SIX SIGMA TECHNIQUES

Samsung Electronics Co. (SEC) of Seoul, Korea, is perfecting approach to product, process and personnel development by using Six Sigma as a tool for innovation, efficiency and quality.

SEC was founded in 1969 and sold its first product, a television receiver, in 1971 Since that time, the company has used tools and techniques such as Total quality control, total process management, product data management, Enterprise resource management, supply chain management and Customer relationship management

1. Internal failure cost scrap, rework, retest, troubleshooting costs, cycle time impact, etc. 2. External failure cost losing customer, losing reputation, product reimbursement, cost of customer inspection/sorting, losing quality as competitive advantage 3. Appraisal Cost In-Process and Final Inspection Cost

1. Value-Based: Quality is based on the relationship of usefulness or satisfaction to price with competitor product 2. Manufacturing-Based: Quality is defined as the capability of manufacturing or conformance to customer specifications

3.Product-Based: Quality is a differentiated by a measurable performance variable of some product attributes 4.User-Based: Quality is determined by what a customer wants, fitness for intended use, or how well the product performs its intended function

ZERO DEFECT
ON-TIME DELIVERY PRODUCT CONSISTANCY

EXCEED CUSTOMER SPECIFICATIONS

The central idea behind Six Sigma is that if you can measure how many "defects" you have in a process, you can systematically figure out how to eliminate them and get as close to "zero defects" as possible.

Critical to Quality: Attributes most important to the customer. Defect: Failing to deliver what the customer wants. Variation: What the customer sees and feels. Process Capability: What your process can deliver.

Stable Operations: Ensuring consistent, predictable processes to improve what the customer sees and feels. Design for Six Sigma: Designing to meet customer needs and process capability.

DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, Control) Methodology of Six Sigma is a systematic data driven approach to reduce the defect and improve the quality in any type of business.

Define
Measure Analyse

Improve
Control

Define the requirements and expectations of the customer Define the project boundaries Define the process by mapping the business flow

Measure the process to satisfy customer's needs Develop a data collection plan Collect and compare data to determine issues and shortfalls

Analyze the causes of defects and sources of variation Determine the variations in the process Prioritize opportunities for future improvement

Improve the process to eliminate variations Develop creative alternatives and implement enhanced plan

Control process variations to meet customer requirements Develop a strategy to monitor and control the improved process Implement the improvements of systems and structures

By 2001, SEC had earned net income of $2.2 billion on total revenues of $24.4 billion. Market capitalization stood at $43.6 billion. According to SECs 2001 annual report, SEC now is one of the top 10 electronic and electrical equipment manufacturing companies in the world

SEC says its technological strengths, Six Sigma quality initiatives and product marketability helped increase its share of the memory chip market in 2001 to 29% SECs quality and innovative strategy helped it reach the number one position in the BusinessWeek 2002 information technology guide

1- Antony, J, Kumar, M (2005), Six Sigma in small and medium sized UK manufacturing enterprises, International journal of quality and reliability management,Vol 122, No 8, 860-874 2- Antony,J (2006), Six Sigma for service processes, Business process management journal, Vol 12, No 2, 234-248 3- Arnheiter,E.D. Maleyoff,J (2005), The integration of lean management and Six Sigma, The TQM magazine, Vol 17, No1, 5-18