Quality articles from December 2005

Quality archives from December 2005

Crossing the goal line.(FROM THE PUBLISHER)(Quality Magazine )(Editorial)
December 1, 2005... I have been a lifelong Chicago Bears fan. Whether it was Dick Jauron, Mike Ditka or "Papa Bear" George Halas coaching, the team always stuck to the basics. The game plan was always conservative--run the ball for three downs and then punt if...

Coming events.(for quality control)(Calendar)
December 1, 2005... JANUARY 18 TRACEABILITY AND RFID CHINA CONFERENCE AND EXPO. Shanghai, China. China Supply Chain Council, +86 21 51021617. www.supplychain.cn 23-25 ...

QVI announces two acquisitions.(INDUSTRY NEWS)
December 1, 2005... ROCHESTER, NY -- Quality Vision International Inc. (QVI) announces that its subsidiary company, View Engineering (Simi Valley, CA) acquires the assets of Micro-Metric Inc. (San lose, CA), a manufacturer of high-accuracy, noncontact measuring...

Machine tool consumption up 26% in August.(INDUSTRY NEWS)
December 1, 2005... MCLEAN, VA -- August U.S. machine tool consumption totaled $286.86 million, according to The Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT) and the American Machine Tool Distributors' Association (AMTDA). This total, as reported by companies...

Metalforming companies anticipate downturn.(Precision Metalforming Association )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... CLEVELAND -- Metalforming companies are anticipating a downturn in near-term business conditions, according to the September 2005 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report. Conducted monthly, the report is an economic...

The Society of Manufacturing Engineers.(elects)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... * The Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME, Dearborn, MI) has elected eight manufacturing industry leaders to the Society's College of Fellows for 2005. These recipients are recognized by SME, their peers and the manufacturing community as...

Precision Metalforming Association Educational Program.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Precision Matalforming Association Educational Program (PMAEF, Cleveland, OH) announces a $170,000 grant for the 2006 school year. PMAEF accepts requests for funding from organizations and initiatives whose programs and services promote,...

QMI.(Harold Hodder appointed)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... * QMI (Toronto, Canada) names Harold Hodder as U.S. sales manager. For more than 20 years, Hodder has worked in a wide variety of manufacturing sectors, including the automotive, aerospace and chemical industries. With that experience, he...

Dynatech Technology.(Joseph Cumbey appointed)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... * Joseph Cumbey joins Dynatech Technology (Horsham, PA) as central region sales manager. He will be based in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area and responsible for representatives and customers in the Midwest and eastern Mexico.

CeTaQ Americas.(James Mairs joined)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... CeTaQ Americas (Hudson, NH) announces that James Mairs has joined the company as technical solutions manager, responsible for conducting machine capability analysis testing and measuring in the field and expanding CeTaQ's customer service...

Geotest-Marvin Test Systems Inc.(Bob Szpila, Michael Dewey appointed)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Geotest-Marvin Test Systems Inc. (Irvine, CA) announces Bob Szpila as western regional sales manager. Szpila, who has more than 25 years of experience in the systems and ATE industry, will manage Geotest's sales force in the western and Rocky...

Methods Machine Tools opens tech center.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... WIXOM, MI -- Methods Machine Tools hosted a grand opening at its Michigan Tech Center in Wixom. Customers observed demonstrations of machine tools, including machining centers, turning centers, electrical discharge machining (EDM) equipment and...

Beckhoff Automation.(David Zimbrich, David Fischhaber and Andy Burleigh appointed)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... * Beckhoff Automation (Minneapolis, MN) announces the hiring of three new application engineers/specialists for on-site customer support. David Zimbrich will handle application support in Beckhoff's north sales region and will be based in the...

Derek J. Tromblett is promoted to NAFTA region business development director at TUV America (Danvers, MA).(North American Free Trade Agreement)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Derek J. Tromblott is promoted to NAFTA region business development director at TUV America (Danvers, MA). Tremblett will handle business development for TUV America's United States, Mexico and Canadian offices.

Gleason Corp.(John J. Perrotti)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... * Gleason Corp. (Rochester, NY) promotes John J. Perrotti to president and chief executive officer. Perrotti succeeds John W. Guffey, who remains with the company as vice chairman. During Perrotti's career at Gleason, he has served as executive...

YESTech.(Joshua Potras appointed)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... YESTech (San Clemente, CA) announces Joshua Potras as international sales manager for the company. He will be responsible for day-to-day operations of YESTech's overseas service representatives, including sales and customer care. Petras has...

