Beacon Quality Blog

For some organizations one of the first steps in their lean journey is the use of a quality management method known as 5S. This basic, introductory technique helps an organization become familiar and comfortable with the building blocks of continuous improvement by engaging workers in activities that better the workplace and the organization as a whole.  

With its origins in Japan, this method focuses on establishing a quality environment within an organization and ensuring follow through on work standards. The method, which helps foster a culture of continuous improvement, includes the following five elements:

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Does your organization use process failure modes and effects analysis (PFMEA) on a routine basis to identify potential failures in product design, manufacturing or assembly processes? If so, this practice could do double duty by also serving as an effective technique for identifying at-risk processes on which to focus your layered process audits (LPAs).

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Founded more than 100 years ago, Aston Martin has built a global brand known for producing exceptionally designed, high-quality cars through handcrafted production methods.

After more than a century of excellence, few can understand better that delivering market defining quality and craftsmanship requires superior tools, techniques, and technology. As Aston Martin looked to increase production levels and launch new models, they quickly realized many of their traditional manufacturing processes would limit growth and competitiveness. Aston Martin needed an innovative solution that would create new manufacturing efficiencies without compromising their ability to deliver a truly bespoke product to their customers, built to the highest quality standards.   

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To be the best at something requires patience, determination, focus, and constant improvement.  Toyota aimed to be the best when they developed practical methods of applying the lean methodology to manufacturing after World War II. Benefits of lean include:

• Reduced waste and rework
• Reduced costs
• Faster production time
• Faster changeover times
• Improved overall efficiency
• A bigger bottom line

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Not too long ago, the Harvard Business Review published an article suggesting what companies should do in order to institute a culture of quality. The article is based in large part on a two-year study that CEB, Inc. conducted on the subject. The research and the article promote a number of provocative ideas:

• Social media marketing has made it easy for consumers and customers to compare products and register complaints, which drives companies to emphasise quality more than ever.
• Since the Great Recession in 2008-2009, cycle times have decreased, and output gains have increased faster than employment levels, with employees often struggling to keep up and maintain quality.
• The traditional approach to instituting quality—monetary incentives, sharing best practices, and training—does not alone produce a culture of quality.
• Employees and companies that live quality—in other words, when people are fervent about quality as a personal value, rather than a value ordered from the top down—best create a culture of quality.

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An article in the Harvard Business Review noted that organizations, including OEMs, are "... increasingly relying on their suppliers to reduce costs, improve quality, and develop new processes and products faster than their rivals’ vendors can ... The issue isn’t whether companies should turn arms-length relationships with suppliers into close partnerships, but how." One way that OEMs are working with their tier one suppliers to improve quality is through Layered Process Audits (LPAs).

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Going on a Gemba Walk helps you understand what is happening in a given area, how it happens, and why what is supposed to happen is or isn’t.

In general, a Gemba Walk (a “real place” walk; in manufacturing, this is the factory floor) means going to where the action is. Rather than sitting at your desk and using graphs, statistics, and charts to try to improve things, you can proceed to the factory to observe processes and interact with shop personnel.

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When many of us think of a road map we envision an unwieldy, impossible-to-fold item that our parents or grandparents used for navigating the family’s vacation route before the days of GPS. But, according to Webster’s online dictionary, a road map is also a detailed plan to guide progress toward a goal. If your goal is to conduct layered process audits (LPAs) that not only meet customer requirements but also enhance the culture of quality in your organization, then you need a comprehensive road map or checklist to reach your destination.

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With most endeavors the amount of detail and forethought you devote to your preparations, the better your final result, and layered process audits (LPAs) are no exception. One of the most significant tasks of implementing an LPA system is writing the questions for your LPA checklists. Spending time upfront to investigate what has gone wrong in the past with your processes provides valuable insight for preparing an audit checklist that covers all the bases to satisfy your customers and promote a culture of quality throughout your organization.

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