Seven QC Tools for Process

Quality Improvement
Seven Major Tools

1) Flowchart or process mapping

2) Check Sheet
3) Histogram
4) Pareto Chart
5) Cause and Effect Diagram
6) Scatter Diagram
7) Control Chart
 Flowcharts or Run chart

 Used to explore if there is a process

 A Flow Diagram, also known as a flow chart,

is a diagramatic technique to document a
procedure, within a role or department.
"Structured" flow diagrams are created using a
single entry (with inputs), a single exit (with
outputs), and a combination of three building
structures:
Building structures

 sequence - any series of 1-n sequential

steps can be represented as a single step
 choice - a decision between two or more
paths (structured subpaths) [e.g., if-then,
case/select]
 loop - a structured subpath (single entry
and single exit) that is executed 0-n times
Check Sheets

 Also called: defect concentration diagram

 A check sheet is a structured, prepared form

for collecting and analyzing data. This is a
generic tool that can be adapted for a wide
variety of purposes.
Example :
The figure below shows a check sheet used to collect data
on telephone interruptions. The tick marks were added as
data was collected over several weeks.

Source: http://www.hci.com.au/hci
site3/toolkit/data.htm
Data organizing tools

 Once collected, raw data is typically

summarized (reduced, or compacted) –
this can be done in several ways

 Histograms
The Frequency Distribution
and Histogram

 A frequency distribution shows how often each

different value in a set of data occurs.

 A histogram is the most commonly used graph

to show frequency distributions.

 It looks very much like a bar chart, but there

are important differences between them.
 Histogram

Parts of a Histogram
Days of operation prior to
1
F 100
failure for an HF receiver
R
80
E
Q 60
4 3
U
E 40

N 20 2
C
Y 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60

1. Title , 2. Horizontal / X -axis , 3. Bars, 4. Vertical / Y -axis

 Histogram

EXERCISE 1:

The source of data for the first exercise is the following scenario.A
list of the data collected follows this description

 Recorded are the percentages of code defects for 80 personnel

during development of s/w application.These are the data collected:
EXERCISE 1: Histogram

PERCENT defects RECORDED

11 22 15 7 13 20 25 12 16 19
4 14 11 16 18 32 10 16 17 10
8 11 23 14 16 10 5 21 26 10
23 12 10 16 17 24 11 20 9 13
24 10 16 18 22 15 13 19 15 24
11 20 15 13 9 18 22 16 18 9
14 20 11 19 10 17 15 12 17 11
17 11 15 11 15 16 12 28 14 13
 Histogram

 Step 1 -Count number of data points ANS : Total - 80

 Step2 -Summarize on a tally sheet

 Step3 -Compute the range

Largest value = XY Percent defect

Smallest value = XY Percent defect

Range of values = xyz Percent defect

EXERCISE 1: Histogram

Step 1 Count number of data points

PERCENT Defects RECORDED

11 22 15 7 13 20 25 12 16 19
4 14 11 16 18 32 10 16 17 10
8 11 23 14 16 10 5 21 26 10
23 12 10 16 17 24 11 20 9 13
24 10 16 18 22 15 13 19 15 24
11 20 15 13 9 18 22 16 18 9
14 20 11 19 10 17 15 12 17 11
17 11 15 11 15 16 12 28 14 13

ANS : Total - 80
EXERCISE 1:

Step 1 Summarize the data on a tally sheet

%Deft No.Of.Pers %Deft No.Of.Pers %Deft No.Of.Pers

0 0 11 9 22 3
1 0 12 4 23 2
2 0 13 5 24 3
3 0 14 4 25 1
4 1 15 7 26 1
5 1 16 8 27 0
6 0 17 5 28 1
7 1 18 4 29 0
8 1 19 3 30 0
9 3 20 4 31 0
10 7 21 1 32 1
 Histogram
 Step3 -Compute the range

Largest value = 32 Percent Defects

Smallest value = 4 Percent Defects

Range of values = 28 Percent Defects

 Histogram

 Step 4 -Determine number of intervals

IF YOU HAVE THIS USE THIS NUMBER OF

MANY DATA POINTS INTERVALS:

