Data Collection

Operational Definitions Make Data Collection More Consistent

Operational definitions are defined as a clear description of what is to be observed and measured, such that different people taking or interpreting the data will do so consistently.  It answers the question: “What do we mean by a defect?”  “A service?” “How do we measure a characteristic?” Here are a few examples that occurred because there wasn’t an operational...

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Problem Solving Is All About Turning Data Into Useful Information

To solve problems, collecting the right data is important, and being able to turn that data into useful information is paramount in determining the right countermeasure to solve a problem.  The place to accurately capture the true state of the workplace is the workplace itself.  If we can catch defects on the spot, we can find the true cause and immediately take countermeasures. Problem-solving...

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The DMAIC Measure Phase Requires Diligence and Patience

The measure phase is important for a number of reasons.  It is in this phase that the team gets into the nitty-gritty of the project.  Because of this there are a number of things that can go wrong for an inexperienced team.  Here are some of the more common pitfalls that can occur: Failure to go to gemba.  I’ve never seen a problem or issue that’s been resolved in a conference...

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Measurement Accuracy & Precision Determines The Quality of Our Data

All measurements are wrong!  Your weight shown on a bathroom scale, your blood pressure taken at the doctor’s office, the diameter of a shaft we measure at work are all wrong.  Your true weight may be 151.6325… pounds, but your bathroom scale shows you weigh  151.6 pounds.  Your true blood pressure may be 137.433… over 72.185…, but the nurse gets a reading of 135 over...

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Importance of Monitoring Processes and Having Good Data

We’ve all been taught that without data our understanding of problems is just an opinion and in order to understand a problem or make a decision we must have good data.  During our training in continuous improvement and Lean Six Sigma we are taught the importance of a good data collection plan, having an accurate measurement system and the need to establish operational definitions if...

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Make Sense of The Improvement Data You Collect

Most organizations can honestly say they have an abundance of data, but many flounder when it comes to having the right information to lead their companies to improvement.  We collect data on all kinds of things but we rarely take the time to analyze it properly to learn what it tells us. Some Basics Regarding Data First of all, data is all around us!  Everything we do produces data, every...

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