xxi
Preface
Since the early 1980s, everyone has talked about continual improvement (CI).
However, to talk about it is not enough. It must be engrained in an organiza-
tion with a three-prong approach. That approach is based on the following:
(1) a consistent philosophy of improvement by management, (2) a receptive
organizational culture, and (3) the entire culture of the organization must be
willing to make decisions based on measurement and data.
These three basic approaches are necessary for the organization to develop
an attitude for doing things right the rst time, whether it will be for a product
or a service. This attitude must be incorporated into the processes of any
organization and create products or services for the marketplace that will
delight the customers rather than just satisfy them. It is interesting to note
here that even though we all know these fundamental principles, products
and services fail or at least miss their launching deadlines, and for some
reason even though we claimed that we were short on time, now after the
failure we nd the time to do it again. The question is why? We think that the
answer is one or more of the following ve categories. They are
1. Design and development. We rush to bring products and services
into market before they are ready for mass production and/or
marketing.
2. Process design. We design products and services with specic
requirements and not robustness. We design and we expect the cus-
tomer will tell us how to improve the products and services once
they hit the market.
3. Problem solving. We focus on xing the problems after the fact and
even then we fail to use a systematic (standardized) and consistent
approach for the organization.
4. Share knowledge systematically. We preach corporate knowledge
but we do not systematically use it for the benet of the organiza-
tion. Quite often, once the launch is complete, we do not even hold
debrieng meetings to evaluate Things Gone Wrong (TGW) or
Things Gone Right (TGR). In fact, in most cases, the launch team is
replaced by a new one and we start the process all over again.
5. Leaders are not involved with the development of others. We prac-
tice and encourage silo development within our organizations.
Leaders focus on nancial metrics and they seem to spend very little
time on mentoring upcoming talent. We forget that one of the most
important tasks of leadership is to build and train new leaders for
the future.
xxii Preface
To circumvent these deciencies, the concept of CI must be an active phi-
losophy in the management of any organization. In fact, that philosophy
must be interpreted through a strategy and implemented in such a way that
superb results will be accomplished. If the strategy is great, everything else
will work to positive results. Unfortunately, most organizations circumvent
a good strategy and depend on managing broken processes to have good
results with additional procedures and/or requirements.
We are not suggesting that there is a specic policy within organiza-
tions that encourages cheating in any way, shape, or form. Absolutely not!
However, we do suspect that many organizations, due to time and cost con-
straints, sometimes look the other way. After all, they assume acts that have
welcomed benets are good and the sooner they reach the market the bet-
ter. We suggest that this kind of thought is 100% wrong. When this hap-
pens, organizations must look at the bigger picture internally. It is a system
problem! The problem is not that individuals cut corners, or cheat, or coerce
someone to do something unethical. The problem is that the idea of doing it
right the rst time is only a slogan and many organizations have developed
the ridiculous notion that you can hide or reinvent reality by creating new
requirements and policies and trying to enforce them. This approach has not
worked and it will not work.
To be sure, one of the risks we take in a free society is to allow ourselves
and others to make mistakes. Why? Because no one is perfect! One can never
be certain when something is a mistake, oversight or not. So what do we do?
Technology is emerging and rapidly growing in all industries and service
organizations. The opportunity exists for all organizations to grow as well.
However, for that growing to take place, the same organizations must recog-
nize the consumer’s needs and wants and align them to their priorities. One
good way to do that is to follow the seven principles:
1. Research/plan: Research for innovations that will delight the con-
sumer. Always scan/survey the consumers to nd their needs and
wants. Remember that current wants become needs in the future
(Kano model).
2. Assure: The consumer has to be assured that the product you are
selling is reliable (engineer’s language) and durable (customer’s lan-
guage) because we want products that last.
3. Explain: Why a particular feature and innovation are important and
how they will facilitate the customer’s safety and/or comfort.
4. Prioritize: Product performance; it should work better if it is really
good.
5. Demonstrate: The product is environmentally safe and friendly
and its performance is better than a competitor’s product or
service.
xxiiiPreface
6. Conrm: The material used in the product is the best, so the quality
metric is what we want and expect.
7. Show: How you value and deliver product safety.
Based on 35 years of experience dealing with OEMs and suppliers this
book covers the essential items for doing the right thing the rst time espe-
cially when launching a good product and/or service to the customer. The
requirements have been split into two sections. Section I covers the origi-
nal equipment manufacturer (OEM)/customer requirements and Section II
covers supplier requirements. In both sections, we do not take a deep dive
in the content because each chosen topic requires its own book. We have
chosen, however, to identify key indicators and methodologies that will help
attain excellent performance, delivery, and cost for both the customer and
the supplier. In other words, if you follow these methodologies and indica-
tors, the job will get done right the rst time. Specically, each chapter covers
the following:
Chapter 1: Timing (Product Development). The signicance of tim-
ing is discussed. Emphasis is placed on setting the milestones of
deliverables.
Chapter 2: Basic OEM Quality System. The signicance of a customer
quality system is explained and the need for such a system to
exist before a customer makes demands on a supplier for quality
products/services.