Less than 50 5 to 7 intervals

50 to 99 6 to 10 intervals
100 to 250 7 to 12 intervals
More than 250 10 to 20 intervals

ANS : Select 6 to 10 intervals - 8

 Histogram

 Step 5 -Compute interval width

Range 28
Interval
Interval = = = 3.5
Width
Width 8 3.5
Number of Intervals

Use
Use88for
forthe
thenumber
number
ofofintervals
intervals
Round
Roundup
uptotonext
next
whole
wholenumber
number
 Histogram
 Step6 -Determine the starting point of each interval
 Step7 -Count the number of points in each interval

INTERVAL STARTING INTERVAL ENDING NUMBER

NUMBER VALUE WIDTH VALUE OF COUNTS

1 4 +4 8 3
2 8 +4 12 20
3 12 +4 16 20
4 16 +4 20 20
5 20 +4 24 10
6 24 +4 28 5
7 28 +4 32 1
8 32 +4 36 1

Equal to or grater than the But less than the

STARTING VALUE ENDIN
ENDING G VALUE
 Histogram
 Step8 -Plot the data
 Step9 -Add the title and legend

Critical Defects
20

18
16

14

12
10

6
4

0
0 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 36
PERCENT Defect
The Frequency Distribution
and Histogram

 Frequency Distribution
 Arrangement of data by magnitude
 More compact than a stem-and-leaf
display
 Graphs of observed frequencies are
called histograms.
Pareto Chart

 A Pareto chart is a bar graph. The

lengths of the bars represent frequency
or cost (time or money), and are
arranged with longest bars on the left
and the shortest to the right. In this
way the chart visually depicts which
situations are more significant.
Pareto Chart
 The Pareto chart is a frequency distribution (or
histogram) of attribute data arranged by category.

 Plot the frequency of occurrence of each defect type

against the various defect types.

 Also called: Pareto diagram, Pareto analysis

 Variations: weighted Pareto chart, comparative Pareto

charts
 Pareto

Why use Pareto chart

 Breaks big problem into smaller pieces

 Identifies most significant factors

 Shows where to focus efforts

 Allows better use of limited resources

 Pareto

Example
Individual category
Pareto
Cumulative Cost
45 40 120.00
40
100.00100.00

Cumluative Cost
35 92.23
Cost Amount $$

28
30 80.58 80.00
25 66.02
60.00
20 15
15 38.83 12 40.00
8
10
20.00
5
0 0.00

Others
Delivery
Product

Packages
Documents

Quality

Category of Cost
Example Pareto
 Figure 2 takes the largest category, “documents,” from Figure 1, breaks it down into six categories of document-
related complaints, and shows cumulative values.
 If all complaints cause equal distress to the customer, working on eliminating document-related complaints
would have the most impact, and of those, working on quality certificates should be most fruitful..

Individual cause Pareto

Cum cause

35 32 120.00
30 100.00100.00
90.70
25 21
80.00
Values in cost

Cumu value of
79.07
20

Costs
61.63 15 60.00
15 10
10 37.21 8 40.00
5 20.00
0 0.00
problem

Training
Version
approved
PMP error
OD errors

not

Category of Cause
Cause and Effect Diagram

 A Cause-and-Effect Diagram is a tool that helps

dentify,sort,and display possible causes of a specific problem
or quality characteristic (Viewgraph 1).It graphically illustrates
the relationship between a given outcome and all the factors
that influence the outcome.

 This type of diagram is sometimes called an "Ishikawa

diagram” because it was invented by Kaoru Ishikawa,or a
"fishbone diagram"because of the way it looks.
 Cause and Effect

Cause and Effect Diagram

 Variations: cause enumeration diagram, process

fishbone, time-delay fishbone, CEDAC (cause-and-
effect diagram with the addition of cards), desired-
result fishbone, reverse fishbone diagram

 The fishbone diagram identifies many possible

causes for an effect or problem. It can be used to
structure a brainstorming session. It immediately
sorts ideas into useful categories.
 Cause and Effect
When should a team use a Cause-And-Effect
Diagram?

