In the Earlier Blog we have understood the concept of Six
Sigma as who takes care of what operation level wise with reference to their importance
in the proper functioning in a Six Sigma methodology’s success.
Now let’s talk something about the process/ways involved
in this. Six Sigma applies a 5 step DMAIC model of working.
D- Define Opportunity
M-Measure Performance
A-Analyze Opportunity
I- Improve Performance
C-Control Performance
Let’s look at these in detail.The Process is as important as people involved in it.
Define
During define phase four major tasks are performed:
a) Formation of a team- who needs to be a
part of this team & what functions each person will perform.
b) Mention in detail the Customers core
Business Process- Every project has customers. A customer is the recipient
of the product or service of the process for improvement. The requirements are
the features of need that determine whether the customer is happy with the service
provided. So document customer needs and related requirements. These processes
will be executed to meet customer's requirements and to resolve their Critical
to Quality issues.
c) Develop a Project Charter- Here we
mention the name of the project, summarize by explaining business, scope &
goals. It includes Project Name, Business Case, Scope, Goals, Milestones, Special
Requirements, Assumptions, Roles and Responsibilities of the team.
d) Develop the SIPOC process map- It identifies
all the following elements- Suppliers, Input, Process, Output,
Customers. The SIPOC process map is essential for identifying the way processes
occur currently & How those processes should be modified and improved.
Measure:
Following are the steps involved:
a) Data collection Plan- An overall
performance of the Core Business Process is measured. A data collection plan is
prepared to collect required data. This plan includes what type of data needs
to be collected, what are the sources of data. The reason to collect data is to
identify areas where processes need to be improved.
b) Data Evaluation- Here the collected data
is evaluated and Sigma is calculated. This gives approximate number of defects.
The Sigma defect is calculated as anything that is out of Customers
specifications.
c) Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA)-The
last stage of Measure phase is known as the FMEA. Here we try to prevent the defects before they occur. It
includes the possible errors or the problems.
Analyze:
a) Source Analysis- also known as the Root
Cause Analysis & tries to find the defects derived from sources of
information. Once this is done the attempts to improvement is processed.
b) Process Analysis- analyzing the process
numbers to how good they are functioning compared to what is possible &
what the competitors are doing.
c) Data Analysis- The data may have itself
the defects. There may be a situation when product do not provide all the required
information. Thus it is analyzed to find out the defects and attempts are made
to resolve the problem.
d) Resource Analysis- It is of much importance
to ensure all the team members are well trained & have the knowledge &
skills to handle the situations properly. Other resources include the raw material
that is required for manufacturing, & deliver the goods.
e) Communication Analysis- one common
problem seen is that of poor communication. The interaction between a customer
and a retail store is worthy of study. Or A vendor wants payment according to
agreed-upon terms, but the Accounting Department wants to make its batch
processing uniform and efficient. The disconnect between these type of groups
demonstrates the importance of communication analysis.
Improve:
If the team working on this project does a good job in
the root causation phase of Analysis, the Improve phase of DMAIC can be easy,
and satisfying work. The objective of Improve Phase is to identify improvement
breakthroughs, identify high gain alternatives, select preferred approach,
design the future flow of process, define the new Sigma level, perform
cost/benefit analysis, design dashboards/ scorecards, and create an implementation
plan.
Control:
The last phase of DMAIC process is the control phase. Here
we are talking about the four aspects of control.
a) Quality Control- The ultimate goal is
to make sure that a high standard of quality is maintained. Since the purpose
to Six Sigma is to improve overall process by reducing defects, quality control
is the essential method for keeping the whole process on track.
b) Standardization- We need to devise a
control feature to processes so that the majority of work is managed in a
standardized manner.
c) Control methods & alternatives- When
a process cannot be managed in the normal manner, we need to come up with
alternatives with the standardized method.
d) Responding to defects- The final step
in a control process is to know how to respond once a defect is found. Defects
can be reduced to near zero, so that we may actually believe that Six Sigma can
be attained.
Conclusion:
The
project team determines how to technically control the newly improved process
and creates a response plan to ensure the new process maintains the improved
sigma performance. Hope you have got enough information on basic level to
understand the DMAIC process & its importance in a Six Sigma implementation. For More Details:
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