Dorian Shainin 1

Dorian Shainin
Dorian Shainin

Born September 26, 1914San Francisco, California

Died January 7, 2000 (aged 85)Manchester, Connecticut

Nationality American

Fields Reliability engineering, Acceptance sampling

Institutions United Aircraft Corporation, Grumman Aerospace, Shainin LLC

Alma mater Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Known for Red X

Influences Ronald Fisher, John Tukey, Waloddi Weibull

Notable The American Society for Quality's Brumbaugh Award (1951), the Edwards Medal (1969), the Eugene L. Grant Award (1981),
awards and the Shewhart Medal (1989)

Dorian Shainin (September 26, 1914 – January 7, 2000) was an influential American quality consultant, aeronautics
engineer, author, and college professor most notable for his contributions in the fields of industrial problem solving,
product reliability, and quality engineering, particularly the creation and development of the “Red X” concept.[1]
Shainin (pronounced SHAY-nin), founder of the technical-problem-solving company Shainin LLC, is responsible
for the development of over 20 statistical engineering techniques that have become the core of the “Shainin System”
for quality and reliability improvement.[2]
Throughout his life, Dorian Shainin worked to improve the quality and reliability of an array of products, including
paper, printing, textiles, rubber, nuclear energy, airplanes, automobiles, cassette decks, space ships, light bulbs and
disposable diapers,[3] with clients representing over 200 different industries, ranging from the U.S. Department of
Defense, Rolls Royce Ltd. and Exxon to Polaroid, Hewlett-Packard, AT&T and Ford Motor. In total, Shainin
advised over 800 companies, 43 of which were among the Fortune 100.[4]

Early life
Dorian Shainin was born in San Francisco on September 26, 1914. He grew up in San Francisco, Shanghai, and New
York. He attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, New York.[5]

Early career
After receiving his degree in aeronautical engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1936,
Shainin became a design engineer at the Hamilton Standard Division of United Aircraft Corporation (now United
Technologies Corporation).[6]
Dorian Shainin 2

In 1939 US industry had begun to focus on the war effort, and Shainin became a licensee coordinator responsible for
helping new Hamilton Standard licensees solve problems. By the end of the war, Shainin was in charge of quality
and reliability at Hamilton Standard, having gained national recognition for his invention of the Hamilton Standard
Lot Plot.[7]

Lot Plot
Lot Plot refers to a statistical method for acceptance sampling developed by Dorian Shainin in the 1940s. This
statistical technique uses the graphical analysis of variable sample data in order to determine if a lot consisting of
potentially faulty parts should be accepted or set aside for 100% inspection.[8]
Walter A. Shewhart’s development of control charts demonstrated the application of statistical techniques to
manufacturing and illustrated the effectiveness of graphical presentation and analysis. Shainin incorporated these
concepts in his development of Lot Plot.[9]
In 1946 Shainin was able to demonstrate to the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics that Lot Plot was more effective than
100% inspection. Following this, the Navy agreed to make Lot Plot a standard. Soon Lot Plot was adopted as a
standard across many industries.[10]
Taking the advice of his friend and mentor Joseph M. Juran, Shainin turned to the world of consulting. In 1952
Shainin joined Rath & Strong, Inc., a management consulting firm based in Lexington, Massachusetts, holding the
position of Senior Vice President.[11]