 Identify the possible root causes ,the basic

reasons,for a specific effect, problem,or condition.

 Sort out and relate some of the interactions among

the factors affecting a particular process or effect.

 Analyze existing problems so that corrective action

can be taken.
Why should we use a Cause-and-Effect Cause and Effect

Diagram?

 Helps determine the root causes of a problem or quality characteristic using a

structured approach.

 Encourages group participation and utilizes group knowledge of the process.

 Uses an orderly,easy-to-read format to diagram cause-and-effect relationships.

 Indicates possible causes of variation in a process.

 Increases knowledge of the process by helping everyone to learn more about

the factors at work and how they relate.

 Identifies areas where data should be collected for further study.

Benefits of Using a Cause-and-Effect Cause and Effect

Diagram

 Helps determine root causes

 Encourages group participation

 Uses an orderly,easy-to-read format

 Indicates possible causes of variation

 Increases process knowledge

 Identifies areas for collecting data

 Cause and Effect

Step 1- Identify and Define the Effect

 Decide on the effect to examine

 Use Operational Definitions

 Phrase effect as

 >positive (an objective)or

 >negative (a problem)
 Cause and Effect

Step 2

1. Brainstorm the major categories of causes of the

problem. If this is difficult use generic headings:

 Methods
 Machines (equipment)
 People (manpower)
 Materials
 Measurement
• Environment
Step 3 Cause and Effect

1. Write the categories of causes as branches from the main

arrow.

CAUSE A CAUSE C

EFFORT

CAUSE B CAUSE D
Computational Hardware I/O and file Library-function
problem problems problems problem

Insufficient disk File does not exist

Divide by zero Standard libraries
space
File permissions not available
Uninitialized incorrect
variable Power outage
Spurious File corrupted Standard libraries
interrupts modified
Square root of a File moved
negative number
Disconnected / Incorrect return code
Invalid
dismounted from external function
Type mismatch filename
Timeout
Output file Incorrect parameters
Insufficient Corrupt memory already exists passed to external
precision function
Crash File locked by
another
Over flow / Transient errors
program
underflow
Exception
Failure
Empty data file Incorrect
Failure to handle command line Illegal access
Incorrect delimiters error return code arguments
Buffer overflow
Non-numeric in
numeric field Erroneous Corrupt memory
Values of arguments response to
Non-ASCII Non- allocated
invalid prompt
memory accessed
Extraneous data
Insufficient memory
Missing data Wrong number of Later response
argument to prompt Memory allocation error
Data values outside
of range Array boundary violation
Wrong type of No response to
Missing end of File arguments prompt
Invalid pointer dereferenced

Data-input Return-value problem External user / Null pointer and

problem function/procedure call client problem memory problems
Scatter Diagram
 The scatter diagram is a plot of two variables that can be used to identify any
potential relationship between the variables

 The shape of the scatter diagram often indicates what type of relationship may exist

 The scatter diagram graphs pairs of numerical data, with one variable on each axis,
to look for a relationship between them. If the variables are correlated, the points
will fall along a line or curve. The better the correlation, the tighter the points will
hug the line.
 Also called: scatter plot, X–Y graph
 Scatter
Scatter plot for relationship between apartment
size and its rent (n=25)

2500
2300
2100
1900
1700
Rent

1500
1300
1100
900
700
500
500 700 900 1100 1300 1500 1700 1900 2100
Size

Scatter plot suggests that there is a positive, linear relationship between Rent and Size
 Scatter

Example
If there are 24 data points.

 To test for a relationship, they calculate:

A = points in upper left + points in lower right = 8 + 9 = 17
B = points in upper right + points in lower left = 4 + 3 = 7
Q = the smaller of A and B = the smaller of 7 and 17 = 7
N = A + B = 7 + 17 = 24

 Then they look up the limit for N on the trend test table. For N = 24, the limit is 6.

