13 December 2016

Modern QFD - ISO 16355 training in EU-Baltic

 QFD Green Belt® Certificate Course         

17th - 18th January, 2017
from 8:30 to 17:00 on both days
Tallinn, Estonia
Tallinn, Estonia
We are pleased to bring this exceptional learning opportunity in partnership with the Estonian Association for Quality (EAQ).

Please join us in this Modern Blitz QFD® and ISO 16355 workshop for innovation, new product development, and business process design.

This 2-day course will be taught in English by Glenn H. Mazur, the world's leading expert in the theory and practice of Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and the new ISO 16355.

To attend, reserve your seat in this class, or to inquire, please contact QFD Institute or EAQ office (our local partner) now.


Where

Click for Google map
This course will be held at Estonian Entrepreneurship University of Applied Sciences (Eesti Ettevõtleuskõrgkool Mainor; address: Suur-Sõjamäe 10a, Tallinn, Estonia).

This university is about about 3 minutes (1.5 km) by car from Tallinn Airport (airport code: TLL), and about 15 minutes (5.5 km) by car from the Old City Harbour / Vanasadam.

We look forward to welcoming you in this class.

As always, please contact us if you have questions about this course, other training dates, or QFD ISO 16355.




29 August 2016

ISO QFD Training: Public Courses


Compliance with ISO standards is a critical issue in today's global marketplace. ISO compliance assures that customers and suppliers are speaking the same "language," managing expectations, and agreeing on standards of performance.

For those responsible for product development, compliance with the new ISO 16355 is highly critical. This standard includes today's state-of-art QFD best practices, which have long evolved from the familiar House of Quality made popular in the 1970s.

The impact of this standard is huge, and providers of goods and services who comply will have a tremendous advantage in the marketplace.

Quality professionals including Six Sigma, Lean Sigma, DfSS, and DfLS are uniquely qualified to implement this standard. Many of the methods and tools you use to improve your internal operations can now be re-purposed to improve your customer's operations and products. This shifts the financial impact from cost reduction to revenue creation, an almost unlimited opportunity.

ISO 16355-1:2015 was released in December 2015. Parts 2, 4, 5, and 8 are in pre-publication phase and expected by the end of 2016 or early 2017. The remaining parts should follow soon after.

Now is the time to get ahead of your competitors on ISO 16355 compliance.
 
Two public courses are coming up, taught by the convener of the ISO 16355 Working Group.  We encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity.


  • September 12-16, 2016
    QFD Black Belt® training
    Hampton Inn Boise Downtown in Boise, Idaho USA
    PDF Brochure      |     Registration

    Advanced training for the current and future project leaders, DFLS/DFSS champions, corporate trainers, and anyone who seek to develop advanced NPD and CRM skills. This course may be attended without prerequisites by selecting the "Facilitator's Package." Otherwise, prerequisites apply.

    Registration of this course also includes the International Symposium on QFD (Sept 9-10) at the same venue, modern QFD templates, ISO 13655 bibliography materials with case studies, and the entire set of the symposium transactions from 1989 to 2016.


24 August 2016

2016 International Symposium on QFD (ISQFD)

Fast approaching is the 22nd ISQFD on September 9-10, 2016 in Boise, Idaho USA.

Important trendy topics will be a focus of this year's presentations, including the Internet of Things (Iot), ISO 16355, Complex Systems Engineering, Sustainable Energy System Development, Corporate Strategy Deployment, 3D Virgual Reality Prototyping, and more.

Please join us for learning new things, to get inspired and engage in discussions in a supportive environment.

View the video.

If you are not an ASQ member,
you can watch by subscribing at ASQ
ASQ TV has just produced a video on the new ISO 16355 standard. Here is a glimpse of some of the things that will be presented, discussed, and taught in the Symposium, as well as QFD Green Belt® and QFD Black Belt® courses.

New product developers and Lean / Six Sigma professionals should not miss this opportunity to gain solid knowledge of the new ISO 16355 first-hand from the convenor of the ISO committee.

You (training attendees) will also get the QFD templates, the ISO 16355 1,000-page reference bibiliography and case studies, and the international symposium is free for the Boise course attendees!!

 Here is the Registration Page.

Travel Page

Venue Page





14 August 2016

ISO 16355 Application Examples

Already some companies are implementing the key points of the new ISO 16355 standard.