Red X and Pareto

Shainin's development of the “Red X” concept originated from his association with Joseph Juran. In the 1940s Juran
coined and popularized the notion of “the vital few and trivial many,” also known as “The Pareto Principle,”
recognizing the uneven impact of problems on business performance to be the same phenomenon that Vilfredo
Pareto had observed in respect to the distribution of wealth.[12] As suggested by Juran, “I observed (as had many
others before me) that quality defects are unequal in frequency, i.e., when a long list of defects was arranged in the
order of frequency, a relative few of the defects accounted for the bulk of the defectiveness.”[13]
In the 1950s Shainin recognized that the Pareto principle could be applied effectively to the solving of variation
problems. Shainin concluded that, amongst the thousands of variables that could cause a change in the value of an
output, one cause-effect relationship had to be stronger than the others. Shainin called this primary cause the “Big
Red X”[14] and demonstrated that the cause can exist as an interaction among independent variables. The effect of the
Red X is then magnified by the square-root-of-the-sum-of-the-squares law, thereby isolating the root cause.
Shainin asserted that his application of statistical methods was more cost-effective and simpler than Taguchi
methods. In order to determine the "Red X," Shainin would swap pairs of parts between functional and faulty
equipment until the one part responsible for the failure is discovered. Shainin would claim that he could often find
the primary defective part within a dozen paired swaps.[15]
Shainin's policy of "talking to the parts" was the primary distinguishing factor that set his methods apart from
Taguchi's. In classical or Taguchi DOE (Design of Experiments), engineers would brainstorm to form hypotheses
regarding possible causes of a problem. Shainin's methods postpone this theoretical step, requiring first the diagnosis
of causes via one or more of four clue generation techniques designed to determine, through the empirical testing of
the actual parts in question, the root cause, or "Red X".[16]
In the 1940s Leonard Seder, an MIT classmate and friend, developed the Multi-vari chart, a graphical method for
analysis of variance. Shainin was an early adopter of this method, discovering that with Multi-vari charts, he could
quickly converge on the root cause of a problem.[17] Multi-vari charts also played an influential role in Shainin’s
development of the Red X concept.[18]
Dorian Shainin 3

Influences
Among the statisticians and mathematicians who influenced Shainin’s thinking were Ronald Fisher, John Tukey, and
Waloddi Weibull.
Shainin’s convergence techniques have the capability of reducing the number of Red X possibilities to a few options.
Ronald Fisher’s statistically-designed experiments would then isolate the Red X, revealing potential interactions
while confirming the identity of the Red X with statistical confidence.[19]
John Tukey, a proponent of simple statistical techniques, was another influence of Shainin’s. As a result of Tukey’s
work, Shainin developed a simple confirmation test known as a “Six Pack Test.” Six Pack Tests were known for
being much simpler than t-tests, being non-parametric and having a basic rule set. Shainin further developed this
work into an analysis of variance, or ANOVA, permitting non-parametric analysis of Fisher’s full factorial
experiments.[20]
Like Seder’s Multi-Vari charts, Waloddi Weibull’s now famous continuous probability distribution fascinated
Shainin. Weibull’s distribution, along with Shainin’s experiences at Hamilton Standard, planted the seed that would
eventually become Shainin’s system for product reliability.[21] This system was used in the development of
Grumman’s Lunar Module as well as General Motors’ initial production of their anti-lock (ABS) brake system.

NASA/Apollo 13
During the 1960s Shainin worked for Grumman Aerospace as a reliability consultant for NASA's Apollo Lunar
Module. In order to ensure a statistical margin of safety, Shainin developed a completely new approach to reliability
assessment, which was applied to the empirical testing of Grumman's Lunar Module prototype components and
systems.[22] Shainin’s approach to reliability testing was crucial to Grumman’s bid in the development of the Lunar
Module. The effectiveness of his approach was demonstrated by zero failures in eleven manned missions, six of
which featured moon landings. When the command module became uninhabitable during the failed Apollo 13
mission, the Lunar Module became the lifeboat that brought the Apollo 13 astronauts to lunar orbit and back to
Earth.[23]
During the years that Shainin served as a reliability consultant for Pratt & Whitney Aircraft, he worked on the
hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell that powered Apollo environmental life support in addition to the RL-10 cryogenic liquid
rocket engine. The RL-10 soon became America's most reliable space engine, at one point logging 128 ignitions in
space without a single failure.[24]

