Quality articles from March 2003

Quality archives from March 2003

Six Sigma is legit. (From The Editor).(quality system)(Column)
March 1, 2003... The year was 1994 and, I sat in the room filled with anxious questioners. What, they asked, was the usefulness of this quality system? How can it better my business?" The quality system under question was ISO 9000. My response was...

Coming events: April.(machine tool industry)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
March 1, 2003... * Process Mapping, Chicago, April 2-3. The University of Chicago, (800) 997-9689. * Managing the Process Enterprise: Principles and Practices, Boston, April 3-4. Hammer and Co., (617) 354-5555. * ISO/TS 16949 Awareness Seminar,...

Prepare for the future of quality. (Industry News).
March 1, 2003... MILWAUKEE--Quality must deliver bottom-line results. According to the findings of the American Society for Quality's (ASQ) third Futures Study, "Living in the Future," bottom-line results are one of the seven key forces that are most...

Management Resources International. (Business News).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Management Resources International (MRI, Ann Arbor, MI), an USX International Co., is a provider of quality and continuous improvement services. MRI offers a proprietary approach to gage management, designed to reduce the cost of gaging while...

Honeywell International's (Morristown, NJ) Consumer Products Group has selected Apexon Inc. (San Jose, CA) to manage its supplier relationships. (Business News).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Honeywell International's (Morristown, NJ) Consumer Products Group has selected Apexon Inc. (San Jose, CA) to manage its supplier relationships. Apexon3, the company's Web-based supplier relationship management software, will provide a single...

IBM (Somers, NY) and Rockwell Automation (Milwaukee) have signed a strategic alliance to provide the global automotive manufacturing industry. (Business News).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... IBM (Somers, NY) and Rockwell Automation (Milwaukee) have signed a strategic alliance to provide the global automotive manufacturing industry with a complete set of collaborative technologies, services and experiences that will allow seamless...

Promess Inc. (Brighton, MI), an assembly automation manufacturer, has appointed Pioneer Tool Inc. (Business News).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Promess Inc. (Brighton, MI), an assembly automation manufacturer, has appointed Pioneer Tool Inc. (Charlotte, NC) as its representative in North and South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.

Testing Machines Inc. (Business News).(relocates to Ronkonkoma, New York)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Testing Machines Inc, has moved its production, engineering, sales, marketing, PM&C and corporate offices to Ronkonkoma, NY.

Makino (Mason, OH) has appointed RLH Machine Tools Inc (Clearwater, FL) as exclusive distributor. (Business News).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Makino (Mason, OH) has appointed RLH Machine Tools Inc. (Clearwater, FL) as exclusive distributor for its metalcutting and die and mold machinery in Florida.

ABAQUS Inc. (Business News).(new name for Hibbit, Karlsson & Sorenson Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Hibbitt, Karlsson & Sorensen Inc., a provider of advanced finite element analysis software products, has changed its name to ABAQUS Inc. (Pawtucket, RI).

NVision Inc. (Business News).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... NVision Inc. (Coppell, TX), a provider of laser scanning solutions and consulting services, is expanding its North American technical center, located near Detroit, to increase its consulting services in the laser scanning field.

Bartley Machine & Manufacturing Co. Inc. (Business News).(gains ISO 9001:2000 certification)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Bartley Machine & Manufacturing Co. Inc. (Amesbury, MA) has received ISO 9001:2000 certification.

Akron Tool & Die Co. Inc. (Business News).(expands machining line)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Akron Tool & Die Co. Inc. (Akron, OH) is expanding to handle machining services on workpieces up to 192-inches long. Expanded capabilities include grinding up to 8 inches outer diameter (OD) and 192 inches-long; surface grinding up to 25 by 120...

Common standards expected to boost machine vision technology. (Industry News).
March 1, 2003... SAN JOSE, CA--As machine vision technology rapidly expands to meet market demands, developing a common standard is necessary to increase the system component and capability options available to end users, and to make systems more appealing. ...

