Search results

This paper attempts to demonstrate the power of six sigma, a disciplined approach to improving product, process or service quality, in the service industry.

The paper presents the basic features that characterize six sigma followed by a simple methodology for six sigma applied to service operations. The paper also illustrates a set of tools and techniques used within six sigma for service process performance improvement. Key success factors for the implementation of six sigma in service organisations and the factors for selection of winning projects are also addressed.

The paper draws the point that six sigma is not same as other quality initiatives such as TQM due to various misconceptions among many quality practitioners with these two philosophies. There are also limitations of six sigma and these are outlined and discussed.

Although six sigma has been successfully implemented in many manufacturing industries, its application in the service sector is still comparatively limited due to various constraints. This paper presents the potential areas where six sigma could be exploited in service functions.

Project management tools and techniques have been widely adopted in the construction industry; however, its combination with Six Sigma and application in construction procurement has not been widely researched. This paper explores the use of Six Sigma Project Procurement (SSPP) and its potential applications in public sector construction procurement.

The role of Six Sigma and project management in construction is critically evaluated using three case studies to demonstrate their application in public procurement.

The use of SSPP by public sector organisations creates efficient and effective construction procurement processes by addressing delays. The proposed timelines for competitive tendering in the Ghanaian Public Procurement Manual are not realistic.

This paper contributes to and broadens the limited body of evidence and knowledge of applying SSPP to public procurement processes and identifies areas for further research.

Project management will continue to expand in the global construction industry. However, what will eventually determine if SSPP is embraced by public sector construction depends on the leadership and success of its execution. The application of SSPP to public construction procurement will address delays and lead to significant time reduction of the process. This will eliminate the major issue (delay) accounting for deficiencies in the process.

The paper yields immense value to construction project management researchers and practitioners, especially in the public sector. It recommends the inclusion of Six Sigma to promote focus on actual instead of perceived problems and advocates for decisions-making based on facts which will ensure continuous improvement.

Developed by Motorola in the 1980s Six Sigma is a target‐based continuous improvement now and into the next century. Companies around the world are embracing concept that, by focusing on the causes of customer dissatisfaction, is an approach its disciplines to revitalize their culture and deliver a boost to the bottom line.

This paper aims to investigate the sources of variation in aluminum profiles hot extrusion process for the purpose of process capability improvement at National Aluminum and Profiles Company (NAPCO) in Palestine. The critical-to-quality characteristics (CTQ) have been determined as base variables to measure the process capability.

The DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control) Lean Six Sigma (LSS) approach has been adopted to conduct this study. More specifically, historical data analysis and PARETO charts have been employed. The defects' root causes have been determined using the cause-and-effect diagram and decision matrix. A course of suggested actions has been established to help in improving extrusion process capability. Minitab-18 software was used for conducting inferential statistical analysis. A case study considering a geometry CTQ of D3 dimension of bottom sash aluminum profiles 4,332 was selected for analysis.

The results indicated a reduction in DPMO from 89,649 to 15,659, sigma level was improved from 2.84 to 3.65, process yield was improved from 91.04% to 98.43% and cost was reduced from U$75,972 to U$13,250.9 (i.e. a saving of U$62,721). Studying and improving the sigma level of the extrusion process would yield fewer defective products and consequently fewer customer complaints. A validation process which has been conducted during the year 2019 showed a consistent improvement that aligns with the first stage of improvement made on October 1, 2018.

This study focuses on only one critical quality characteristic (CTQ), namely, a geometry CTQ of D3 dimension of bottom sash aluminum profiles 4,332 produced by NAPCO was selected for analysis.

This study would be useful for researchers and practitioners to improve the process capability in aluminum profiles manufacturing industries in general and hot extrusion processes in particular.

Many previous studies on applying LSS-DMAIC methodology have been conducted in aluminum industries in developed countries. According to the literature, it is highly recommended to have more case studies of applying LSS-DMAIC in different industries in developing countries. NAPCO is the only aluminum manufacturing plant in Palestine that hotly extrudes and coats aluminum profiles. Hence, the present study is the first of its kind in NAPCO and in Palestine. Projecting the assessment of the impact of process improvement opportunities and capability analyses into monetary measures are also innovative.