Further contributions
For 38 years Shainin served as statistical consultant on the medical staff at the Newington Children’s Hospital in
Connecticut. Here, Shainin was able to adapt his techniques to the problems surrounding the etiology of infirmities,
specifically amongst disabled children.[25]
From 1950 to 1983 Shainin was on the faculty of the University of Connecticut, where he originated and conducted
the continuing education program for people in industry.[26]
In 1987 Shainin further refined his problem prevention approach through his assistance with the introduction of the
Detroit Diesel Series 60 engine. Shainin’s “Overstress Probe Testing” techniques exposed design weaknesses early in
the development process of the engine, which enabled improvements to be made before the final design.[27]
Bob Galvin was assisted by Shainin in his effort to improve quality at Motorola during the 1980s. As a result of
Galvin’s work, Motorola received the first Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in 1989.[28]
Having served for many years on the editorial and technical advisory board of Quality, the Hitchcock journal
published by the American Broadcasting Company, Shainin was also appointed to the editorial board of Quality
Engineering, the journal for the American Society for Quality (ASQ).
Dorian Shainin 4

Shainin is the author or co-author of eight books, including “Managing Manpower in the Industrial
Environment”(Wm. C. Brown Co.), “Tool Engineers Handbook” (McGraw-Hill), “Industrial Engineering Handbook”
(McGraw-Hill), “Quality Control Handbook” (McGraw-Hill), “New Decision-Making Tools for Managers” (Harvard
University Press), “Manufacturing, Planning, and Estimating Handbook” (McGraw-Hill), and “Statistics In
Action.”[29]

Awards and honors

In 1952 Shainin, a Fellow of the American Society for Quality, received the ASQ Brumbaugh Award–honoring the
best contribution to industry for that year–in response to his paper, “The Lot Plot Plan.”[30] Shainin also received the
ASQ Edwards Medal for “best contribution to the management of quality control” for the year 1970. In 1982 he
received the ASQ Eugene L. Grant Award for his educational programs. Shainin also received the ASQ's Shewart
Medal, becoming the first person to win all four of these prestigious ASQ medals. The Institute of Management
Consultants designated Shainin as a Certified Management Consultant, and the American Arbitration Association
appointed him to the Panel of Arbitrators. Shainin was additionally elected “Academician” by the International
Academy for Quality, and in 1996 ASQ made Shainin its 15th honorary member. Shainin was finally honored by the
ASQ with the creation of the Dorian Shainin Medal in 2004.[31]

Quotes
“My particular technique is to say to people, ‘Let’s stop guessing. Instead, let’s find clues–sources of
knowledge that you just would not have otherwise.’”[32]
–Dorian Shainin
“Talk to the parts; they are smarter than the engineers.”[33] –Dorian Shainin

[34]
Shainin Tool Development Highlights

1946 Lot Plot (Shainin)

1948 Reliability Service Monitoring (Shainin)

1952 Precontrol (Shainin/Purcell/Carter/Satterthwaite)

1956 Component Search (Shainin)

Circa 1958 Operation Search (Shainin)

Circa 1960 Tolerance Parallelogram (Shainin)

1964 Overstress Testing (Shainin)

1968 B vs C (Shainin)

1971 Paired Comparisons (Shainin)

1972 Isoplot (Shainin/Pollard)

1973 Variable Search (Shainin)

1976 Randomized Sequencing (Shainin)

circa 1976 Resistant Limit Transform (Shainin)

