NYISO Enhances Website Response Time Through Lean Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 23 July 2008 | 9:48 pm
The response time of New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) website has improved a lot. Users are now able to enter and navigate the site much faster and more easily.
The NYISO’s website is important to a lot of people, especially those involved in and affected by news and policies in the transmission and generation, and other power supply industry. The site contains news and information about the bulk electricity grid and wholesale electricity markets in New York State.
The team of NYISO employees tasked with improving website response time attribute their success to Lean Six Sigma. In doing so, here are what they have accomplished:
- reduced the site’s average page download time from 17.3 to 3.3 seconds
- improved the downloading the site’s home page more than 1200 percent - from 18 to 1.3 seconds
- reduced the number of templates, combining computer script and compressing graphics, so that dozens of nyiso.com portals were accelerated
I can say that NYISO has the good sense to think of their users. Other websites don’t seem to care at all!
Source:
iSixSigma News
Filed under: Benefits and Savings, Lean Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations, Software/Technology, Internet, NYISO
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What Makes Six Sigma Initiative Work?
Posted by: meikah | 21 July 2008 | 8:52 pm
I stumbled upon an interesting article on ezineseeker that says that Six Sigma is more than just number crunching. It is data-driven alright and analysis laden, but what makes it really work?
The article says it well.
…those who know Six Sigma have learned enough to be wary of excessive “number crunching” that does not lead to performance improvement. It is not the measurements or the reports that create solutions; it is the Six Sigma team itself. Once a problem’s root causes are determined in the analysis phase of a Six Sigma project, the team works together to find creative new improvement solutions. The data is used and relied upon—it is the measurements of the realities you face! Yet it is smart measurement and smart analysis of the data—and above all the smart creation of new improvement solutions and their implementation—that create real change.
Six Sigma is more than a data-capturing, number-crunching process. It is a philosophy and a methodology; it is a way of looking at business and a way of doing business processes. Six Sigma provides a structured data-driven methodology with tools and techniques by application of which companies can measure the baseline performance of their processes and determine the root causes of variations, as well as improve their processes to meet and exceed the desired performance levels. Six Sigma is a technique to introduce controlled thinking into a continuous change management method. It is a desire to constantly improve a product or service offered.
So for the naysayers out there, perhaps you need to reexamine and refocus your quality improvement strategies.
Filed under: Six Sigma Organizations, Team Dynamics, Six Sigma
1 Comment |
Mentor Graphics Uses Design For Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 21 July 2008 | 7:53 pm
TradingMarkets reports:
Mentor Graphics, a supplier of electronic design automation systems, has announced that its virtual prototyping tool, SystemVision, will support Design for Six Sigma methodologies to achieve cost-effective design innovation by a model-driven development process.
The development process for a product made up of a complex blend of hardware and software, analog and digital signals, sensors and actuators, and a mix of disciplines, such as electrical, mechanical, or hydraulic, is difficult to manage efficiently. At the same time, using physical prototyping to optimize the design for manufacturability becomes prohibitively expensive, cumbersome, and time consuming.
Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) methodologies combined with model-driven development can result in order-of-magnitude improvements in both productivity and quality when virtual prototyping, automated data collection, and statistical analyses are used to guide the model-driven development process.
Filed under: Benefits and Savings, Six Sigma Organizations, Deployment, DFSS, Six Sigma
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GE: From Six Sigma to Lean Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 20 July 2008 | 9:10 pm
At GE, at the helm of their Six Sigma initiative is their CIO, Gary Reiner. Since GE’s massive Six Sigma initiative in 1996, Mr. Reiner has been at the forefront of GE’s Six Sigma deployment, and oversees the company’s $55 billion of annual sourcing.
The company started with Six Sigma, and it’s interesting to know that GE’s Six Sigma has morphed into Lean Six Sigma. In an interview with Geoff Colvin, senior editor at large for Fortune Magazine, Reiner shares some of his thoughts and plans for the Lean Six Sigma initiative at GE.
Here are some snippets.
What does Jeff Immelt want from you?
Three things. My responsibilities are information technology, Lean Six Sigma, and sourcing.You’ve been in charge of GE’s Six Sigma initiative since it started, in 1996. Are you still getting value out of it?
