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Chris Butterworth
Nov 172 min read
Industrial Problem Solving
I've been involved with a good number of problem-solving projects and usually introduced after things have started. One thing that stands...
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Chris Butterworth
Nov 102 min read
Tough Problems Need Better Tools
"We don't need anything as advanced as Six Sigma. We can solve most of our problems using simple problem solving tools." No disagreement...
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Chris Butterworth
Oct 282 min read
Industrial Problem Solving - Keys to Success
In manufacturing, a small number of quality problems account for the lion's share of the costs. This follows the 80/20 rule that shows up...
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Chris Butterworth
Oct 233 min read
Industrial Problem Solving
A manufacturer had a costly quality problem and assigned a team of well-skilled people to fix it. After a few meetings they had...
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Chris Butterworth
Sep 15 min read
Understanding Risks in Testing - Part II
In the previous post, I described how we make mistakes in testing when we draw an incorrect conclusion based on the results of a sample....
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Chris Butterworth
Jun 235 min read
Understanding Risks in Testing - Part I Alpha Risk
In problem solving, we often need to know if a change in the process, recipe or design made an improvement. Did the formulation change...
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Chris Butterworth
May 124 min read
Problem Solving in Manufacturing
In manufacturing, much of the profits are eaten up by quality problems. The Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ), defects found on-site as well as...
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Chris Butterworth
Apr 145 min read
Tough Quality Problems in Manufacturing
Manufacturing companies deal with quality problems routinely. The simple ones are easily corrected and so they tend not to draw a lot of...
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Chris Butterworth
Mar 32 min read
Who Are Your Problem Solvers?
In a manufacturing company, it's a common situation to be faced with a tough quality problem. One that is proving difficult to resolve....
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Chris Butterworth
Feb 192 min read
Manufacturing Needs Problem Solvers
Most manufacturers lose most of their profits due to quality problems. The costs incurred from defects found on-site as well as defects...
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Chris Butterworth
Jan 26, 20231 min read
Industrial Problem Solving - Example
We had two suppliers of parts for one of our subassemblies. A wood products company provided the cabinet and a plastic injection molder...
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Chris Butterworth
Feb 23, 20203 min read
Industrial Problem Solving- Random Defects
In manufacturing, most companies have to deal with costly quality problems eating up too much of their profit. Many of these problems...
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Chris Butterworth
Jun 11, 20183 min read
Process Improvement with Control Charts
Statistical process control (SPC) charts were developed by Walter Shewhart and introduced to the world in his 1931 book "Economic Control...
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Chris Butterworth
Mar 11, 20183 min read
Understand Measurement Variability
We take measurements every day to control processes and to accept or reject products. Often, there is little thought that goes into...
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Chris Butterworth
Oct 17, 20173 min read
Industrial Problem Solving - Sum of Variances
Too much variation is a common cause of defects in a manufacturing company. This variation causes some items to be over or under the...
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Chris Butterworth
Sep 20, 20172 min read
Industrial Problem Solving
Manufacturers lose most of their profits due to Quality problems. Consider that for a moment. Do you think that is true at your...
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Chris Butterworth
Nov 7, 20162 min read
Learning Through Data - Residual Analysis
In this post I want to describe a simple technique that can lead to learning something new. In this case, we found out something...
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Chris Butterworth
Sep 9, 20153 min read
Getting Started with Process Improvement
There are a lot of people who are responsible for business process improvement and it can be a daunting task. Where does one begin? All...
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Chris Butterworth
May 21, 20152 min read
Your Data Holds Key Insight
All organizations today dedicate some level of effort on improving their business processes. It's an important component of competitive...
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Chris Butterworth
Mar 20, 20151 min read
Develop your statistical competence
There have been several occassions in my work history when something out of the world of applied statistics struck me as being rather...
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