1977 Rank Order ANOVA (Shainin)

1988 Shainin System for Quality Improvement (Shainin)

Dorian Shainin 5

References
[1] Ingle, Sud, In Search of Perfection: How to Create/maintain/improve Quality, Prentice-Hall, 1985, p. 47, ISBN 0134675568
[2] IPC Business Press, Quality Today: Measurement & Inspection Technology, IPC Industrial Press, 1994, p. 25
[3] Rath & Strong Management Consultants, from In This Issue, 1957 Harvard Business Review, "Dorian Shainin" (http:/ / www. rathstrong.
com/ articles/ Shainin(HBR). pdf)
[4] Bhote, Keki, The Power of Ultimate Six SIGMA, Amacom, New York, 2003, p. 15, ISBN 0814407595
[5] American men & women of science: physical and biological sciences, Bowker, 1986,p. 643, ISBN 0835222284
[6] ASQ, December 18, 2007, “Dorian Shainin: A professional approach to problem solving” (http:/ / www. asq. org/ about-asq/ who-we-are/
bio_shainin. html)
[7] Grant, Eugene Lodewick, Statistical Quality Control, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 1964, p. 444
[8] Johnstone, Dudley, Statistical Methods in Quality Control, Prentice-Hall, 1957, pp. 621-624
[9] Grant, Eugene Lodewick, Leavenworth, Richard S., Statistical Quality Control, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 1988, pp. 574-575,
ISBN 0070241171
[10] American Statistical Association (ASA), Journal of the American Statistical Association, American Statistical Association, 1954, p. 341
[11] Rath & Strong, Rath & Strong's Six Sigma Pocket Guide: New Revised Edition, Rath & Strong, Incorporated, Aon Consulting, 2006, p. 10,
ISBN 0974632872
[12] Stephens, Kenneth S., Juran, Quality, and a Century of Improvement, American Society for Quality, 2004, p. 188, ISBN 0873896351
[13] Juran, J.M., "The Non-Pareto Principle; Mea Culpa" (http:/ / www. projectsmart. co. uk/ docs/ the-non-pareto-principle. pdf)
[14] Vinas, Tonya, Industry Week, November 1, 2003 “Best Practices -- The Hunt For Red X” (http:/ / www. industryweek. com/
CurrentArticles/ Asp/ articles. asp?ArticleId=1515)
[15] Main, Jeremy, Langan, Patricia A., August 18, 1986, "Under the Spell of the Quality Gurus" (http:/ / money. cnn. com/ magazines/ fortune/
fortune_archive/ 1986/ 08/ 18/ 67929/ index. htm) Fortune Magazine, pp. 22-23
[16] Bhote, Keki, World Class Quality: Using Design of Experiments to Make It Happen, 2nd edition, 2000, Amacom, New York, pp. 79-82
ISBN 0814404278
[17] Traver, Robert W., Manufacturing Solutions For Consistent Quality and Reliability, 1995, Amacom, New York, p. 7, ISBN 0814402712
[18] Langan, Patricia A., 1986, "Under the spell of the quality gurus", FORTUNE Magazine, August 18, p. 23
[19] Bhote, Keki R., The Ultimate Six Sigma: Beyond Quality Excellence to Total Business, Amacom, 2001, p. 176, ISBN 0814406777
[20] Sleeper, Andrew D., Design for Six Sigma Statistics, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 2005, p. 79, ISBN 0071451625
[21] Carter, A.D.S., Mechanical Reliability, Wiley, 1986, pp. 156-157, ISBN 0470206942
[22] ASQ, Spring, 2000, "Shainin Stamp of Quality", p. 9
[23] Shainin, Dorian, Reliability: Managing a reliability program. "Apollo lunar module engine exhaust products." Science 166, 1969, pp. 733-38
[24] Shainin website (http:/ / www. shainin. com)
[25] Elsmar Cove Quality Assurance and Business Standards, "Dorian Shainin" (http:/ / www. elsmar. com/ wiki/ index. php/ Shainin)
[26] Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, IEEE transactions on industry and general applications, IEEE, 1965, p. 87
[27] Logothetis, N., 1990, A Perspective on Shainin’s Approach to Experimental Design for Quality Improvement, Quality and Reliability
Engineering International, p. 197
[28] Rath & Strong, Rath & Strong's Six Sigma Leadership Handbook, Wiley, 1st edition, 2003, p. 2
[29] ASQ, December 18, 2007, “Dorian Shainin: A professional approach to problem solving” (http:/ / www. asq. org/ about-asq/ who-we-are/
bio_shainin. html)
[30] Rath & Strong Management Consultants, from In This Issue, 1957 Harvard Business Review, “Dorian Shainin” (http:/ / www. rathstrong.
com/ articles/ Shainin(HBR). pdf)
[31] ASQ, December 18, 2007, “Dorian Shainin: A professional approach to problem solving” (http:/ / www. asq. org/ about-asq/ who-we-are/
bio_shainin. html)
[32] Quality, September, 1982, "A talk with Dorian," p. 15
[33] Bhote, Keki, World Class Quality: Using Design of Experiments to Make It Happen, 2nd edition, 2000, Amacom, New York, pp. 94 ISBN#
0814404278
[34] Stamatis, D. H., TQM Engineering Handbook, CRC Press, 1997, pp. 240-241 ISBN 082470083X
Dorian Shainin 6

