Quality Improvement Tools & Techniques (Hardcover)

by Peter Mears (Author) "Have you heard the following sayings?..." (more)
Key Phrases: single case boring, claim payment delays, paperwork categories, Friendly Texan Insurance, Total Quality Person, Seldom Sometimes Always (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Over 50 core quality tools and techniques-de-mystified! Now you can master all the core quality methods and statistical procedures-even if you only know high-school math! From poke-yoke to force field analysis, Quality Improvement Tools and Techniques by Peter Mears, lets you exploit the same quality processes the industrial giants do-and achieve the same quality profits. Packed with the seminal thinking of Deming, Crosby, and Juran, it delivers page after page of easy-to-understand: quality tools: pareto, fishbone, scatter and histogram diagrams; pie, control, bar, frequency and radar chars; and the likert scale; quality techniques: plan-do-check-act, kaizen, kanban, SMED, nominal grouping, brainstorming, multi-voting; advanced methods: benchmarking, process ownership, hoshing planning, gap analysis taguchi techniques, customer needs mapping; improvement systems: just-in-time, quality teams, quality councils, Baldrige criteria, learning organization methods, shojinka; plus much more.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 326 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Trade (October 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0070412197
• ISBN-13: 978-0070412194
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #795,428 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Encyclopedia + cookbook, June 30, 2004

By	Mike Tarrani "www.tarrani.com" (Deltona, FL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

I keep this book nearby because it serves as an encyclopedia of quality techniques that span the full spectrum, as well as a step-by-step guide to using each of the tools listed.

The entire collection of tools contained and described within are put into context in the first chapter that covers the continuous quality improvement story and its five steps - reason, current situation, analysis, action plan and results. Subsequent chapters are devoted to classes of tools: the basics (flow charts, check sheets, facts vs. inference, and how to construct tools such as Pareto diagrams, histograms, and control charts). Supporting tools, covered in the next chapter, include pie and bar charts, frequency charts, Likert scales and related diagrams.

Basic quality improvement techniques given in the next section go beyond just tools, and include vision and mission statements, group interaction techniques, problem classification and concepts. Among the tools are development charts, force-field analysis, checklists.

Advanced techniques, covered in the next chapter address process ownership, and some fairly substantial tools such as quality function deployment and Taguchi techniques, both of which are explained well in a surprising few pages.

The remainder of the book discusses quality improvement systems, such as JIT, ISO standards; and brief bios of Deming, Crosby and Juran and their approaches. Selected readings on various quality standards round out this book's treatment of the subject.

What I like about this book is the way a large number of topics and associated tools are thoroughly covered in a relatively short book. I also like the way you are clearly led through the construction and use of various charts, and how to effectively use tools in a step-by-step manner. This is clearly a useful introduction to quality tools and techniques, as well as a desk reference.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to use...full of good tools, February 21, 2002

By	D. Luria (Charlottesville, VA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am just learning about Continuous Improvement and the tools that are available to make that happen in the workplace. Our company is considering implementing a Six Sigma program and this book provides me with a related and large tool set to add to my tool belt.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, Great Price, January 6, 2006

By	Dirk J. Willard (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is an excellent, if not comprehensive book for everything from TQM to Six-Sigma. I give it four stars for value and five for price. All in all, an excellent overview.

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