ATEK Companies.(Chris Oleksy appointed)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... * The ATEK Companies (Minneapolis, MN) announces Chris Oleksy as executive vice president and general manager of the organization. He will implement the company's new strategic plans and aggressive growth objectives and oversee all sales and...

Sensors Unlimited merges with Goodrich.(INDUSTRY NEWS)
December 1, 2005... PRINCETON, NJ -- Sensors Unlimited Inc. accepts the $60 million cash offer to merge with Goodrich Corp. This agreement has been approved by the Board of Directors of Sensors Unlimited Inc. and Goodrich Corp. and is expected to close in the...

Manufacturing CEOs make higher risk decisions.(chief executive officers)
December 1, 2005... CHICAGO -- Weighing strategic actions with appropriate risk, increasing investment in technology, restructuring pricing and making domestic acquisitions are higher-risk choices chief executive officers (CEOs) of manufacturing companies are...

USACH Technologies.(changes location)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... USACH Technologies (Elgin, IL) announces their move into a 34,000-squarefoot facility to meet their needs for more space as their business increases. The new address is 1524 Davis Rd., Elgin, IL. The company moved because of Usach's growth...

Pilgrim Software Inc.(becomes Microsoft Independent Software Vendor)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Pilgrim Software Inc. (Tampa, FL) expands its Microsoft partnership to Microsoft Independent Software Vendor (ISV). As one of only 12 strategic Microsoft ISVs for manufacturing, Pilgrim will continue to market and deliver SmartSolve solutions...

Leica Geosystems.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Metrology Division of Leica Geosystems (Norcross, GA) announces the expansion of its existing line-up of service contracts with the introduction of the five-year warranty program. This new program only applies to new Leica Laser Tracker...

Prime Technologies Inc.(IProCAIV5 line)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Prime Technologies Inc. (West Chester, PA) establishes a user group for customers of its IProCAIV5 line of calibration software. The user group will be served through a variety of vehicles for the purpose of information exchange and shared...

Comau Pico (Southfield, MI) purchases 20 of ISRA Vision Systems' (Lansing, MI) MONO3D machine vision systems to automate body shop operations at two North American automotive manufacturing locations.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Comau Pico (Southfield, MI) purchases 20 of ISRA Vision Systems' (Lansing, MI) MONO3D machine vision systems to automate body shop operations at two North American automotive manufacturing locations. Each system includes cameras, cabling, LED...

Laboratory Testing Inc.(Performance Review Institute/Nadcap's certification)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Laboratory Testing Inc. (LTI, Hatfield, PA) has been reapproved by the Performance Review Institute/Nadcap in Materials Testing and ISO/IEC 17025. The new certificates are valid through Oct. 31, 2006. LTI also has been PRI/Nadcap accredited in...

Metris (Rochester Hills, MI) has appointed Quality Measurement Technology as a Metris service center.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Metris (Rochester Hills, MI) has appointed Quality Measurement Technology as a Metris service center. QMT Inc. (Seattle, WA) has further extended its current dimensional measuring service activities with the Metris LC15 and LC50 noncontact...

FKI Logistex.(gets certified from International Organization for Standardization)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... FKI Logistex (Frederick, MD) announces that its Frederick, MD, manufacturing plant has gained ISO 9001:2000 certification. The Frederick certification implementation team, led by Amelia McCelvey, quality assurance manager for FKI Logistex North...

Westmed Inc.(selects Pilgrim Software's SmartDoc solution)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Westmed Inc. (Tampa, FL) has selected Pilgrim Software's SmartDoc solution as its new electronic document management system. SmartDoc, a completely automated document management system, will manage the nearly 3,000 anesthesia circuit documents...

General Inspection LLC.(introduces inspection and sorting system)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... General Inspection LLC (Davisburg, MI) released the GI-360-EV inspection and sorting system. The GI-360-EV model inspects for dimensions and flaws all around the part with lasers. It uses eddy current for heat treat, seams, cracks, and plating...

Avnet achieves ISO medical certification.(INDUSTRY NEWS)
December 1, 2005... TEMPE, AZ -- Avnet Technology Solutions, a division of Avnet Inc., announces it has earned ISO 13485: 2003 Certification for Medical Devices. ISO 13485 is the internationally recognized standard to ensure quality procedures are followed in the...

NFDA relocates headquarters.(National Fastener Distributors Association )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... CHICAGO -- The National Fastener Distributors Association (NFDA) is moving its headquarters to 401 North Michigan Ave., Chicago, home of SmithBucklin Corp. The NFDA Board of Directors decided to explore options for managing the association...

