Lean Six Sigma

Ahad Ali, Ph.D.

Associate Professor – Full Time Faculty
Director, Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering (BSIE)
Director, Master of Science in Industrial Engineering (MSIE)
Director, Smart Manufacturing and Lean Systems Research Group
aali@ltu.edu, 248-204-2531
Scope of Factory Physics®

Process

Line

System

2
Lean Manufacturing Definition

Lean has been defined in many different ways.

“A systematic approach to identifying and

eliminating waste (non-value-added activities)
through continuous improvement by flowing the
product at the pull of the customer in pursuit of
perfection.”

By The MEP Lean Network

Intro-To-Lean
History Timeline for Lean Manufacturing
Lean manufacturing is a philosophy

In 1990 James Womack, Daniel T. Jones, and

Daniel Roos wrote a book called “The Machine
That Changed the World: The Story of Lean
Production-- Toyota's Secret Weapon in the Global Car
Wars That Is Now Revolutionizing World Industry”

In this book, Womack introduced the Toyota

Production System to American.

What was new was a phrase–

"Lean Manufacturing."
Lean Manufacturing
Cause-and-Effect Diagram

7
SPC
Quality Control
Cp, Cpk
 What is a “standard deviation”?

XX XX
Typical distance from XXX XXX Typical distance from
the center: -1 standard XXXX XXXX the center: +1 standard
deviation XXXX XXXX deviation
XXXXX XXXXX
XXXXX XXXXX
XXXXXX XXXXXX
XXXXXX XXXXXX
XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX

XXXXXXXXXXX
If we measure the DISTANCE from the CENTER of the bell
to each individual measurement that makes up the bell curve,
we can find a TYPICAL DISTANCE.

The most commonly used statistic to estimate this distance is the

Standard Deviation (also called “Sigma”).

Because of the natural shape of the bell curve, the area of +1 to –1 standard
deviations includes about 68% of the curve.
 How much of the curve is included in how many standard deviations?

-6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 +6

From –1 to +1 is about 68% of the bell curve.

From –2 to +2 is about 95%
From –3 to +3 is about 99.73%
From –4 to +4 is about 99.99%

(NOTE: We usually show the bell from –3 to +3 to make it easier to draw, but in concept,
the “tails” of the bell get very thin and go on forever.)
What is Cpk? It is a measure of how well
a process is within a specification.

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

Cpk = A divided by B
A = Distance from process mean to closest spec limit
B = 3 Standard Deviations (also called “3 Sigma”)

A bigger Cpk is better because fewer units will be beyond spec.

(A bigger “A” and a smaller “B” are better.)
“Process Capability” is the ability of a process to
fit its output within the tolerances.

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

…a LARGER “A”
…and a SMALLER “B”
…means BETTER “Process Capability”
 An Analogy

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

Analogy:
The bell curve is your automobile.
The spec limits are the edges of your garage door.
If A = B, you are hitting the frame of your garage door with your car.
 How can we make Cpk (A divided by B) better?

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

1. Design the product so a wider tolerance is functional (“robust design”)

2. Choose equipment and methods for a good safety margin (“process capability”)
3. Correctly adjust, but only when needed (“control”)
4. Discover ways to narrow the natural variation (“improvement”)
 What does a very good Cpk do for us?

A
This Cpk is
B about 2.
Very good!

Specification Specification
Limit Mean Limit

This process is producing good units with a good safety margin.

Note that when Cpk = 2, our process mean is 6 standard deviations from the
nearest spec, so we say it has “6 Sigma Capability.”
 What does a problem Cpk look like?

A
This Cpk is just
B slightly greater than
1. Not good!

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

This process is in danger of producing some defects.

It is too close to the specification limits.

(Remember: the bell curve tail goes further than B…

…we only show the bell to 3-sigma to make it easier to draw.)
 What does a very bad Cpk look like?

A
This Cpk is less than
B 1. We desire a
minimum of 1.33
and ultimately we
want 2 or more.

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

A significant part of the “tail” is hanging out beyond the spec limits.
This process is producing scrap, rework, and customer rejects.
Notice that if distance “A” approaches zero…
…the Cpk would approach zero, and…
…the process would become 50% defective!
 What is a “standard deviation”?