Growth for third straight month. (Industry News).(manufacturing industry, U.S.)(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
March 1, 2003... TEMPE, AZ-U.S. factories showed a third straight month of growth in January, and new orders and production continued to grow. According to the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) index of manufacturing business conditions, manufacturing...

IDW 2003 set for May 12 to 16. (Industries News).
March 1, 2003... NASHVILLE, TN-The International Dimensional Workshop 2003 will be held May 12 to 16 in Nashville, TN. The workshop begins with Bob Hocken's keynote address, "Task Specific Uncertainty in Coordinate Measurement" An additional 14 papers will be...

SME elects board of directors. (Industry News).(Society of Manufacturing Engineers)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... DEARBORN, MI-The Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) announced the election of 14 new members to the SME board of directors and the election of seven members to the executive committee. Officers elected to the executive committee for...

Six Sigma Summit pulls in top execs. (Industry News).(International Quality and Productivity Center's management conference)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... MIAMI--More than 150 top-level executives gathered for two full days in Miami for the 4th Annual Six Sigma Summit, January 21 to 22. Developed and run by the International Quality and Productivity Center (IQPC, London), and sponsored by Quality...

Physical Acoustics Corp. (People News).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Min-Chung Jon has been appointed senior research scientist at Physical Acoustics Corp. (Princeton Junction, NJ).

United Grinding Technologies Inc. (People News).(two industry appointment briefs)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Dave Barber has been appointed marketing manager of United Grinding Technologies Inc. (Miamisburg, OH). With the merger between Cincinnati Machine and Lamb Technicon, the following have been appointed to positions within the newly created...

Eagle Registrations. (People News).(opens office in Chicago, Illinois)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... John Glavey of Eagle Registrations (Dayton, OH) has opened an office in Chicago to serve customers in the Illinois and Wisconsin region.

Human Synergistics International. (People News).(names new CEO, Gerry Clarke)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Gerry Clarke, president of Human Synergistics International (Plymouth, MI) has also been named chief executive officer of the company.

NSL Analytical Services Inc. (Business News).(adds new laboratory service)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... NSL Analytical Services Inc. (Cleveland) has added materials characterization to its laboratory services.

Starrett's Granite Surface Plates Division. (Business News).(receives accreditation)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Starrett's Granite Surface Plates Division (Mt. Airy, NC) has been accredited to calibrate granite surface plates, granite parallels, two- and four-sided, granite straight edges and granite squares.

Standex International Corp. (Business News).(achieves ISO/TS 16949: 2002 certification)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Standex International Corp.'s (Salem, NH) Standex Electronics subsidiary has achieved ISO/TS 16949: 2002 certification.

Corning Tropel Corp. (Business News).(receives patent for metrology instrument)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Corning Tropel Corp. (Fairport, NY) has been awarded a U.S. patent for the optical configuration of the FlatRuler 200 metrology instrument.

Minitab Inc. (Business News).(named one of Pennsylvania's 'best places to work')(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Minitab Inc. (State College, PA) was honored in Pennsylvania's Best Places to Work in PA award program.

A big world. (Quality Mailbag).
March 1, 2003... Dear Editor, I read the October and November 2002, "Probing the Limits." One question to ask is, "What existed prior to ISO?" Some countries had civilian equivalents to this system. There were also military equivalents. Some...

Customer feedback is real quality certificate: posting customer feedback can make quality a deciding and profit-making factor for future customers. (Probing The Limits).
March 1, 2003... Imagine a marketplace where buyers and sellers rate each other after every transaction. This feedback would become a permanent record that they must each display in the marketplace. In this market, "high quality" merchants and customers would...

Know your numbers: investigate how labs come up with their uncertainty numbers. (Other Dimensions).
March 1, 2003... A manufacturer using outside, contracted calibration services needs to pay close attention to the pretty certificates he receives from the laboratory. The problem is measurement uncertainty statements on certificates that often show the...

Buying a leak tester: resolution, sensitivity and flexibility are among the top considerations when purchasing a leak tester. (Training Trends).
March 1, 2003... Last month, this column focused on the available types of leak testers, as well as supplier relationships. This month's primer will continue with "must-ask" questions that should be answered before making a decision on a leak tester. How...