Bibliography

Print
• Acheson, J. Duncan, Quality Control and Industrial Statistics, 5th ed., Homewood, Ill., Richard D. Irwin, Inc.,
1986.
• American men & women of science: physical and biological sciences, Bowker, 1986,p. 643, ISBN 0835222284
• American Society of Tool Manufacturing Engineers/Shainin, Dorian (contributor), Tool Engineers Handbook,
McGraw-Hill, 1949.
• American Statistical Association (ASA), Journal of the American Statistical Association, American Statistical
Association, 1954, p. 341
• Bhote, Keki, The Power of Ultimate Six SIGMA, Amacom, New York, 2003, p. 15, ISBN 0814407595
• Bhote, Keki, The Ultimate Six Sigma: Beyond Quality Excellence to Total Business, Amacom, New York, 2001,
p. 176, ISBN 0814406777
• Bhote, Keki, World Class Quality: Using Design of Experiments to Make It Happen, 2nd edition, 2000, Amacom,
New York, pp. 79–82, 94-99 ISBN 0814404278
• Bursk, John F. and Chapman, Edward C., New Decision-Making Tools for Managers; Mathematical
Programming as an Aid in the Solving of Business Problems, Harvard University Press, 1968.
• Carter, A.D.S., Mechanical Reliability, Wiley, 1986, pp. 156–157, ISBN 0470206942
• Cowden, Dudley Johnstone, Statistical Methods in Quality Control, Prentice-Hall, 1957, pp. 621–624
• Debing, Lawrence M., Quality Control for Plastics Engineers, Reinhold Publishing Co., 1957.
• Grant, Eugene Lodewick, Leavenworth, Richard S., Statistical Quality Control, McGraw-Hill Book Company,
New York, 1988, pp. 444, 574-575, ISBN 0070241171
• Ingle, Sud, In Search of Perfection: How to Create/maintain/improve Quality, Prentice-Hall, 1985, p. 47, ISBN
0134675568
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, IEEE transactions on industry and general applications, IEEE,
1965, p. 87
• IPC Business Press, Quality Today: Measurement & Inspection Technology, IPC Industrial Press, 1994, p. 25
• Juran, J.M., Editor, Quality Control Handbook, First Edition, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 1951,
pp. 37–41.
• Rath & Strong, Rath & Strong's Six Sigma Leadership Handbook, Wiley, 1st edition, 2003, p. 2., ISBN
0471251240
• Rath & Strong, Rath & Strong's Six Sigma Pocket Guide: New Revised Edition, Rath & Strong, Incorporated,
Aon Consulting, 2006, p. 10, ISBN 0974632872
• Shainin, Dorian, Reliability: Managing a reliability program. "Apollo lunar module engine exhaust products."
Science 166, 1969, pp. 733–38.
• Shainin, Dorian (contributing editor), Manufacturing, Planning, and Estimating Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book
Company, New York, 1963, ISBN 0070015368
• Shainin, Dorian, Shainin, Pete, "Better Than Taguchi Orthogonal Tables," Quality and Reliability Engineering
International, 1988, p. 4.
• Shainin, Dorian, Shainin, Pete, "Pre-control Versus X & R Charting: Continuous or Immediate Quality
Improvement?," Quality Engineering, 1989, p. 419-429.
• Shainin, Dorian, Shainin, Pete, "Statistical Process Control," in Quality Control Handbook, ed. J.M. Juran and
F.M. Gryna, McGraw-Hill,1988, section 24.
• Sleeper, Andrew D., Design for Six Sigma Statistics, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 2005, p. 79,
ISBN 0071451625
• Stamatis, D. H., TQM Engineering Handbook, CRC Press, 1997, pp. 240–241 ISBN 082470083X
Dorian Shainin 7