 Q is greater than the limit. Therefore, the pattern could have occurred from random
chance, and no relationship is demonstrated.
Control Chart
 The control chart is a graph used to study how a process changes over time. Data
are plotted in time order. A control chart always has a central line for the average,
an upper line for the upper control limit and a lower line for the lower control limit.
These lines are determined from historical data. By comparing current data to these
lines, you can draw conclusions about whether the process variation is consistent (in
control) or is unpredictable (out of control, affected by special causes of variation).

 Control charts for variable data are used in pairs. The top chart monitors the
average, or the centering of the distribution of data from the process. The bottom
chart monitors the range, or the width of the distribution. If your data were shots in
target practice, the average is where the shots are clustering, and the range is how
tightly they are clustered. Control charts for attribute data are used singly.
 Control Chart

What is control chart

A statistical tool used to distinguish
between process variation resulting
from common causes and variation
resulting from special causes.
Analyzing Process Performance

Why Control Charts?

Notice what the control charts do—they seek to identify if

the process is behaving one way or another. This, in
effect, is the same as asking if the process exists as a
well-defined entity, where the past can be used to predict
the future, or if the process is so ill-defined and
unpredictable that the past gives little clue to the future.

Donald J. Wheeler, 1995

 Control Chart

Variations
 Different types of control charts can be used, depending upon the type of data. The
two broadest groupings are for variable data and attribute data.

 Variable data are measured on a continuous scale. For example: time,

weight, distance or temperature can be measured in fractions or decimals.
The possibility of measuring to greater precision defines variable data.

 Attribute data are counted and cannot have fractions or decimals. Attribute
data arise when you are determining only the presence or absence of
something: success or failure, accept or reject, correct or not correct. For
example, a report can have four errors or five errors, but it cannot have four
and a half errors.
Variables charts
Control Chart

 –X and R chart (also called averages and range chart)

 –X and s chart
 chart of individuals (also called X chart, X-R chart, IX-MR chart, Xm
R chart, moving range chart)
 moving average–moving range chart (also called MA–MR chart)
 target charts (also called difference charts, deviation charts and
nominal charts)
 CUSUM (also called cumulative sum chart)
 EWMA (also called exponentially weighted moving average chart)
 multivariate chart (also called Hotelling T2)
Attributes charts
Control Chart

 p chart (also called proportion chart)

 np chart
 c chart (also called count chart)
 u chart
Charts for either kind of data
 short run charts (also called stabilized charts
or Z charts)
 group charts (also called multiple
characteristic charts)
 Control Chart
Why should teams use Control
Charts?
 Monitor process variation over time.
 Differentiate between special cause and common
cause variation.
 Assess the effectiveness of changes to improve a
process.
 Communicate how a process performed during a
specific period.
 Control Chart

Why to use
 Monitor process variation over time

 Differentiate between special cause and common cause variation

 Assess effectiveness of changes

 Communicate process performance

 When controlling ongoing processes by finding and correcting problems as they occur.

 When predicting the expected range of outcomes from a process.

 When determining whether a process is stable (in statistical control).

 When analyzing patterns of process variation from special causes (non-routine events) or common causes (built
into the process).

 When determining whether your quality improvement project should aim to prevent specific problems or to make
fundamental changes to the process
 Control Chart

What are the types of Control Charts?

There are two main categories of Control Charts,those that display

attribute data ,and those that display variables data .

While these two categories encompass a number of different types of Control Charts,
there are three types that will work for the majority of the data analysis cases you will encounter.
In this module,we will study the construction and application in these three types of Control Charts:
X-Bar and R Chart
Individual X and Moving Range Chart for Variables Data
Individual X and Moving Range Chart for Attribute Data
 Control Chart

Chart types studied in this module:

X-Bar and R Chart
Individual X and Moving Range Chart
-For Variables Data
-For Attribute Data

Other Control Chart types:

X-Bar and S Chart u Chart
Median X and R Chart p Chart
c Chart np Chart
Analyzing Process Performance
Analyzing Process Performance
Analyzing Process Performance

Detecting Signals

The simplest rule for detecting a signal (possible assignable

cause): a point outside the 3-sigma control limits.