We’ve been aggressively trying to migrate away from talking about tools and instead to talking about outcomes. Six Sigma is a tool. It is a wonderful tool, but it is a tool. What we’re talking more about as a company is outcomes, and the two outcomes we really want are product reliability and customer responsiveness.So we start with that and work our way back to what tools are needed to make that happen. For product reliability, the Six Sigma tools are sensational. On the responsiveness side, it’s often less about using Six Sigma and more about getting the right people in the room to map out how long it takes for us to do something in front of customers and, using mostly common sense, take out those things that get in the way of meeting our customer needs responsibly.
For example?
In our GE Money business we offer private-label finance to retailers. We are the financing behind jewelry stores and pharmacies and the like. Sad to say, it was taking 63 days from when a retailer contacted us saying it wanted to consider using us as a private-label financier until it could conduct the first transaction with our financing. No one had calculated this before we went on this journey.We did a number of what we call lean workouts, where we get everybody in the room to map out the process, and they got it down from 63 days to one day. The leader of that business was able to go out and have as his marketing campaign, “Enroll today. Transact tomorrow.” When we did that, sales doubled. And there are 30 examples of that throughout the company.
No wonder GE has been successful in their Six Sigma initiatives. They have understood the role of Six Sigma or Lean Six Sigma, which is a tool, in their process improvement, and work around that premise. They have a goal, which is product reliability and customer responsiveness, and they have focused their Six Sigma initiative with that end goal in mind.
It’s always about a goal and a focus.
Update:
GE: The Heat on Immelt
Filed under: Manufacturing, Lean Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations, Deployment, GE, Technology, Six Sigma
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LAI’s Six Sigma Team Cuts Production Time by 20%
Posted by: meikah | 14 July 2008 | 9:54 pm
Early this month, LAI International reported that the company was able to cut its cycle time on a critical aerospace product by 25%.
Last week, Market Watch carried a story that LAI’s Six Sigma Team was able to cut production time for a critical structural aerospace component by 20%.
A team of LAI employees in engineering, quality control and production formed a team to complete a comprehensive Six Sigma study that includes intensive workflow assessment, process analysis, value streaming and control planning of a manufacturing process for a precision-manufactured structural panel for a jet fighter.
“We also took every step off of our flowchart and measured the time to do each and every step of the process,” John Rogers, vice president of operations, said. “The team examined key process input variables and studied methods to do each step more efficiently.” An evaluation seven months after the Six Sigma project was completed revealed savings of $196,000 in the program, related to a reduction in cycle times, more efficient inspections and an overall reduction in production time by 20 percent.
Filed under: Benefits and Savings, Manufacturing, Six Sigma Organizations, Processes, Six Sigma
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Six Sigma Helps Cessna Make Good of Its Promise
Posted by: meikah | 14 July 2008 | 8:41 pm
Despite the fuel crisis and other problems faced by airlines, it’s business as usual for Cessna Aircraft Company.
According to an article on Jobwerx, Cessna is set to deliver 150 Model 350 and 400 aircraft this year. The company is right on schedule because of Textron Six Sigma initiative.
By transitioning its Cessna 350 and 400 composite aircraft facilities to the Textron Production System, Cessna Aircraft has experienced improved workplace safety, rising productivity and higher customer satisfaction.
“By implementing Textron Six Sigma and using lean operating tools, our team in Bend is making great progress on streamlining production while maintaining the high quality and reliability of the aircraft,” Mark Withrow, general manager of the Bend facility. “We’ve seen a significant reduction in labor hours per aircraft, and Bend is on track to cut the number of factory related safety incidents in half this year. And, most importantly, I’m happy to report that along with a flawless on-time delivery record this year, our employees’ work has received the top score for quality on all post-delivery customer surveys,” he added.
Related story:
Textron’s Six Sigma Way
Filed under: Benefits and Savings, Manufacturing, Six Sigma Organizations, Aviation, Six Sigma
1 Comment |
VTech Attributes Success to Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 14 July 2008 | 8:00 pm
In a press release, VTech announces its record revenue and profit despite difficult economic conditions.
VTech Holdings Ltd. is one of the world’s largest suppliers of corded and cordless telephones and a leading supplier of electronic learning products. Being a mother of two play-age kids, I know the value of VTech electronic toys. I can really vouch for their durability and learning utility.
Now, I know why they continue to produce high-quality products. First, when they started in 1976, their mission is to be the most cost effective designer and manufacturer of innovative, high quality consumer electronics products, and to distribute them to markets worldwide in the most efficient manner. Second, they have adopted Six Sigma and have been benefitted by it ever since.
The prospects for the CMS (Contract Manufacturing Services) business looks promising and further sales increases from both existing and new customers are anticipated. The business will continue to focus on medium sized customers and maintain our edge in quality and cost.