Please join us in the upcoming 22nd International Symposium on QFD, September 9-10, 2016 to gain the first-hand knowledge on which companies are doing so, why and how they are implementing the modern tools prescribed in the new ISO rather than traditional methods, and what you need to know to stay competitive. Here are some of them:


QFD and the Systems Engineering Way of Working

image by wikipedia/Tosaka/Rolls Royce
This presentation will discuss the integration of Modern Blitz QFD® and Pathfinder, a Systems Engineering (SE) approach developed at Rolls Royce. In addition to the modern QFD tools such as Projects Goals Table, Customer Segment Table, Affinity Diagram, Hierarchy Diagram, AHP, and Maximum Value Table, the flow of Pathfinder tools such as Stakeholder Map / Context and Boundary Diagrams and Viewpoint Analysis are employed. The presentation will support the ISO 196355 standard to reference good practice and evidence of usage in industry.

Speaker: Steve Dimelow, QFD Green Belt®, Systems Engineering Specialist, Rolls-Royce plc., United Kingdom


Soft Systems Method Integration With Sustainable Energy Systems Development Using ISO 16355


Soft Systems Method Integration With Sustainable Energy Systems Development Using ISO 16355
The Soft Systems Method was developed by Peter Checkland's team at Lancaster University in the 1970s to help analyse complex situations or 'soft problems' where the problem for which a solution is sought is not clearly understood, or for which differences of opinion exist as to the precise nature of the problem. Such a 'soft problem' exists in the development of sustainable (economic and environmental) energy systems. This presentation will illustrate how modern QFD methods described in the 'ISO 16355 standard for QFD' have been used in the UK's Energy Technologies Institute to help in the analysis of the 'soft problem' of transition to low-CO2 energy systems. Illustrations will be given on how these methods can be used to establish system specifications and designs.

Speaker: Dr. Kim Stansfield, QFD Black Belt®, Senior Teaching Fellow, Warwick University WMG, United Kingdom


Using AHP In QFD - The Impact of the New ISO 16355 Standard


Traditional QFD uses ordinal weights-percentages of a total to describe priorities for customer's needs and technical solution approaches. AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process), on the other hand,  works with profiles-vectors of unit length one, making it mathematically possible to add, substract and compare profiles. The ratio method proposed by Dr. Saaty to calculate priority profiles in AHP has been a part of Modern QFD for some time.
In fact, the new ISO standard 16335 suggests using the ratio scales and profiles in QFD, instead of the ordinal correlation strength indicators.

Not understanding how to properly apply AHP in QFD, however, could lead to project failures, especially if you are still using the traditional House of Quality matrix.  AHP is used in many steps in QFD, but this presentation will focus primarily on the House of Quality matrix.

Speaker: Thomas Fehlmann, Ph.D., Senior Consultant, Euro Project Office AG, Switzerland


ISO 16355 - Keeping Up with Global Best Practice


This presentation will outline the structure of the eight parts of the new ISO 16355, how they build on older QFD models from the 1970s and 80s, and what you need to do to become a leader and facilitator of this Modern QFD standard.

These include not only the classical House of Quality, but also more streamlined Blitz QFD®, strategic hoshin planning, competitiveness, project management, on-site customer visits, survey design, prioritization, quality assurance, innovation, cost management, reliability, optimization, supplier management, make and build, commercialization, support, retirement, and flow to next generation products.
New Product Development professionals will want to master these global best practices so they can engage their organizations in surging ahead of their competitors in creating the truly great products their customers demand.

Speaker: Glenn Mazur, QFD Red Belt®, QFD Institute, International Academy for Quality







07 July 2016

The First ISO Standard for QFD

We are pleased to announce that ISO 16355, the first ISO standard for QFD, has won full approval, just a few weeks ago at the International Standard Organization meeting in London UK.

(ISO 16355-1)
This standard is intended to guide both novice and veteran product and process developers who use QFD, including practitioners of Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma, and Design for Six Sigma.

One of the important aspects is the decision by the ISO working group to make this standard in descriptive rather than prescriptive, so as to expose practitioners to the full depth and breadth of the QFD concepts and methodology, and not limit to one particular model.

This decision came from the recognition that we cannot be successful in the future products development when bound by old methods and mindsets, while the world around us is going through rapid changes. For example, a wall-sized House of Quality that worked well forty years ago is no longer effective for today's agile and IT-oriented businesses.

Therefore, any approach to new product development must continue to transform over time for a business to survive and sustain success. Our working group decided early on to make this new standard stand the test of time in this regard, and open the eyes of QFD practitioners to multiple broad possibilities and options from which they can find a feasible best path for their unique situation, such as Akao's Comprehensive QFD, modern Blitz QFD®, and the German QFD models.

Read more about the newly approved ISO 16355.

The standard is now published and available for purchase from the International Organization for Standardization.




23 June 2016

Report: ASQ 2016 World Conference on Quality and Improvement

On May 16-18, 2016 the American Society for Quality (ASQ) held its 2016 World Conference on Quality and Improvement in Milwaukee, Wisconsin USA. The annual event drew over 3,000 attendees from more than 50 countries.