The case of the crooked labels. (Quality Brain Teasers).
March 1, 2003... Everyone who has faced a production problem with a need to solve the problem by using production data can relate to the notion of a brain teaser. The brain teasers presented here are based on real-world situations that are encountered by...

Versatility in hardness testing: one hardness tester, multiple hardness tests. (Quality Innovations).
March 1, 2003... In the past, manufacturers who needed to test the hardness of various metals according to different test methods and scales were forced to buy separate pieces of equipment or use conversion scales to determine approximate hardness. These...

Welcome to Quality Expo International 2003.(survey)
March 1, 2003... Thank you for taking the time to visit our exhibition and conference. We know you are busy, and we have worked hard to ensure your planned trip is worthwhile. Business didn't get any easier for most of us during the past 12 months, and the...

Quality Expo Conference Program. (Conferences).(Calendar)
March 1, 2003... Tuesday, April 15 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. KEYNOTE ADDRESS Firing on All Cylinders: Managing the Human Side of Business Process Improvements S. Ventrella, Excel Partnership 9:45 to 10:45 a.m. * Multisensor Metrology: What's in...

Exhibitor index.(Directory)
March 1, 2003... EXHIBITOR INDEX A Admet Inc 14110 Advanced Calibration Label 17129 Advanced Systems & Designs Inc 18052 AEI North America Inc 19044...

Noncontact metrology. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Hawk system gives the capability for two and three axis measurement, manual or motorized movement, manual or automatic optical and video edge detection, microprocessor or geometric PC software, and four stage size options. Vision...

Rotary axis calibration. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... This system calibrates large rotary tables and the A, B and C rotary axes of five axis machine tools. The systems are based on laser Doppler displacement meter technology that reflects a laser from a movable target. The beam is detected and...

Laser tracker. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The laser tracker uses a precise laser beam to measure objects from 0 to 100 feet. Its SuperADM gives it high-speed distance measuring capability, even if the laser beam has been interrupted. The tracker operates with Faro's CAM2 Measure...

Digital controller. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... For use with universal testing machines, the Precise Digital Controller connects to electromechanical and hydraulic load frames and can be retrofitted to any make or model of testing machine. It is available in data acquisition or data...

Coating thickness gage. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The PTG-2500, a small contact probe, offers data storage and PC downloading using RS232 output via an IrDA adaptor. Utilizing automatic ferrous and nonferrous substrate recognition, a resolution of 0.01 mils and a guaranteed tolerance of 0.04...

Chart annotation. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... CHARTrunner reads data from Excel, Access, SQL Server, Oracle and other data sources to create SPC charts and annotations. This allows the user to underscore important observations. Users also have the ability to scroll and pan charts back and...

Gap seal tester. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... To check seal gaps in autos and doors, the WISE-gap 1000 offers no cable clutter, an interface to many software packages, a single or multiple sensor configuration, direct data transfer to laptop or handheld, and wind tunnel and test track...

Hardness testing. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Two bench hardness testers, the analog 3814 and the digital-motorized 3816, enable the measurement of full regular Rockwell Scales on all types of metals and alloys. Starrett Co., The L.S. (978) 249-3551 Booth 14030 Reply 32 ...

Portable CMM. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The 3000i Series of portable CMMs with arms has 4-, 6-, 8-, 9-, 10- and 12-foot measuring envelopes. It is available with PowerINSPECT, a Windows-based program for inspection and reverse engineering, which generates customized Excel reports....

Coating thickness measurement. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Fischerscope X-ray XUL measures the thickness of all electroplated coatings and the composition of alloy coatings without contact. The X-ray tube and detector are located beneath the measuring stage allowing easier measurement of components...

Metrology software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Veriprobe CAD-based CNC program for CMMs has a dimensional measuring interface specification, interactive 3-D graphic interface and graphical programming with tool path simulation. It programs probe angles and changes, clearance planes,...

Video camera. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The PCN-8150LG is a 1/2-inch CCD video camera with internally generated adjustable crosshairs for mask alignment, laser position and measurement systems. Lines can be solid or dashed with adjustable matte from white to black; position is set...