• Stephens, Kenneth S., Juran, Quality, and a Century of Improvement, American Society for Quality, 2004, p. 188,
ISBN 0873896351
• Toedt, Theodore A. and Shainin, Dorian (contributing editor), Managing Manpower in the Industrial
Environment, W.C. Brown Co., 1962.
• Traver, Robert W., Manufacturing Solutions For Consistent Quality and Reliability, 1995, Amacom, New York,
p. 7, ISBN 0814402712.

Web
• ASQ, December 18, 2007,“Dorian Shainin: A professional approach to problem solving” (http://www.asq.org/
about-asq/who-we-are/bio_shainin.html)
• Automotive Design & Production, January 1, 2006, “Detective Work” (http://www.thefreelibrary.com/
Detective+work.-a0148137972)
• Elsmar Cove Quality Assurance and Business Standards, "Dorian Shainin" (http://elsmar.com/wiki/index.php/
Shainin)
• Juran, J.M., "The Non-Pareto Principle; Mea Culpa" (http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/docs/
the-non-pareto-principle.pdf)
• Moran, Tim, Automotive News, August 4, 2003, “MANUFACTURING: The man who talked to the parts “ (http:/
/www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/
search?ExclCat=REUTERS;SAP;EY;FEATURES;BP;HOLD;COPY;COPY01,ZZZ_SPECIAL&
SearchCategory=%&noblankcheck=0&enddate=&crit=shainin&searchButton.x=12&searchButton.y=5)
• Rath & Strong Management Consultants, from In This Issue, 1957 Harvard Business Review, “Dorian Shainin”
(http://www.rathstrong.com/articles/Shainin(HBR).pdf)
• Regulatory Compliance Services, "Dorian Shainin" (http://www.4rcs.com/Dorian Shainin - Guru.html)
• Vinas, Tonya, Industry Week, November 1, 2003 “Best Practices -- The Hunt For Red X” (http://www.
industryweek.com/CurrentArticles/Asp/articles.asp?ArticleId=1515)

Periodicals
• ASQ, Spring, 2000, "Shainin Stamp of Quality", p. 9.
• Main, Jeremy, Langan, Patricia A., August 18, 1986, "Under the Spell of the Quality Gurus" (http://money.cnn.
com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1986/08/18/67929/index.htm) Fortune Magazine, pp. 22–23.
• Logothetis, N., 1990, "A Perspective on Shainin’s Approach to Experimental Design for Quality Improvement",
Quality and Reliability Engineering International, p. 6, 195-202.
• Priddle, Alisa, 2003, "Dean of Lean Chrysler’s LaSorda starts to leave his mark", WARD’S AutoWorld , May
2003, pp. 32–34.
• Quality, September, 1982, "A talk with Dorian", pp. 15–18.
• Schultz, William, 1992, "Statistical Engineering", Quality, August, 1992, p. 18.
Dorian Shainin 8

Other Sources
• Shainin, Dorian, Shainin, Pete, "analysis of Experiments," 45th Annual Quality Congress Proceedings, ASQC,
1990, p. 1071-1077.

External links
• Shainin website (http://www.shainin.com)
• American Society for Quality (http://www.asq.org/about-asq/who-we-are/bio_shainin.html)
• Rath & Strong (http://www.rathstrong.com)
• The Juran Institute (http://www.juran.com/home.aspx)
Article Sources and Contributors 9

Article Sources and Contributors

Dorian Shainin  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=410996835  Contributors: Aervanath, Bhadani, CliffC, DanielPenfield, Ironholds, Jeff3000, Jfire, Jun Nijo, Magnet For
Knowledge, Mr pand, R'n'B, RHaworth, Raploichkin, Richhoncho, Tassedethe, Vegaswikian, 12 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

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