Glenn Mazur of the QFD Institute presented "ISO 16355: A Standard for Innovative Customer Experience," during which the audience actively participated in the interactive survey, a new feature offered by ASQ. Here is a photo that one of the attendees kindly sent to us.


Missed this year? Plan to attend other conferences Mazur will present at this year to learn more about ISO 16366. 
  •  2016 International Symposium on QFD, September 9-10 in Boise ID.
  •  2016 ASQ Service Quality Conference, October 24-25 in Chicago.
  •  2016 ASQ International Conference on Quality Standards, November 14-15 in Pittsburgh PA.








09 June 2016

Omron hits a home run with a new mindset

Example of Omron products
(source: Omron youtube channel)
In a business magazine interview, the new Omron president, Mr. Ogino, described not only innovation in their new products displayed at the the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, but also advances in the company's core beliefs about customers and product development.

Omron is an international medical device manufacturer that sells home healthcare devices such as blood pressure monitors, body weight and composition meters, and others.

Under Mr. Ogino's directives, Omron product developers now must investigate the validity of product concept from the customer's perspective and identify "true" customer needs. No longer are product features such as 'integrated,' 'compact,' 'easy to read,' and so forth sufficient.

"Tens of thousands people end up with amputations every year because of high blood sugar. We make blood glucose meters to make such incidents zero. We make nebulizers with a conviction to cure asthma during childhood. I make sure in our company that no product planning takes place without first making clear why we should make the product, what is the ultimate goal," says Mr. Ogino.

This new mindset, code-named "Project Zero" (meaning driving down users' adverse health events to zero), will not only help the company differentiate itself from other wearable technology manufacturers, but also it can bring them closer to becoming in compliance with the new ISO 16355 for QFD.  Here is how... Read the full article.

Learn the new tools...




17 May 2016

ISO QFD Training in EU

Here are upcoming opportunities for those who live in EU and surrounding regions.

These events can help you learn how to comply with the new ISO 16355 and modern QFD methods.

Stay ahead of your competitors who may be still using an outdated House of Quality and conventional approaches. Most important, enhance your professional skills, business performance, and career with the best QFD training.

  • 25–27 May 2016
    QFD Green Belt® training
    at Laatukeskus Excellence Finland (Keilaranta 16, 02150)
    Espoo, FINLAND
    Please register by 21st May, to assure your seat and training materials.
     
  • 31 May 2016  (from 10:00 to 15:00)
    Introduction to ISO 16355
    Half-day seminar at the European Organization for Quality Congress
    at Laatukeskus Excellence Finland (Keilaranta 16, 02150)
    Espoo, FINLAND
     
  • 1 June 2016  (@ 13:30)
    ISO 16355: A Quality Approach to New Product Development
    at the European Organization for Quality Congress
    (Track "Quality Tools and Business Improvement" )
    Helsinki, FINLAND

http://www.quality2016.eu/program/pre-congress/




    03 April 2016

    Designing environmental sustainability with QFD


    Single-serving coffee brewers have become so popular recently. It is everywhere from home kitchens, hotel rooms, airport lounges, to doctors' offices, etc.

    You insert a small disposable coffee pod (the photo on the left) into the machine, push a button, and out comes fresh brewed coffee with the flavor, strength, and style described on the package.

    People love the convenience, easy care, and fresh coffee aroma with each cup. But have you ever thought of  the environmental impact after their use?

    Made of plastic and/or aluminum, some pods can be recycled, while others are not. But how often have you seen a recycle bin provided in hotel rooms or offices where these single brewers are used?  How many people carefully sort out the recyclable pods during the morning rush?

    The sad reality is that the majority of these pods currently end up in landfill —  now a 3,000,000,000 per year problem in Germany alone, according to March 1, 2016 National Public Radio blog "The Salt".

    In New Product Development, the concern for sustainability is too often treated as an 'either-or' tradeoff, such as "you can have convenience or environmental friendliness, but not both".

    But you can resolve this dilemma and do a better job at designing sustainability in your new product by using Comprehensive QFD and deploying Sustainability independently during the design phase.

    Those with Modern QFD training can also supplement the Maximum Value table in Blitz QFD® with an Environmental Value table.

    Read more...




    13 March 2016

    ISO Standard for Innovative Customer Experience

    ASQ's annual congress will again take place this May in Milwaukee, Wisconsin USA.

    Mark your calendar for May 17, 2016 at  4 pm–5 pm as Glenn Mazur, executive director of the QFD Institute, will present "ISO 16355: A Standard for Innovative Customer Experience."  It will be in "T30: Customer Experience Track."


