity of the TPM includes both preventive as well as predictive maintenance routines that should be based on the monitoring of the machines' behavior. The goal of scheduled maintenance is to make sure that no major breakdowns occur as well as to reduce the number of unplanned stops. So, this should lead to an increase in the productive capacity.

Looking to know more about TPM?

#4: Education And Training:

Education And Training
The goal of this activity in TPM is to make sure that there is a continuous improvement of the skills of the employees.

#5: Early equipment Maintenance:

The main objective here is to ensure that in the design stage, the piece of equipment that is added needs to be easy to maintain and operate. This includes the lubrication, cleaning, inspection, and even the accessibility of the machine's parts. ​

#6: Quality Maintenance: ​

When you implement the TPM process, you want to make sure that you get only quality products at the end. So, as it is easy to understand, this activity serves to detect and prevent errors during the production. So, by using lean tools such as andon and jidoka, machines will be able to detect and report when there is any abnormal condition.

This is what you need to know to start implementing TPM.

#7: The TPM Administration:

The TPM Administration
This is often an activity that is forgotten but is incredibly important. After all, the goal of the TPM administration is to improve the order processing procedures, the procurement, and even the scheduling. The main idea remains the same: waste elimination.

#8: Safety, Health, And Environment:

The last activity of the TPM is to set standards for the working conditions of all employees. This ensures that there is an elimination of potential health and safety risks. These can include the implementation of work standards or guards to ensure that all the machines are safe to use. ​

Bottom Line

While these may seem a lot to learn, the truth is that there are many advantages when you implement TPM. After all, some of the main benefits that this implementation can bring to your company include cost savings, more efficient workforce, optimized working schedule for all employees, equipment reliability, safer and cleaner workplace, and minimized delays, breakdowns, and production stops. ​
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How to Implement TPM

1/12/2020

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As you already know TPM stands for Total Productive Maintenance which is based on different Lean Manufacturing principles. And the truth is that when you want to implement TPM, you need to adapt it to the specifics of your own business or company. Nevertheless, you also need to keep in mind that there are 7 basic steps to implement TPM the right way.

How to Implement TPM

#1: Announce The Plans For TPM Implementation:

implement TPM
When you want to implement TPM, you need to keep in mind that the program will only succeed if the management is there to support. The support needs to come from the top. After all, there are always operators and employees who don't like changes and are always skeptical about what these changes can bring. So, to ensure that everyone can embrace the TPM program, you need to ensure that you announce it and that you also talk about the benefits such a program can bring.

Discover the pillars of TPM.

#2: Make Use Of A Pilot TPM Program:

Make Use Of A Pilot TPM Program
One of the things that you can do is to find an area for a pilot TPM program. Maybe there is an area that is problematic and this is a great way to start with the TPM program and identify the SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timed.

#3: Focus On Restoring Targeted Equipment To Prim Working Condition:

As soon as you have defined the pilot area, then you need to record a baseline standard for current productivity. Then, you need to use the 5S methodology (Sort, Set, Shine, Standardize, Sustain) to implement TPM.

Your focus should go first to the execution of an autonomous maintenance program, and then provide the needed training to equipment operators.
​
Learn more about the TPM process.

#4: Start Measuring Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE):

Start Measuring Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE)
No matter how you want to track OEE. you need to ensure that all the unplanned stop times are well-documented. You need to make sure that you don't forget to add the reason for the stop. This is very important since it will help you identify major loss causes that will come up in the following step.

#5: Adress Major Loss Causes:

During this step, you will need to gather between 4 to 6 employees to discover one major cause of downtime. This team will be the one responsible for eliminating the loss cause as well as for scheduling planned stop tome to execute this initiative. As soon as the action is complete, the team will then need to measure OEE and restart the process in case it is needed.

#6: Implement Proactive Maintenance:

Total Productive Maintenance
During this step, the main goal is to prevent stop times or breakdowns. So, you will need to clearly identify the pain points that can cause equipment failure as well as you should create a schedule of preventative maintenance over regular intervals.

In the end, there should also b taken the time to implement a feedback process that will allow you to continuously track your TPM program effectiveness.

Discover the tips of maintenance under the TPM process.

#7: Implement Specific TPM Concepts As Needed:

One of the things that is always important is to consider your needs before you implement TPM. After all, you may need to optimize the design of new equipment so that it can be easily cleaned and maintained. Besides, in case there are any delays, you will need to find the bottlenecks and implement TPM directly in this area.
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