Everyone has worth.(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2005... Dear Editor, Your latest article is awesome ("China's Workers are Critical," Quality Magazine, October 2005, p. 6). Thank you so much for acknowledging our Creator. I totally agree that everyone has worth and that we should not treat...

Against a steamroller.(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2005... Dear Editor, You are quite correct about what should be done with China ("China's Workers are Critical," Quality Magazine, October 2005, p. 6). But, given that profit-first short-term thinking dominates most businesses, we are up against a...

Ford's great contribution.(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2005... Dear Editor, Regarding the great quote you started your editorial with ("China's Workers are Critical," Quality Magazine, October 2005, p. 6), I couldn't agree with it more than you did. We frequently overlook the fact that Henry Ford's...

Six Sigma story rings true.(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2005... Dear Editor, The article from Dr. Ward in your October 2005 issue ("Six Sigma: Maximize the Benefits;' Quality Magazine, October 2005, p. 44) was excellent. The story is the same as it was in the TQM days; without top management's direct...

Owning Six Sigma.(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2005... Dear Editor, Thank you for the article on Six Sigma in your October issue ("Six Sigma: Maximize the Benefits," Quality Magazine, October 2005, p. 44). Its clear and concise insight could help our management help our belts and belt...

Document what you (are going to) do: taking the approach of designing ideal processes instead of just documenting what you are doing can yield many valuable benefits.(PROBING THE LIMITS)(quality systems)(Column)
December 1, 2005... Last week, I started a unique project that has given me insight into why quality systems are so important. I recently started a new, small manufacturing business and I am documenting how I want the manufacturing systems to run--before the...

And the other answer is ...: more common metrology myths are debunked.(calibrate gages and measuring instruments)(Column)
December 1, 2005... In a recent column I gave answers to some of the more frequently asked questions received by folks who make and calibrate gages and measuring instruments. Some readers may have thought I was being negative since every answer in that column was...

An introduction to gage R&R: gage R&R studies can help operators from making costly measurement errors.(repeatability and reproducibility)
December 1, 2005... It is a fact of nature that all data contain random variation. Part of this variation is due to individual differences, but another part of this variation is due to uncertainty in the measurements caused by variability in the measurement...

Perfectly smooth.(Wilma manufactures gel capsules)(brain teasers)
December 1, 2005... Anyone who has faced a production problem with a need to solve it by using production data can relate to the notion of a brain teaser. The brain teasers presented here are based on real-world situations encountered by workers in manufacturing...

CMM measures: microsystem components: the F25 is capable of performing dimension, form and position measurements on microparts.(coordinate measuring machine)
December 1, 2005... Micromotors, microswitches and precision components usage is growing. Their exact size and surface qualities must guarantee problem-free functionality. Their reliability depends on their quality, which is defined by measuring. With its...

Multisensor metrology: boosts lean manufacturing: by doing more on a single machine, potential bottlenecks are eliminated.
December 1, 2005... Much is being written about lean manufacturing and its benefits. A lean manufacturing process is one where everything flows smoothly; no processes are idle nor are any overwhelmed--there is little or no inventory; machines are not overloaded...

Eddy current inspection reinvents itself: a reliable, proven technology just got better.(QUALITY TEST & INSPECTION)
December 1, 2005... Eddy current inspection has been available for many years to detect cracks, inspect for porosity, inspect for thread presence and condition, find seams in welded tubing, inspect for hardness and chemistry changes, measure distance, measure...

Six rules for enterprise metrology: these simple rules guide manufacturers looking to implement enterprise metrology solutions.(QUALITY SOFTWARE & ANALYSIS)
December 1, 2005... Dimensional measurement and the analysis of the data from it has always been the foundation of the quality assurance function. This is true for manufacturing operations of all sizes. People are measuring parts throughout the manufacturing...

At the center of quality: spotlighting the ideas, solutions, products and companies that impact our industry.(GE Inspection Technologies )
December 1, 2005... ideas At GE Inspection Technologies, we're constantly pushing for technical innovations that respond to the changing needs of the user. Before we bring an idea to life, we consider the demands you face and how our technologies can respond...

$4.4 billion and growing: spending for quality equipment, software and services is projected to surpass pre-9/11 numbers in 2006.(QUALITY MANAGEMENT)
December 1, 2005... As America's economy rebounds from its slump in the early part of this decade, investments in quality continue to boom. This fact can be witnessed in Quality Magazine's Sixth Annual Capital Spending Survey as it examines trends in manufacturing...

