When faced with a situation, whether it be a problem or a decision, we typically need the right answer, and quickly! There are many tools, techniques and processes that are at our disposal, such as Six Sigma, but many of these take time.

Several years ago I was inspecting some parts on a small surface plate in the quality lab. Gathered around a larger surface plate a few feet away was an assortment of engineers, supervisors, leads persons, and probably an inspector or two.

The word integration, as well as its meaning, is very important.

Uncontrolled variation is the enemy to quality. It’s what experts W. Edwards Deming, Joseph M. Juran, et al, spent their professional lives stressing to industrial leaders.

Since 2010, ASQ has been pleased to host the World Quality Month website, offering organizations around the world an opportunity to celebrate successes and share results for others to learn from.

The goal of performance management, as defined by the United States Office of Personnel Management, is “improving organizational effectiveness.” Performance management application, however, depends on both the industry and the methodology being applied.

With the economic recovery that has taken place in the U.S. following the “Great Recession” that began in 2008, employment and compensation levels in the nondestructive testing (NDT) and quality inspection industries have also shown resilience.

Good news for U.S. manufacturers: stateside production and employment opportunities are on the rise.

Years in the making, the ISO 9001:2015 revision has been published. Prior to the release date, auditors, inspectors, quality managers, and many others studied the initial drafts in an attempt to understand the changes.

It would be a relatively safe assumption that most everyone has been envious of the achievements of others.