Box Plot

Box plot also known as box-and-whisker diagram or candlestick chart. It is a good graphical method for assessing characteristic of one or more data set.

It consist of 5 major component Lowest observe value Lower quartile (Q1) Median Upper quartile (Q2) Largest observe value Data points beyond lowest and upper observe values were consider as outliers. Some statistical analysis software will include mean in the box plot.

Without any statistical assumption, population distribution can be assessing through box plot. The length of the box indicates variance and skew.

Box plot can be drawn either in horizontal or vertically.

Box plot step by step; Let say this is your data: 5, 3, 6, 2 7, 8, 2, 4, 6 Step 1: Sort the data in ascending order 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 7, 8 Step 2: Figure out medium 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 7, 8 Step 3: Figure out lower quartile Lower quartile = 2.5 Step 4: Figure out upper quartile Upper quartile = 6.5 Step 5: Figure out smallest and largest observe value Smallest observe value = 2 Largest observe value = 8

Most statistical software will include mean in the box plot. Mean and median will be close to each others when the data is normally distributed.

I like to use box plot for data behavior assessment before further data analysis. Especially those long term data that involve people to people variation; machine to machine variation as well as material batch to batch variation.Understanding the data behavior is important, so that we can make a meaningful conclusion from the data collected.

Box plot below shows data that collected from a same process in four different time interval. From the box plot, what can you tell about the process?

KTM Komuter

What is this?

For those who live in KL should know it is a used Komuter ticket. It should be collected by the exist date when we walk out from the train.

Eh… how come I still hold the ticket even I m out from the station ?

Don’t be surprise that you can see this kind of ticket scatter around the floor outside the station.

Putra LRT and Kumuter is the main public transport for me to move around KL, I like it because of convenience and “cheap”, it is so cheap until I don’t even bother the fare. For those who use the system daily should know what I meant.

Komuter and Putra LRT using the similar ticketing system as what I saw in Singapore and Hong Kong. If these system worked well in others country, I don’t see any problem to use it in Malaysia.

Lets see what’s wrong with the ticketing system in Komuter and Putra LRT.

• Most of the automated ticketing machines were not functioning properly, because of that, the operator comes out another type of manual ticket that similar like conventional bus ticket.

• Most entry and exist gate were not functioning properly, some of the gate in fact without the stopper to stop people to passing through without ticket. To reduce traffic jam at the gate, the operator opens up a free flow gate for people to pass through by just showing their ticket to an officer on duty.

• If I want to, I can actually in and out the train without ticket. Anyway, feel guilty to do so, I still will buy a cheapest manual ticket before I enter the station, as an appreciation giving to the company to providing convenience service to me.

• This is not new to me, I had practicing this trick don’t know since how many years ago, as long as the problem did not fix, I will able to take the advantage. If I can do so, why not the peoples living in KL whose use Komuter and Putra LRT as their main daily transport ?

Malaysia government spend billion of RM to build up the most advance transportation system in the region, but the system seem like manage by a group of management team that not capable. They can’t even control people in out the station, collect money precisely from the passengers. I doubt their capability to integrated transportation system profitable.

For this case, we don’t need Six Sigma DMAIC to solve the problem, it is a known problem to the management I believe, they also have the solution. It is just a matter of willingness to execute the action.

Six Sigma Project Identification & Prioritizations FAQ

1. Who suppose to identify and prioritize Six Sigma project?

• A steering committee that consists of Six Sigma deployment champion, finance manager, master black belt and head of department should identify and prioritize project for Green Belt of Black Belt.

2. From where Six Sigma project should be identify and prioritize?

• The main focus of Six Sigma project is to achieve bottom line benefit, in other word, cost saving that given benefit the company financial situation.

• To ensure the target meet, Six Sigma project identification should start from the accounting statement. This is because account statement consists of few important components that affect the profitability.

• Example
  Material cost
  Labor cost
  Processing cost
  Scrap cost
  Over head cost

• These components could be further break down in to smaller sub component; the steering committee member should able to visualize the potential opportunity for improvement.

This is how I identify the Six Sigma project.

TQM vs Six Sigma – Which one better

Which one is the better quality management program? People has debating this topics since long time ago, yet there is no conclusion made as today.

Some even argue that Six Sigma actually a repackage of TQM program. Therefore TQM should be the root of Six Sigma.

To me, I don’t see there is right or wrong answer, as long as the program worked well in an organization and deliver expected result, it is fine. Who care about the history of TQM or Six Sigma development?

I used to face the same question every time conducting Green Belt training. When question come to me, I have to repeat the same story again and again…

	TQM	Six Sigma
Principle	Customer Focus Satisfying customer by providing service or product that meet customer’s expectation	Customer Focus Focus on item that critical to customer Quality & operation improvement through eliminating variation along the business process
Continuous improvement cycle	Plan > Do > Check > Act	Define > Measure > Analyze > Improve > Control
Quality improvement tool	Cause & Effect diagram Pareto Chart FMEA Control Chart DOE	Cause & Effect diagram Pareto Chart FMEA Control Chart Statistical hypothesis testing DOE MSA
Structure		Systematic structure
Goal setting		Focus on bottom line benefit Focus on metrics

From the table, there are many similarities between the two programs.

For any quality improvement program deployment, only one program should be choose, either TQM or Six Sigma, depending on the management decision of the company.

There are company trying to adopt two programs at the same time, I don’t see this is a good idea to do so. Two program in a company resulting conflict between the two program committee members, repeated policies set up and losing focus.

Concern

Was tight up with a group of peoples with full of concern, they keep me for the past 3 week. Finally, I have a chance to sit down to review my recent experience.

Was tight up with a group of peoples with full of concern, they keep me for the past 3 week. Finally, I have a chance to sit down to review my recent experience.

I ask a senior who know the environment well, answer to me is quite interesting.

People with full of concern usually do not have self confident; fear to fail therefore not dare to take up new challenge; fear to loss therefore reluctant to change; fear to make mistake therefore not willing to involve… and many others.

Concerns usually are the excuses to avoid action item assign to them.

Hmmm…. the answer make sense…

Well, I never thought of this term in the past until I joint the new family. This term has been widely use in this family. From top to bottom, everybody seems like spending more time discussing about concern rather than constructive solution.

Really cannot tahan…so kia si… how to compete wor… like that.

We are facing risk and difficulties each day; I would look at it as challenge rather than concern. Challenge will motivate me to think of breakthrough solution and move forward, whereas concern will only stop me from moving forward.

Total Quality Management

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a management approach emphasis on quality awareness through out the organization. Originated from Japanese industry in 1950’s and slowly get popularize in Western company since early 1980’s.

TQM describe the culture and attitude of an organization aim to provide continuous quality product or service that exceeds customer’s expectation.

There are seven major aspects that determine the success of TQM deployment in a company;

• Customer first

• Top management commitment and involvement

• Continuous improvement

• Quick response

• Data driven decision making

• Employee involvement

• Product development in a TQM environment

For three decades TQM has been one of the most popular and well-documented quality management programs in industry. This program help many US and European company achieved significant improvement in quality, productivity, competitiveness or financial returns.

Because of this, many big Western companies still take TQM approach as the company core management principle. Anyway, this position has slowly taken over by Six Sigma in the Western industry.

The effectiveness of TQM vs Six Sigma or the origin of Six Sigma has become the popular debate topic in industry as well as in the academic.

TQM vs Six Sigma, which one better ?