In mid 2007, the CMS business set up a six sigma team to improve operational efficiency and this is beginning to yield results. Work processes are being streamlined and automation increased in order to reduce the dependence on labour, raise productivity and improve product quality. The business is also consolidating the supplier base and strengthening relationships with fewer suppliers to ensure it achieves the most favourable pricing.
“We should not underestimate the challenges that lie ahead, but with leadership in our markets, a strong balance sheet and a highly efficient manufacturing capability, VTech should benefit in the longer term from the industry consolidation that will ensue,” concluded Mr. Allan Wong, Chairman and Group CEO of VTech Holdings Limited.
Filed under: Benefits and Savings, Manufacturing, Six Sigma Organizations, Six Sigma, VTech Holdings Ltd.
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Strategies in Developing a Comprehensive Lean Six Sigma Culture
Posted by: meikah | 9 July 2008 | 10:12 pm
Would you like to learn strategies in developing a comprehensive Lean Six Sigma culture?
Then you shouldn’t miss the 6th Lean Six Sigma Pharmaceutical, Biotech, and Medical Device Excellence. You will hear practical and real-life accounts from big reputable companies.
Pfizer, Amgen, Johnson & Johnson, Abbott, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, and others will explain their strategies in developing a comprehensive Lean Six Sigma culture.
Industry-leading companies including Baxter, Gen-Probe, Wyeth, Medtronic and Pharmatech Associates will share their insights on Lean Six Sigma at the LSS 2008 conference.
This year’s event features best methods in: Adapting approaches for deploying Lean Six Sigma into the organizational culture and environment, streamlining account payable processes with lean tools and techniques, and developing effective metrics to measure and improve the Lean Six Sigma culture within the organization.
Filed under: Lean Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations, Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson, Six Sigma
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Truemen Management Consultancy is now Six Sigma Compliant for Recruitment
Posted by: meikah | 7 July 2008 | 10:15 pm
The EconomicTimes-IndiaTimes reports:
Bangalore based HR company Truemen Management Consultancy has become the first ever firm in the world to achieve Six Sigma Compliance for recruitment, a top company official said.
The company serves 250 of the best clients in industry which included Mindtree, Wipro, Symphony and others.
Truemen’s Six Sigma complaince was carried out and certified by Nathan and Nathan Consultants, one of India’s top quality consulting companies.
I’m a bit surprised by the use of the term “compliance.” As far as I know, if you go into Six Sigma, you don’t work for compliance. Rather, you work for being a Six Sigma company, which is able to achieve a 3.4 DPMOs, and is able to sustain your process improvement efforts.
Perhaps this is what they mean by being compliant or has achieved a Six Sigma compliance. Sometimes, we have to be careful with our semantics if we don’t want our info getting messed up.
Filed under: Six Sigma Organizations, Human Resource, Six Sigma
2 Comments |
Can Six Sigma Protect Companies from Crisis?
Posted by: meikah | 7 July 2008 | 9:32 pm
The fuel crisis is global. And because most, if not all, of our activities depend on fuel, we are now feeling the crunch.
The hottest issue of the day in the country is the impending increase of fuel. Different sectors have different views on how to peg the increase: in one go or in small amounts. So far, I have not heard of any company closures, or companies retrenching their workforce to cope with the crisis. What we’re experiencing though are increases of basic commodities.
Already two locally based airlines, PAL and SEAIR, are seeking regulatory nod for fuel surcharge increase.
The fuel crisis however has a different effect on other companies outside of the Philippines. In the airlines industry for example, many American airlines have regrouped, increased charges, put charges where there weren’t before, and cut down on flights and employees. AirTran is to cut 180 pilot jobs, 300 flight attendant jobs.
A Six Sigma company is actually doing those cuts. Jazz Air LP has implemented several cost-saving measures to cope with the rising fuel cost. Although Jazz is already a lean company, yet they have to let some of their people go.
According to Joseph Randell, President and CEO of Jazz:
While Jazz is already a lean organization and is in a reasonable position to manage its current challenges, every effort is being made to reduce our costs and to prepare for what may lie ahead.
Jazz has already established a number of fuel-saving initiatives, recently froze all hiring and non-critical staff overtime, and instituted a number of other cost-saving programs. Being a Six Sigma organization has made Jazz a more efficient airline and the focus to ensure we remain competitive is constant.
This incident made me ask, can Six Sigma protect companies from crisis?
Source:
iSixSigma News