Color measurement improves With new technology.(CASE STUDIES)
December 1, 2005... For Magna Donnelly (Troy, MI), production downtime is an unacceptable option to meet customer deadlines for finished product. With more than 25,000 mirrors produced daily, or one every second, just minutes of downtime due to inaccurate color...

Parallel ID system: improves quality control.(CASE STUDIES)
December 1, 2005... The Briggs and Stratton small engine facility (Poplar Bluff, MO) builds 14,000 units per day of the Quantum 4-cycle engine. Billy DePew, manufacturing engineering technician, had a goal to improve traceability of completed engines coming off...

Humidity transmitter.
December 1, 2005... The humidity and temperature transmitter Series HMT 330 was developed for industrial applications where stable measurement and wide customization possibilities are important. The series has a large numerical and graphical display with a...

Power supply unit.
December 1, 2005... The UV 106 power supply is used with its iTNC 530 contouring control. The unit is an interface to the MC Units and provides 20 amps for the 5-volt power supply. Standard iTNC components are directly connectable including BF 150, 15-inch flat...

Air compressor.
December 1, 2005... This packaged compressed air system comes complete with a rotary screw compressor, refrigerated air dryer and optional filter mounted on a horizontal receiver tank. Connecting the power and air line, results in a fully operational compressed...

Hardness tester.
December 1, 2005... Designed for both micro and macro load range hardness testing, the Tukon 2100B tests a broad range of specimens. With test forces as low as 10 gram-force and as high as 50 kilogram-force, the system is able to perform tests for a variety of...

Simulation software.
December 1, 2005... Crystal Ball 7.1 software incorporates PSI Technology, a Microsoft Excel-compatible recalculation engine from Frontline Systems that evaluates spreadsheet models at high performance speeds. PSI Technology speeds up optimization in its Premium...

Shop floor control software.
December 1, 2005... SPC Premium software allows for real-time intelligence gathering to improve quality while raising productivity and reliability of quality systems. The software enables operators to automate, control and analyze all manufacturing processes. It...

Tool and shaft measurement.
December 1, 2005... The ScopeCheck V features production-integrated tool or shaft measurement using the precision of the company's multi-sensor coordinate measuring machines. This series of machines provides rapid measurement of diameter dimensions using optical...

Metal impregnator.
December 1, 2005... The Rocklinizer Models 500 and 600 deposit and impregnate wear-resistant electrode materials to drills, taps, milling cutters, end mills, punch and die sets, carbide inserts, dies, and metal surfaces for wear prevention and maintenance. With an...

Grounding resistors.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The neutral grounding resistors provide protection from damaging fault currents and resulting expensive downtime and repairs. The key feature of the grounding resistors is the compact design and small footprints of the units. The units are...

Grooving/parting inserts.
December 1, 2005... The inserts are offered with two separate chip breaker geometries and in four grades. They are all one-edge designs, available with a variety of cutting widths, cutting direction (right, left or neutral), lead angle and seat size. The new...

Decoding software.
December 1, 2005... Designed to decipher ECC200 data matrix codes in practical situations, PIATI_SWO works even when companies are unable to mark their codes in accordance with the established standards; when codes are imaged using poor lighting or low contrast;...

Power supplies.
December 1, 2005... In case of a power outage, products in the 1609 line can power control panels and programmable controllers. UPS units in the Allen-Bradley 1609 family are small and weigh about 26 pounds. The units can deliver 500 volt-amperes for up to nine...

Digital panel meters.
December 1, 2005... The digital panel meters display measurements of current, voltage, power and frequency. They connect to virtually any system to provide control functions with a wide selection of relay and analog output options. The digital panel meters allow...

Pneumatic tensile grip.
December 1, 2005... This pneumatic tensile grip secures film and paper in package seal strength testing, elongation testing and other tensile testing requirements. The fully enclosed grip contains serrated interlocking jaws that grip samples for up to 100 pounds...

Vibration workstation.
December 1, 2005... The 8002 Series active electronic vibration workstation is ideal for check-weighing, atomic force microscopes, micro-hardness testers, profilomaters, and other sensitive equipment requiring high isolation efficiency. The table dynamically...

Portable meter.
December 1, 2005... Spectrum 4 process multimeter was developed for paper, plastics, metal and textile web processing, including webs as narrow as a single strand. A storage capacity of 100 data points for downloading to a PC generally accommodates many in-process...

Equipment tracking software.
December 1, 2005... TracEquipment helps organizations manage and track all their equipment, including equipment that has been temporarily assigned to customers or worksites. With the software, organizations can identify all the equipment at a specific location-and...