Registrars. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Registration services provided include ISO 9000, QS-9000, ISO 14001, AS 9100 and TL 9000. In addition, the company provides third-party services for the TE Supplement, OHSAS 18001, RC 14001 and other major quality and management standards; its...

Data acquisition software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... WinWedge 32 Pro software interfaces RS232 devices to any Windows application, such as Excel, Access and statistical software in real time. It sends and collects data from TCP/IP ports; feeds data from any ASCII file to any Windows application;...

Measuring center. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Excel Measuring Centers feature vision and touch probes, InSpec 3-D software, and noncontact machines with capacities ranging from 24 by 24 by 6 inches to 48 by 60 by 6 inches, with optional 12-inch Z travel on some models. A servo capstan...

Visual inspection. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The needs of sheet metal fabricators are addressed by the Qualifier 1250, a laser-based inspection machine that can measure punched, formed and cut sheet parts simultaneously. Operations are performed at scanning speeds up to 1,430 inches per...

Clean rooms. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Modular clean room with modular walls, utilities, filtration, HVAC and controls are available. The company specializes in the design, construction and maintenance of mission critical facilities, labs and clean rooms. TAC-Control Solutions...

Tomography scanning. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... For use in a lab or inline, the FlashCT scanner is Windows compatible, 3-D and X-ray equipped for inspection and can be used for rapid prototyping and mass customization. HYTEC Inc. (505) 661-3000 Booth 13118 Reply 42 ...

Gage pins. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The MG-25 Series pin sets contain 25 pieces of Class X tolerance (0.00004 inch) gage pins. Each set consists of a center nominal size with 12 larger sizes in 0.0001-inch increment, and 12 sizes smaller in the same increments. Uses include...

Roundness measuring. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Roundtest RA-Series instruments offer measurement of roundness or cylindricity of work pieces up to 10 kilograms. The RA-1400 consists of;the measurement instrument, controller and software. The RA-1500 is a turnkey system that includes the...

Hardness tester. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The full line of 5100 series hardness testers is made up of four models of Micromet microindentation hardness testers, seven models of Macromet digital Rockwell hardness testers and two digital Macro Vickers models. Buehler (847) 295-6500...

Leak testing. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The compact Premier leak tester features graphic LCD displays and navigation keys that ease programming. This leak and flow tester is designed for manual and automated operation. ATEQ Corp. (734) 451-9449 Booth 12075 Reply 46 ...

Vision measurement. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Benchmark system combines software and hardware in a compact benchtop unit. Its portability makes it ideal for incoming inspection, in-process QA sampling and final inspection for the producers of electronics, semiconductors, optical...

Infrared tracer modules. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The clamp-and-go infrared transducer module has no attached wires, is fast and precise with a wide transmission range, and is designed to be used with existing transducer equipment. Its range is 20 meters. It allows 100,000 transmissions per...

Laser scanning. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The G-Scan system incorporates a laser scanner with a portable CMM and software. When used with Axila portable arms, the calibration is done only once. The G-Scan can be removed and reinstalled with the original calibration intact. Axila...

Height gage. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Combining the positioning speed of a manual height gage with the precision of a motorized unit, the Micro-Hire plus M electronic height gage can be switched between these uses with no loss of accuracy. All Micro-Hite probes and holders, as well...

NDT. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The TG 110-DL has a 128 by 64 full graphic display, 50,000 point data logger, B-scan display, through paint measurement and quick view scan bar for easy recognition of small pitting or abrupt geometry changes. NDT Systems Inc. (714)...

Tooling and gages. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... All products conform to ANSI or ISO standards, and all measuring equipment and gaging masters are traceable to NIST. Certification processes and procedures conform to ISO and IEC 17025. Universal Punch Corp. (714) 556-4488 Booth 16109 ...

Registration services. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... This registrar offers ISO 9000, QS-9000, ISO/TS 16949, TE Supplement, ISO 14001 and TL9000 registration, as well as VDA 6.1 services. Surveillance audits are regularly scheduled to ensure compliance to the standards. Entela Inc. (866)...