    Click to see the video preview
    "ISO 16355: A Standard for Innovative Customer Experience"

    By the way, companies with international business and those who lead corporate efforts in Design for Six/Lean Sigma (DFSS/DFLS) should also consider attending the March 22–23, 2016 QFD Green Belt® Course, to develop the skills needed to achieve 21st century levels of innovation and quality in their new products and comply with the new standard.

    In addition to the modern QFD software templates and case studies, students of the March 2016 QFD course will receive the ISO 16355-1 Tools Matrix reference eBook ($149 value). This course has no prerequisites. Registration is here.



    27 February 2016

    New ISO 16355-1 for QFD



    Since 2009, an international team of QFD experts convened by the QFD Institute has been writing the new ISO standard 16355 for QFD. The Part I is now on sale through various standards organizations listed below.

    The purpose of the standard is to guide the global community of QFD practitioners, international businesses, and Quality and Design professionals in complying with the skills they need to achieve 21st century levels of innovation and quality in their new products.

    To comply with this standard—more accurately, to be able to use the standard successfully, you must possess important QFD foundations.

    Simply copying from the standard will not help achieve the desired success. You must know how to tailor QFD methods discussed in the standard, you must be able to distinguish which QFD tools and which deployments in what sequence are best for your project, not falling into copying something that turns out to be detrimental to your particular project.

    To develop the sound QFD foundation to comply with ISO 16355 and develop successful product development skill-set, consider proper training. This will save you from making costly mistakes, wasting resources, and project failure.

    The papers and links referenced in the standard and its Tool Matrix have been complied in a 1400+page eBook, which was complimentary to the March 2016 QFD Green Belt® attendees. After that, this eBook is available from the QFD Institute. It contains case studies using the tools cited in the ISO 16355 as well as other resources. 

    Standard organizations selling ISO 16355-1:2015 (Part I):
    • ISO (International Standards Organization)
    • ANSI (American National Standards Institute)
    • ASQ (American Society for Quality)
    • BSI (British Standards Institute)
    • DIN (German Institute for Standardization)
    • JSA (Japan Standards Association)
    • NEN (Netherlands NEN)
    • EESTI (Estonian Centre for Standardisation)
    • SIS (Swedish Standards Institute)
    • NO (Standards Norway)
    • AFNOR (France)
    • Normservis (Czech Republic)
    • SCC (Standards Council of Canada)

    Original post Feb. 27, 2016.  Updated March 25, 2016.




    11 February 2016

    2016 ISQFD Call For Papers

    The QFD Institute is issuing Call For Papers for its 2016 International Symposium on QFD (ISQFD). Interested parties are invited to send a paper proposal by May 01, 2016.

    This symposium welcomes participation from all countries and industries. Both completed projects and those still in progress are candidates for presentation.

    Speaker benefits include discounts for the symposium and QFD courses in Boise.


    More about this International Symposium (ISQFD):

    (Click to go to Call For Papers page)













    22 January 2016

    Modern QFD tools for Gemba study


    One of the most frequently asked questions about customer gemba visits is what questions to prepare in advance.

    Gemba preparations depend greatly on the type of QFD project. Is it an improvement, a refresh, an upgrade, a new technology, a next generation, or totally new to the world?

    The new ISO 16355 for QFD explains the process in Part 2 (ISO/DIS 16355-2). Modern QFD offers specific tools for this, including the customer process model and gemba visit table, and this critical part of QFD is taught in detail in the QFD Green Belt®.

    The most important thing to remember during a Gemba visit is to encourage your customer to speak openly about what frustrates them, not just product complaints. Use the gemba visit to discover what you don't know you don't know. A January 2, 2016 article in The New York Times by Pagan Kennedy "How to Cultivate the Art of Serendipity" calls this wonderfully, "the art of finding what we're not seeking."

    (an illustration of the Persian poem describing the Three Princes of Serendip, {PD-US})
    illustration of the Persian tale
    source: wikipedia {PD-US}
    The article explains the history of the word 'Serendipity' to a Persian fairy tale about three princes from the Isle of Serendip who have super powers of observation — a skill, not just dumb luck. Three types of observers are identified by University of Missouri information scientist, Sanda Erdelez:
    •  Non-encounterers who stick to a preferred list;   
    •  Occasional encounterers who have moments of serendipity;
    • Super-encounterers who have happy surprises wherever they look.
    Among a super-encounterer, these are some of their attributes:
    • Open to ideas that evolve on an unrelated project.
    • Transform mistakes into a breakthrough.
    • See patterns that others don't see.
    Readers familiar with the modern QFD tools may recognize some of these attributes. You can master these tools and techniques and you too can become a "serendipiter."
    1. Gemba visits should be conducted by...
    2.  ....
    3.  ...  Read the full article at www.qfdi.org