How do you gauge success?(Sony Manufacturing Corp. introduces gages)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Measuring Systems division of Sony Manufacturing Systems America, Inc. is a global provider of high precision measurement devices for a variety of end-user and OEM applications. This ISO 9001:9002 certified divisions' products consistently...

Data-driven decision making: software tools for six sigma and manufacturing intelligence.(StatSoft Inc.)
December 1, 2005... Turning data into actionable information is crucial for mission-critical manufacturing environments. More than 600,000 users benefit from STATISTICA's comprehensive array of data analysis, data management, data visualization, and data mining...

Optical Gaging Products, Inc.(quality control equipments)
December 1, 2005... Optical Gaging Products, Inc. (OGP[R]) is a global technology leader that designs and produces precision multisensor metrology systems that use video, laser, touch probe, and micro-probes to automatically measure critical dimensions of...

Kodak Industrex: products for Non-destructive testing.(Eastman Kodak Co.)
December 1, 2005... ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF INNOVATION--AND COUNTING. The technology behind Kodak's line of non-destructive testing (NDT) products draws on more than 100 years of imaging experience--including 50 years in NDT. Kodak research and development teams work...

Identifying bad cavities in real-time with QC-CALC from Prolink, Inc.(Prolink Software Inc.)
December 1, 2005... THE PROBLEM Manufacturing parts using molds and cavities is a fast and efficient method for production. Applying data collection and analysis (SPC) to each cavity of a mold can be data-entry and calculation intensive. In addition,...

Nikon Instruments Inc.(measuring systems)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Nikon introduces several new optical inspection system solutions. These industrial strength tools are ideally suited for non-contact inspection and measuring applications for increased productivity through greater automation and the elimination...

STATGRAPHICS Centurion XV: statistical software for serious Six Sigma projects.
December 1, 2005... When improving the quality of goods and services, almost any statistics software will capture the "low-hanging fruit". Attaining continuous improvement is more difficult. It is then that software designed for textbook problems needs to be...

Marposs--defining "global partnerships" one application at a time.(gaging solutions)
December 1, 2005... The need to measure, control and manage the dimensional, geometrical and surface quality of machined parts is essential for manufacturers concerned with producing "zero-defect" components. But in today's globally competitive, just-in-time...

Olympus industrial America.(offers micro-imaging products)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... OLYMPUS INDUSTRIAL AMERICA is the prime supplier of Olympus Micro-Imaging products for industrial use in the US and Canada. The Micro Imaging division is based in a new state of the art facility geared exclusively at providing Sales, Marketing,...

Cylinder bore inspection gage.(from Etamic Corp.)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Etamic Bore Scan II is designed to inspect 4 and 6 cylinder engine blocks after finish honing operation. The Gauge is designed to accommodate three different bore sizes. Changeover can be accomplished in less then 5 minutes with out the...

DeFelsko Corporation--the measure of quality.
December 1, 2005... DeFelsko, a U.S. manufacturer of coating thickness gages and inspection instruments, offers a variety of instruments designed specifically to meet your measuring requirements. For coating thickness on ALL Metals, the popular PosiTector[R]...

GAGEtrak 6--feature-rich budget priced calibration management software.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... GAGEtrak calibration management software improves quality, reduces costs, and helps you meet international calibration standards. Users can schedule calibrations, track gages, retrieve calibration records, generate work orders, print reports,...

Micro-Vu releases InSpec metrology software version 2.70.
December 1, 2005... Micro-Vu Corporation is a world leader of vision and video measurement systems providing high-accuracy solutions for quality control and dimensional inspection. Our video and vision machines automate inspection and increase productivity with...

A broad range of precision tools.(from S-T Industries Inc.)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... S-T Industries Inc. started manufacturing precision measuring instruments at its St. James, MN, factory in 1942 under the brand name of Scherr-Tumico. S-T has continued to expand its line of precision measuring instruments over the last 58...

Image is everything.(from Operations Technology Inc. )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... Especially when non-contact coordinate measurement is the goal. That's what Operations Technology Inc. has been doing since 1978. Designing and manufacturing the VideoMic and InnerVision Lines of Video and X-ray based measurement systems. ...

Leica Geosystems.(introduces laser tracker)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2005... The Metrology Division of Leica Geosystems has just rolled out a new lineup of Leica Laser Trackers with new and improved features, class-leading accuracy, and unmatched dependability. Leica puts the "mobile" in high precision coordinate...