Six Sigma is a proven process improvement methodology developed by Motorola in the late 80s and has since been used by countless organizations to increase quality of their operations.
Lean Six Sigma can be utilized in construction to enhance key performance indicators (KPIs) such as cost, schedule and safety. Gilbane, an industry-leading construction firm, reported that Lean Six Sigma helped them eliminate contractor-generated cost change orders while increasing customer satisfaction levels.
Identifying Defects
Six Sigma provides a set of tools that enable businesses to identify defects and implement lasting solutions, including statistical analysis, value stream mapping, flow charts, 5 Whys analysis and Failure Mode Effects Analysis (FMEA). Furthermore, Six Sigma emphasizes customer voice to drive better business results.
Defects are measures of variance between process outputs and their ideal, as defined by specification limits that distinguish good from poor results. Six Sigma defines defects as any output that differs from its mean by at least 6 standard deviations from its expected result.
Construction defects arise from failures in design, installation, products or operation/maintenance. They may become apparent immediately (like a burst water pipe) or over time - such as an unstable foundation - leading to damages for all parties involved - defective building materials can delay projects significantly while quality managers with Six Sigma certification ensure their company meets industry standards and customer needs.
Identifying Causes
Six Sigma is an array of techniques and tools used by organizations to improve their processes, with an emphasis on eliminating defects while increasing quality, efficiency, lowering costs and increasing profits.
Six Sigma methodology employs a DMAIC process - Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control - to identify and eliminate defects as well as reduce process variation.
In order to implement Six Sigma successfully, companies need teams trained in its methodologies. These should consist of employees from different departments ensuring all aspects of a process are examined as well as any defects being pinpointed at their source.
Six Sigma has proven an invaluable tool in many companies' operations improvement processes. Motorola and GE credit the methodology with helping save billions, while other businesses use it to enhance customer service, products, employee morale and productivity.
Identifying Solutions
Six Sigma experts view their methodology as an integrated set of qualitative and quantitative tools used together to drive process improvement. This toolkit may include statistical analyses, flow charts, failure mode effects analyses, process mapping or process improvement plan mapping; however not all Six Sigma practitioners agree on which tools form its component parts.
Once teams have analyzed data to identify construction defects, they must devise strategies to either reduce or eliminate those defects. To do this effectively, teams may employ fishbone diagrams, cause and effect diagrams or fault tree analysis tools in order to uncover their actual causes of issues.
Six Sigma goes beyond simply identifying defects to promote customer delight. Through its disciplined DMAIC approach, Six Sigma fine-tunes every role, responsibility and activity toward objective value measures while running all inputs through hypothesis tests to achieve greater financial visibility - enabling contractors to execute more accurate cost return calculations for their projects.
Implementation
An effective Six Sigma implementation relies on the support of management. To be successful, Six Sigma must convince them that its investment yields increased productivity efficiency and reduced operating costs; and that implementation is straightforward and the team of participants are best-suited for it.
People on a Six Sigma team should be trained in its methods and understand the data collected and analyzed, while being able to recognize deviations from project goals. Furthermore, weekly meetings between teams are recommended so as to discuss progress and share ideas.
Six Sigma utilizes four primary tools, including value stream mapping (VSM), capacity analysis, the five whys technique and plan-do-check-act (PDCA). These techniques are beneficial in identifying potential issues as well as uncovering root causes behind performance problems.