Many other sets of detection rules proposed.

makes the control chart more sensitive to signals
also leads to more false alarms decision on detection
rules should be based on economic trade-offs
Analyzing Process Performance

Stability Concepts

Stable process = Process In Statistical

Control

= Sources of Variability
Due to Common
Causes only
Analyzing Process Performance

Control Charts

Two broad classes of control charts

variable data, which is continuous
attribute data, which is discrete

Choice of what control chart to use should be based on

knowing the right assumptions!

Use the correct formulas for the kind of control

chart selected!
Analyzing Process Performance

The Distinction Between Variables Data and Attributes Data

Variables data (sometimes called measurement data)

are usually measurements of continuous phenomena.

Examples: measurements of length, weight, height,

volume, voltage, horsepower, torque, efficiency, speed,
and viscosity.

Software examples: elapsed time, effort expended,

years of experience, memory utilization, CPU
utilization, and cost of rework.
Analyzing Process Performance

The Distinction Between Variables Data and Attributes Data

Attributes data occur when information is recorded only

about whether an item conforms or fails to conform to a
specified criterion or set of criteria.
Attributes data almost always originate as counts.

Examples: the number of defects found, the number of

defective items found, the number of source statements of a
given type, the number of lines of comments in a module of n
lines, the number of people with certain skills or experience
on a project or team, and the percent of projects using formal
code inspections.
Analyzing Process Performance

Average - Range Control Charts

Control Limits for Mean:
X  A2 R
where X =
X
number of samples

R =
R
number of samples

Control Limits for Range: D 3 R and D 4 R

 Sample
Size d2 A2 D3 D4
------------------------------------------------------------------
2 1.128 1.880 0 3.267
3 1.693 1.023 0 2.575
4 2.059 0.729 0 2.282
5 2.326 0.577 0 2.116
6 2.534 0.483 0 2.004
10 3.078 0.308 0.233 1.777
15 3.472 0.223 0.348 1.652
20 3.735 0.180 0.414 1.586
25 3.931 0.153 0.459 1.541
 UCL
MEANS

CL

LCL

UCL
RANGES

CL
LCL

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Sample Number
Analyzing Process Performance

Detecting Instabilities and Out-of-

Control Situations

To test for instabilities in processes, we examine

control charts for instances and patterns that signal
nonrandom behavior.

Values falling outside the control limits and unusual

patterns within the running record suggest that
assignable causes exist.
Analyzing Process Performance

Detecting Instabilities and Out-of-

Control Situations
Test 1: A single point falls outside the 3-sigma control
limits.
Test 2: At least two of three successive values fall on the
same side of, and more than two sigma units away from,
the center line.
Test 3: At least four out of five successive values fall on
the same side of, and more than one sigma unit away
from, the center line.
Test 4: At least eight successive values fall on the same
side of the center line.
Useful Control Charts

Most likely to be of value for software processes

u-chart

XmR chart
XmR Chart

When measurements are spaced widely in time or

when each measurement is used by itself to
evaluate or control a process, a time-sequenced
plot of individual values, rather than averages,
may be all that is possible.
 XmR Chart
 Control limits for Individuals Chart:
X-bar  3(MR-bar/d2)

 Upper limit for Moving Range Chart:

D4 MR-bar
 Week 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

First Quarter 19 27 20 16 18 25 22 24 17 25 15 17
Second Quarter 20 22 19 16 22 19 25 22 18 20 16 17

Third quarter 20 15 27 25 17 19 28

Each week, a system test organization reports the

number of critical problems that remain unresolved.
There is concern that week 31 value of 28 is higher than
would have been expected.
A control chart is constructed to investigate this possibility.
Calculation of Rework Effort :

Percentage of rework effort against development effort =

Rework Effort in Person min

________________________

Actual Effort in Person min