This paper aims to develop a quality plan to detect aesthetic defects in extruded aluminum profiles before the fabrication stage based on the Six Sigma improvement methodology in an aluminum facility. These defects are hard to be detected at the fabrication stage. It is also hard to be fixed in the site.

The research methodology utilized the DMAIC framework (define, measure, analyze, improve and control). The methodology relies on statistical analysis (histogram, control charts and Pareto) and field work (observations, focus groups and interviews).

The process shows significant improvement in aesthetic defect reduction that aids in reaching a Four Sigma quality level.

Aluminum fabrication is known to be vulnerable for many types of defects such as scratches and debris on work surface. In addition, post-fabrication defects may also occur due to improper coating caused by chemical imbalance, blocked filters or blocked sprays.

The main contribution of this research is to demonstrate the use of DMAIC framework to reduce the aluminum aesthetic defects that reach the end customer. The Six Sigma methodology is a well-known quality improvement framework that relies heavily on quantitative data. More precisely, it is widely used to control defects in quantities such as weights, heights, etc. In this research, it has been used to control qualitative data (aesthetic). This will enable objective decisions for facility management rather than subjective.

While Six Sigma metrics have been studied by researchers in detail for normal distribution-based data, in this paper, we have attempted to study the Six Sigma metrics for two-parameter Weibull distribution that is useful in many life test data analyses.

In the theory of Six Sigma, most of the processes are assumed normal and Six Sigma metrics are determined for such a process of interest. In reliability studies non-normal distributions are more appropriate for life tests. In this paper, a theoretical procedure is developed for determining Six Sigma metrics when the underlying process follows two-parameter Weibull distribution. Numerical evaluations are also considered to study the proposed method.

In this paper, by matching the probabilities under different normal process-based sigma quality levels (SQLs), we first determined the Six Sigma specification limits (Lower and Upper Six Sigma Limits- LSSL and USSL) for the two-parameter Weibull distribution by setting different values for the shape parameter and the scaling parameter. Then, the lower SQL (LSQL) and upper SQL (USQL) values are obtained for the Weibull distribution with centered and shifted cases. We presented numerical results for Six Sigma metrics of Weibull distribution with different parameter settings. We also simulated a set of 1,000 values from this Weibull distribution for both centered and shifted cases to evaluate the Six Sigma performance metrics. It is found that the SQLs under two-parameter Weibull distribution are slightly lesser than those when the process is assumed normal.

The theoretical approach proposed for determining Six Sigma metrics for Weibull distribution is new to the Six Sigma Quality practitioners who commonly deal with normal process or normal approximation to non-normal processes. The procedure developed here is, in fact, used to first determine LSSL and USSL followed by which LSQL and USQL are obtained. This in turn has helped to compute the Six Sigma metrics such as defects per million opportunities (DPMOs) and the parts that are extremely good per million opportunities (EGPMOs) under two-parameter Weibull distribution for lower-the-better (LTB) and higher-the-better (HTB) quality characteristics. We believe that this approach is quite new to the practitioners, and it is not only useful to the practitioners but will also serve to motivate the researchers to do more work in this field of research.

A comprehensive approach to quality goal setting is presented that is consistent with Motorola's six‐sigma metric development. In particular, process mean shifts are determined and incorporated into the goal setting process. Methodology includes basic probability theory, statistical control charts, and capability indices. Data for an aircraft part consisting of hundreds of laser‐drilled holes are used to illustrate the procedures. As a result of applying the methods, quality goals are customized based on the number of opportunities for defect, the target end‐product quality level, and the mean shift shown to exist for the processes involved in the product's manufacture. The methods described overcome the mistakes implicit in blindly conforming to the standard six‐sigma goal of 3.4 defects per million.

This research aims to enhance the operational excellence and continuous improvement of the retail supply chain in the Saudi Thobe Factory through an integrated approach of Six Sigma DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) with artificial intelligence (AI).