Vision inspection. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Modularly designed to adapt to any environment, the VIS-140 is ideal for assembly and inspection. It can be mounted in a number of ways, and its software performs metric and standard measurement, links with Excel, image archiving and analysis...

Manufacturing software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The shopfloor-online manufacturing execution system collects data from the entire factory and can pass it in real time to other systems such as MRP/ERP to ensure that all users are working from the same timely and accurate information. The...

Video CMM. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Flatscope is a two-dimensional video CMM that uses a copier-like concept. The system has a window where the part is placed with a camera below. A cover closes over the part providing profile illumination. A ring light beneath provides...

Calibration software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Calibration Manager 4 software is a Windows interface linked via ASP pages to a COM+ based middle tier component accessing an MS SQL server database. Users can maintain a central database and allow enterprise level access via a WAN, LAN, VPN or...

Metrology technology. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... This company provides noncontact, laser, optical, electronic and air-electronic measuring technology. The company offers custom gaging systems, gear inspection instruments, surface finish instruments, flexible CNC shaft measurement systems,...

Universal testing machine. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The LFPlus is designed for material testing and force measurement applications up to 1 kilonewton and can operate independently or under remote control. It uses Icad cells or handheld digital force gages for Icad measurement of [+ or -] .0.50/0...

Statistical software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Applied Stats Report Manager produces capability reports, raw data reports and intelligent reports that allow drill down by part number, machine, operator or other fields available in the data. It also mines data from the Applied Stats ODBC...

Registrars. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... This automotive specialist registrar and European vehicle type approval authority is accredited by UKAS and RAB for ISO 9001, QS-9000, ISO 14001 and is recognized by IATF for ISO/TS 16949. Vehicle Certification Agency North America (734)...

Eddy current gage. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Featuring one to eight channel configuration with one analog board and an active color display, the MIZ-27CT offers a frequency range of 100 hertz to 1 megahertz and high digital sample rates. Zetec Inc. (425) 392-5316 Booth 11087 ...

Microimaging. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Deep View technique increases depth of field of high aperture objectives in near real time, while retaining diffraction limited image quality. The Circular DIC technique makes sample structures once visible in a certain preferential...

Statistical software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Version 5 of this statistical software links statistics and graphics. Six Sigma initiatives will benefit from this software because it relates historical data to quality and suggests new directions for improvement. The software supports...

CMM stylus. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... This CMM stylus is made with silicon nitride balls that are drilled and bonded to a carbide shaft for strength and rigidity. Diameters range from 1 to 10 millimeters. These styli can be used with all touch-trigger and scanning CMM probes. ...

Metallurgical services. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... This company provides metallurgical testing, chemical analysis, engineering consulting and research. It is A2LA accredited to ISO/IEC 17025 and performs tests in accordance to ASTM, SAE and manufacturer standards. Climax Research Services...

Monitoring software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... STATISTICA QC Miner is designed to monitor processes and identify and anticipate problems related to quality control. QC Miner projects can be connected to live data streams to automatically update as new data streams become available or...

Part testing. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Using an instrumented impact hammer and microphone for quality testing of powdered metals and castings through their acoustic signature, the NDT-RAM system is quick and cost effective for parts that require 100% inspection or have other...

Microscope. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The NanoSurf 3-D scanning microscope is ideal for determining finish, roughness, form, wear and defects of surfaces, particularly those with a high aspect ratio. Applications include MEMS, tribology and engineering surfaces. Its white light...

Image software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... Capture, manipulate, analyze, store and output images and data with VisionGauge. This software also allows precision measurement, statistics computation, and operational counting and sizing. Produce inspection reports with measured data, and...

Metrology systems. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... A multisensor metrology system incorporating video, laser and touch probe for precise measurement of small parts, the SmartScope Quest 600 is telecentric and has collimated profile illumination that matches the aperture of the optics over its...

SPC software. (Show Products).
March 1, 2003... The Synergy 2000 software collects and charts data while allowing operators, quality engineers and managers to collaborate in real time. External data is handled by using Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects. Zontec Inc. (800) 955-0088 Booth...