Rapidly Establishing Statistical Process Control (SPC)

After many years of statistical process control (SPC) training with very disappointing results on the shop floor, a shift was made to a "use it or lose it" philosophy, called the 4Rs (right time, right amount, right way, right support). Within eight months, operations were plotting and interpreting SPC chart data for over 80% of "non-tester" data points across the subject division. During this period, SPC plans were created, operators and engineering teams were trained, and SPC charts, complete with control limits, were established. Today, operators are improving processes and eliminating both special and common causes of variation.