Running Head: Case Study 1

Statistical Quality Control

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Statistical Quality Control: Case Study

Introduction

The growing global economy has caused a dramatic shift towards Quality control and

management in recent years. Efficient and effective management of quality control will have a

beneficial impact on a company's ability in serving its customers properly and to keep direct and

indirect costs low. Effective management of quality at each stage offers a great perspective for

increasing system efficiency, customer service level and minimization of total system costs. This

paper discusses analyzing and application SPC techniques of quality concept to achieve customer

delighters.

Importance of Statistical Quality Control

Statistical Quality Control (SQC) is the term used to describe the set of statistical tools used by

quality professionals. Statistical quality control also refers to the use of statistical methods in the

monitoring and maintaining of the quality of products and services. SQC is used to analyze the

quality problems and provide the solution.

SQC provides a means of detecting an error at inspection thus reducing the inspection costs. It

also provides a means of determining the capability of the manufacturing process. On the other

hand, it promotes the understanding and appreciation of quality control. Additionally, SQC

provides a basis for attainable specifications. One of the components of a quality management

system is statistical quality control; the companies could and should benefit from the fervent and

proper use of SQC and other statistical methods.

The Need for Statistical Process Control Tools (SPC)

Quality Control is very paramount for every company. Quality control includes service quality

given to a customer, company management leadership, the commitment of management,

continuous improvement, and fast response, actions based on facts, employee participation and a

quality is driven culture. The main objectives of the quality control module are to control of

material reception, internal rejections, clients, claims, providers and evaluations of the same

corrective actions are related to their follow-up. These systems and methods guide all quality

activities. The development and use of performance indicators are linked, directly or indirectly,

to customer requirements and satisfaction, and to management (Dixon et al., 1957).

The Role of the Control Charts

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.

Types of Control Charts

The most basic type of control chart, the individuals chart, is often used for all types of data. Yet

often more specialized types of control charts can provide more valuable information about

process performance, data variation, and process changes. Learn the different types and when to

use them

P-charts and np-charts

For discrete attribute data, p-charts and np-charts are ideal. Attribute data is for measures that

categorize or bucket items, so that a proportion of items in a certain category can be calculated.

Thus a p-chart is used when a control chart of these proportions is desired.

An np-chart is appropriate when the number of items used to calculate each proportion is the

same

C & u charts

Discrete count data differs from attribute data in that the occurrence of a characteristic or event

can be counted, but a non-occurrence cannot be counted. Thus the data plotted for a c-chart or u-

chart is always the count of occurrences. The c-chart is used when the opportunity for

occurrences is equal for each data point and the u-chart is required when the opportunities differ.

The u-chart looks different from the individual's chart in that the limits actually vary from point

to point (Aitchison, 1986)

Problem or Service Introduction

At this point, the company is designated to identify and solve a problem. The specific company

is concerned about analyzing the past experiences and device new methods or rather strategies
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and tools that have emerged in the quality area. For instance, the total quality management

(TQM) has appeared to be immensely adopted.

Aims and Objectives

In most case, purpose and aim of a research are to find a solution to a problem. In this case, SPC

will enable the company to find a lasting solution for a certain problem in a product. For

instance, a manufacturing company manufacturing cable decides to establish a project designed

to increase mean average electrical resistance in cables in a benefit to either safe cost or safe a

different product as a raw material.

Roles and Tasks Description

Quality control is the set of operations (programming, coordinating, carrying out) intended to

maintain or to improve quality and to set the production at the most economical level which for

customer satisfaction. This requires, setting up standards of performance, comparing the actual

observations against the standards and Taking corrective action whenever necessary.

Data Collection and Analysis

The objective of SPC is to obtain a reliable and unbiased picture of how the process is

performing to get the required quality of products. The success of the objective naturally based

on reliable and unbiased data collected. Hence prior to SPC study, careful plan for data

collection, effectiveness of operational personnel and well maintained, calibrated measuring

equipment are necessary.

Application of Control Charts

Process Parameters Estimation

The parameters are selected measurably. They include weight, height, width and length

depending on what is to be analyzed. The out of control points are stabilized by eliminating the

causes of the variation.

Process Capability Analysis

For the capability analysis to be performed, the process needs to be under statistical control. The

specification limits can be upper specification limit and lower specification limit and eventually

a target value is arrived. These control or specification limits are often provided from outside

factors including production requirements and market requirements. The process is said to be

capable when it is under statistical control, it has low variance and the process distribution is

centering (Leavenworth et al., 2000).

Estimating Study Cost

The cost of the study will be determined by the cost of data collection and acquisition of the

relevant materials for the study. If the data is diverse and it needs to be gathered, it will be costly.

The means and ways of collecting and analyzing the same data may require advanced materials,

hence may be costly in terms of time and money.

Difficulties and challenges

The time interval between each of the subgroup of data should be as equal as possible.

Furthermore, the data should begin ordered by date, for instance, oldest first. Secondly, prior

collecting the data, the stratification should be done or rather considered. This will enable one to

subdivide the overall population into subgroups based on the factors that may affect the data.
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And the third mistake majorly done and it affects the application of charts is random selection of

samples from a population. The sample should be random and represents the population well.

Conclusions and recommendations

In order to arrive at accurate results of the output, the variation as per the upper and lower

control limit should be minimized as much as possible. The actual result should not have a

greater variance from the presumed or collected data. This is done by addressing the reason

behind the variation. It is also good to note that, during manufacturing process of the product, the

sampling result might be between the control range but as it is just a sample among other

probable ones that could have been taken, the probability rules indicates that do not look at the

process with one hundred percent confidence intervals as a stable process.

References

Aitchison, J. (1986). The statistical analysis of compositional data.

Dixon, W. J., & Massey Jr, F. J. (1957). Introduction to statistical analysis.

Leavenworth, R. S., & Grant, E. L. (2000). Statistical quality control. Tata McGraw-Hill

Education.