Chapter 3: Manufacturing (Facility) Site Assessment (MSA). The
signicance of a customer knowing what to expect from a sup-
plier and how it should validate its requirements in the supplier’s
facility.
Chapter 4: Sourcing. The signicance of having the right supplier with
which to do business and a discussion of how to go about selecting
the right supplier.
Chapter 5: Segmentation. The signicance of categorizing suppliers
with which to do business depending on their own capability, capac-
ity, and quality requirements.
Chapter 6: Supplier Development. The signicance of supplier develop-
ment by the customer, so that the supplier can meet the customer’s
requirements.
Chapter 7: Role of Supplier Technical Engineer. The signicance of the
customer designating a specic individual to make sure that the
supplier is meeting all the requirements of the customer. It denes
several roles and responsibilities that the supplier technical engineer
must do for success.
xxiv Preface
Chapter 8: Commitment to Continual Improvement. This chapter dis-
cusses the signicance of the continual improvement philosophy
and how it affects the supplier and customer relationship.
Chapter 9: Lean Manufacturing. This chapter introduces the philoso-
phy of Lean and several methods of reducing waste.
Chapter 10: Quality Operating System (QOS). This chapter discusses
one of the key systems in pursuing quality. It focuses on key pro-
cesses and key indicators of these processes.
Chapter 11: Certication to the International Standard and Customer-
Specic Requirements. This chapter gives a cursory review of the
fundamental principles of the ISO standard and how the supplier
can use it to improve quality.
Chapter 12: Statistical Process Control (SPC). This chapter gives a cur-
sory review of the SPC fundamentals and explains the need for the
supplier to have a system in place to evaluate its processes. Without
SPC, the voice of the process will never be known.
Chapter 13: Problem-Solving Methodology. This chapter discusses the
role of problem-solving methodology in any organization. It also
addresses several key points about denition of the problem and
the characteristics of problem solving and the process improvement
cycle.
Chapter 14: Internal Audits. This chapter explains the validation pro-
cess of fullling the requirements of both standards and customer
requirements by explaining the concept of an audit and specically
elaborates on several types that may be used by either the customer
or the supplier.
Chapter 15: Poka-Yoke. This chapter extends the discussion of Chapter
13 by providing a specic approach to problem solving—the mistake-
proong approach. This discussion covers the rationale, method,
and several approaches to mistake proong.
Chapter 16: Measurement System Analysis (MSA). This chapter dis-
cusses the rationale for measurement, approaches to measurement
by differentiating attribute and measurable data, and provides a
mini-tutorial on gauge R&R via Minitab
®
.
Chapter 17: Supplier’s Perspective of APQP. This chapter discusses the
fundamental reasons for the existence of APQP and emphasizes the
signicance of the milestones. It further discusses the measuring
effectiveness of each milestone.
Chapter 18: Supplier’s Perspective on the PPAP. This chapter discusses
the elements of the PPAP process, the rationale for them, and the PSW
signicance. It also delineates the levels of the PPAP as well as the sig-
nicance of capacity as part of the PPAP process for some customers.
xxvPreface
Chapter 19: Capacity Analysis. This chapter discusses the need for a
capacity study and explains the components of it as well as giving
a rationale for incorporating overal equipment effectiveness (OEE)
as part of the capacity evaluation. The chapter also discusses the
required OEE, demonstrated OEE, shared loading analysis, and total
allocation.
Chapter 20: Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T). This
chapter gives a cursory overview of GD&T and focuses primarily
on the most common characteristics: form, prole, orientation, loca-
tion, and runout. It also discusses the concepts of tolerances, dimen-
sions, datums, maximum material condition (MMC), least material
condition (LMC), and feature of size (FoS).
Chapter 21: 8D. This chapter is also an extension of Chapter 13. It dis-
cusses a very specic approach to problem solving, which is very
popular in many industries. Specically, it discusses the individ-
ual steps of the method but it also covers an evaluation process for
effectiveness at the completion of all the steps by giving the reader
a series of questions to make sure that the key areas of the methodol-
ogy have been covered.
Chapter 22: Miscellaneous. This chapter covers some unique topics
that most organizations need to practice. They are very important
and many customers demand that their supplier practice them.
Specically, the topics are production system, supplier request engi-
neering approval (SREA), failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA),
warranty, Weibull distribution, and Six Sigma.
Epilogue: Here we close the book with a discussion of some essential
items that both customers and suppliers must keep in mind in order
to continue the journey to awless launches.
Appendix I: A typical detailed expectation list of a site assessment by the
customer to the supplier’s facility is given.
Appendix II: A typical PPAP checklist is given to make sure that all
elements are covered appropriately.
Appendix III: Mistake proong.
Appendix IV: Auditing requirements, criteria, and evaluation.
Appendix V: Many Six Sigma and Lean explanations of specic con-
cepts and typical forms/tools are given to help suppliers with their
data or selection methodologies to pursue continual improvement.
The book concludes with a glossary and selected bibliography.
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