DMAIC - Is Six Sigma Useful For Electrical And Electronics Engineers?

Designed by Motorola The term “Six Sigma” goes to a Motorola engineer named Bill Smith.  (Incidentally, “Six Sigma” is a federal...

Designed by Motorola

The term “Six Sigma” goes to a Motorola engineer named Bill Smith. 

(Incidentally, “Six Sigma” is a federally registered trademark of Motorola).

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Six Sigma is a disciplined, data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects (driving toward six standard deviations between the mean and the nearest specification limit) in any process – from manufacturing to transactional and from product to service.

 Is Six Sigma Useful for us EEs?

The designing, testing, and developing side of electrical engineering might be considered more creative and less repeatable. However, there must still be best practices and approaches that produce consistent results. For example, when developing, is there a repeatable approach to gathering customer requirements? In testing, what are the processes to ensure reliable and valid results so it is done right the first time?
https://goleansixsigma.com/is-six-sigma-useful-for-electrical-and-electronics-engineers/

The History of Six Sigma

The roots of Six Sigma as a measurement standard can be traced back to Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855) who introduced the concept of the normal curve. Six Sigma as a measurement standard in product variation can be traced back to the 1920’s when Walter Shewhart showed that three sigma from the mean is the point where a process requires correction. Many measurement standards (Cpk, Zero Defects, etc.) later came on the scene but credit for coining the term “Six Sigma” goes to a Motorola engineer named Bill Smith. (Incidentally, “Six Sigma” is a federally registered trademark of Motorola).

How is six sigma beneficial for electrical engineering ?

How is six sigma beneficial for EE?

D.M.A.I.C.

1. - Define the problem and what the customer requires;
2. - Measure defects and process operations;
3. - Analyze data and discover
4. the causes of the problem;
5. - Improve the process to remove the causes of defects;
6. - Control the process to make sure defects don’t recur.

!

Define

Six sigma practitioners begin by defining the problem.

They ask about customers and what they require, and

identify the problems that ar

e causing the operation to

fall short of customer expectations.

The six sigma process identifies key characteristics

that are important to the cust

omer and the processes that

support these characteristics,

along with existing output

conditions and process elements.

Measure

The team next focuses on measuring the process at

issue. During this step, ke

y process characteristics are

categorized, measurement syst

ems are verified, and data

are collected.

Analyze

Once data are collected, they

are analyzed in the six

sigma model. The intent is to produce information that

provides insights into the process and its problems.

These insights include identifying the fundamental and

most important causes of defects and/or variability in the

process.

Improve

At this stage of six sigma, the team identifies and

implements potential solutions to process problems. The

results of these process changes are carefully measured,

and adjustments are made as necessary.

5

Control

Finally, if the process is found to be performing at a

desired and predictable level, it is put under “control.”

This step is the “maintenan

ce” portion of the six sigma

methodology. The process is then monitored to assure

that no unexpected changes occur.

IMPLEMENTING SIX SIGMA

Six sigma projects are implemented with a “black

belt” practitioner serving as the project manager.

Projects are expected to prov

ide a measurable benefit to

the organization in terms of cost, quality, and timing.

The six sigma program is managed with a five-step

approach:

!

Define processes, key customer requirements, and

process “owners.”

!

Measure performance to customer requirements and

key process indicators.

!

Analyze data to enhance measures, and refine

process management mechanisms by prioritizing

and implementing process improvements.

!

Control performance through ongoing monitoring of

inputs/operations/outputs, and respond quickly to

problems and process variations.

!

Expand and integrate the six sigma system into the

organization’s core business.

As is the case with lean, six sigma generally involves

“mass training.”

An organization that implements a six sigma program

typically makes a large investment in developing black

belts. In order to ensure a sound return on this investment, the black belts must perform