XX XX
Typical distance from XXX XXX Typical distance from
the center: -1 standard XXXX XXXX the center: +1 standard
deviation XXXX XXXX deviation
XXXXX XXXXX
XXXXX XXXXX
XXXXXX XXXXXX
XXXXXX XXXXXX
XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX

XXXXXXXXXXX
If we measure the DISTANCE from the CENTER of the bell
to each individual measurement that makes up the bell curve,
we can find a TYPICAL DISTANCE.

The most commonly used statistic to estimate this distance is the

Standard Deviation (also called “Sigma”).

Because of the natural shape of the bell curve, the area of +1 to –1 standard
deviations includes about 68% of the curve.
 How much of the curve is included in how many standard deviations?

-6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 +6

From –1 to +1 is about 68% of the bell curve.

From –2 to +2 is about 95%
From –3 to +3 is about 99.73%
From –4 to +4 is about 99.99%

(NOTE: We usually show the bell from –3 to +3 to make it easier to draw, but in concept,
the “tails” of the bell get very thin and go on forever.)
 What is Cpk? It is a measure of how well
a process is within a specification.

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

Cpk = A divided by B
A = Distance from process mean to closest spec limit
B = 3 Standard Deviations (also called “3 Sigma”)

A bigger Cpk is better because fewer units will be beyond spec.

(A bigger “A” and a smaller “B” are better.)
 “Process Capability” is the ability of a process to
fit its output within the tolerances.

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

…a LARGER “A”
…and a SMALLER “B”
…means BETTER “Process Capability”
 An Analogy

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

Analogy:
The bell curve is your automobile.
The spec limits are the edges of your garage door.
If A = B, you are hitting the frame of your garage door with your car.
 How can we make Cpk (A divided by B) better?

A
Cpk =
A divided by
B B

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

1. Design the product so a wider tolerance is functional (“robust design”)

2. Choose equipment and methods for a good safety margin (“process capability”)
3. Correctly adjust, but only when needed (“control”)
4. Discover ways to narrow the natural variation (“improvement”)
 What does a very good Cpk do for us?

A
This Cpk is
B about 2.
Very good!

Specification Specification
Limit Mean Limit

This process is producing good units with a good safety margin.

Note that when Cpk = 2, our process mean is 6 standard deviations from the
nearest spec, so we say it has “6 Sigma Capability.”
 What does a problem Cpk look like?

A
This Cpk is just
B slightly greater than
1. Not good!

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

This process is in danger of producing some defects.

It is too close to the specification limits.

(Remember: the bell curve tail goes further than B…

…we only show the bell to 3-sigma to make it easier to draw.)
 What does a very bad Cpk look like?

A
This Cpk is less than
B 1. We desire a
minimum of 1.33
and ultimately we
want 2 or more.

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

A significant part of the “tail” is hanging out beyond the spec limits.
This process is producing scrap, rework, and customer rejects.
Notice that if distance “A” approaches zero…
…the Cpk would approach zero, and…
…the process would become 50% defective!
 Robust Processes – part of the original Six Sigma

New Process
choice “X”

New Product New Product

Specification Specification
Limit Limit

The process above varies so much that it “fills” the design tolerance. The different process
below has good repeatability for “six sigma capability”.

It’s a false-economy to choose an allegedly lower-cost process that “uses up” all tolerance.
The resulting scrap, rework, rejections, recalls, damage to reputation, crisis communications,
and fire-fighting cancel out the alleged economy. “Robust Process” requires skillful insight
to choose ways to make defect-free product at the lowest real cost.

New Process
choice “Y”

New Product New Product

Specification Specification
Limit Limit
6 Sigma Philosophy – Not Just The Shop Floor
Getting every person “capable” and in “self control”

Achieving delivery and project deadlines

Meeting budgets & financial goals
Administrative tasks
Design work
Purchasing/sourcing
Special projects
Security and Safety
Health and Environmental
Legal compliance
Anything that can be
defined and measured
Getting every person “capable” and in “self control”

Defined & Understood

Requirements

The 3
Requisites
Of Self-Control

Ability to Process
Measure Results Capability and
Ability to Control
 Summary:
• To call a process “capable” typically requires at least a Cpk
of 1.33 (+ and - 4 standard deviations within tolerance)
• Many customers desire a Cpk of 2.0 (+ and - 6 standard
deviations within tolerance)
• Organizations need:
1. Feasible designs
2. Capable processes
3. Process self-control
 Conclusion:
Process Capability:

Yes: No:

too wide

Yes: No:
potentially capable
if re-centered

Yes: No:
potentially capable
if re-centered
Six Sigma
Six Sigma Tools
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