The study identified the tailoring department as the department with maximum defects by using voice of customer and critical to quality tools. An AI-integrated Six Sigma approach was applied to identify and eliminate nonproductive stages, and a new facility layout was designed to enhance productivity and customer satisfaction.

The use of the factor rating method and simulation using Arena software led to an improved sigma level from 1.597 to 2.237, representing an increment of about 40%. Additionally, the defects per million opportunities reduced from 461,538 to 230,769. The study can help production industry management to optimize facility layouts and improve overall production line efficiency.

This study addresses the lack of published research on the use of an integrated approach of Six Sigma DMAIC with AI in the retail and distribution sector of Saudi Arabia, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The study demonstrates how this approach may significantly boost SMEs’ performance and provides a basis for future research in this area.

This study provides a practical example of how an integrated approach of Six Sigma DMAIC with AI can be used in the retail and distribution sector of Saudi Arabia to enhance operational excellence and continuous improvement. The study highlights the potential benefits of this approach for SMEs in the region and provides a framework for future research.

The aim of this case study‐based paper is to study the application of Six Sigma, a breakthrough improvement strategy in the field of cell site construction of a telecom company.

This research provides action research of a Six Sigma project using DMAIC methodology carried out in cell site construction function of a telecom company. The research illustrates how the various Six Sigma tools and techniques were applied in a mutually inclusive manner in one project. The infrastructure department of the company had constructed 900 cell sites last year, out of which 150 were not according to standards and were either disapproved by the operations department or underwent maintenance soon after their use. In 2010, the company spent US$ 0.5 million on rework and maintenance at these sites, thus highlighting the urgency of the problem.

The paper shows how, after the implementation of the Six Sigma project, the company made savings worth US$ 0.45 million.

Six Sigma as a means of waste reduction has gained popularity among researchers and practitioners. The literature on the methodology of Six Sigma and the management approach towards Six Sigma is burgeoning. While various Six Sigma tools and techniques and their application are discussed in literature independent of each other, the need has arisen to observe their systematic application as they apply in a project; every company can use this breakthrough improvement strategy to improve its processes by reducing waste and deriving the financial benefits.

The evolution of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) within the operations management theory has enjoyed significant success in both manufacturing and services. Though the applicability of LSS is evident in the services sector through various publications, academic research on the use of LSS in the Banking and Financial Services (BFS) is limited, and hence deserves greater attention. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the application of LSS in consumer banking in real-time setting.

A case study method is used to study the application of LSS in two consumer banks with stage 1 featuring identification of appropriate consumer banks where LSS projects could be undertaken, and suitable LSS readiness assessment was performed. In stage 2, LSS project opportunities were identified in the select banks through stakeholder engagement. Finally, in stage 3, LSS projects were executed for process improvements in a real-time setting.

The case studies provide evidence of the successful application of LSS in consumer banking and the associated multiple benefits. The extent of applicability and appropriate managerial implications in project management context are elaborated. An LSS project selection criterion is recommended as a part of the study. Further, the study explains five important managerial implications in BFS context, with an outlook for future research.

Practitioner research shows that BFS organizations have changed their ways of working by adapting LSS over the last decade. However, the academic research concerning the applicability of LSS in BFS is apparently limited, and none of these are specific to “consumer banking.” This study serves as a strong foundation for future research in this area, which is at its nascence and upcoming in the researchers’ community. However, strong generalizations should not be made as this study is limited to two cases.

Since the cases are executed in the real-time setup of consumer banks, the paper has several practical implications. First, the paper confirms the applicability of LSS in consumer banking and concludes that LSS project management is merely a sub-set of LSS deployment. Second, LSS needs to be understood using a “systems thinking” perspective in order to move away from a narrow project-only approach. An LSS project selection criterion is recommended as a part of the study, which could serve as a managerial resource. Other managerial implications include effective management of stakeholders and change leadership as essential elements of LSS project management in banks.

LSS has been successful in the past few decades in the manufacturing and service sectors. However, its application in BFS is limited. This study illustrates the applicability of LSS in consumer banks, which deals with high volumes of data, customer bases and associated financial transactions.