Medical Device Manufacturer Increases Customer Satisfaction And Profitability Through WorkOut

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	Discussion Forum "I do agree that there is a certain amount of 'We've always done it this way before' mentality. Health service providers are more accustomed to a 'Utilization Review' process of looking at individual cases and asking if the patient received all of the services which are medically suggested by symptoms, etc. In the age of managed care, this is often put in the reverse, asking, 'Did the patient get services that weren't medically necessary (that the insurance co. paid for)?' However, some providers are slowly adapting internal Process Improvement or Continuous Quality Improvement methodologies, including six sigma, into their operations. Often this is in response to accrediting bodies such as the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, which include standards for Process Improvement as a condition of accreditation." Six Sigma & Healthcare

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New from iSixSigma Knowing the Customer Research Report Customer Identity Verification Project Example Medical Parts Delivery Project Example

ugustine A. Stagliano

A medical imaging device manufacturer’s profitability was severely affected by quality defects in its x-ray tube product line. In addition, customer satisfaction was suffering due to consistently missed production schedules. All of the failures were discovered at final inspection. As a result, bottom-line losses were significant, since most of the defective product was either damaged beyond repair or could not be reworked. Management required a solution to eliminate the defects and improve customer satisfaction and profitability very quickly.

Solution
WorkOut was selected as the ideal mechanism to drive improvement actions within a very compressed timeframe. A skilled WorkOut designer teamed-up with the general manager (WorkOut sponsor) of the business to select projects, identify team members, establish improvement goals, and plan the WorkOuts. Three cross-functional teams were formed, each consisting of a team leader, facilitator, production associates, and engineers. The teams were trained in the principles of WorkOut and later assembled for the actual WorkOut events.

The sponsor provided each WorkOut team with specific, measurable goals for both performance improvement and project completion time. The teams effectively applied the WorkOut principles of process mapping & walk-through, brainstorming, identifying potential solutions, and piloting the proposed solutions. Key success factors were sponsor support, a skilled WorkOut designer, strong team facilitators, and solid cross-functional teams that included significant representation by production associates. All of this was made possible through the application of WorkOut, which provided the framework to mobilize resources within a structured, rapid-fire environment.

Results
Within three months, the results of the WorkOut were significant:

1. The number of x-ray tubes broken due to in-plant handling was reduced 50%.
   
   
2. The yield of a high margin x-ray tubes increased 15%.
   
   
3. Bottom-line results increased by approximately $500M.
   
   
4. Processes were streamlined and standardized across all three production shifts.
   
   
5. Customer satisfaction has increased through improved on-time delivery performance.
   
   
6. The climate improved as employees from different functions at all levels in the business work together to improve business performance.

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About The Author
Augustine A. Stagliano is an Assistant Vice President with Aon Management Consulting/Rath & Strong.

Mr. Stagliano has over 20 years experience improving quality and business processes in both the manufacturing and service environments. During his tenure with the GE Corporate Audit Staff, he was instrumental in implementing statistical methodologies throughout the organization and within many of GE’s operating businesses. He led the development and execution of the first GE corporate-wide Six Sigma transactional quality initiative. He later joined GE Plastics to become Global Finance Quality Leader, where he developed the company’s first Six Sigma finance organization.

Most recently, as Global Director of Quality Assurance at Pall Corporation, he played a key role in implementing Six Sigma within the corporation’s blood filtration business. His qualifications also include strategic planning, consulting, corporate auditing, financial analysis, applied statistics, business process reengineering, simulation modeling, and training. He is also a General Electric Company certified Six Sigma Master Black Belt.

Mr. Stagliano can be reached via email at augie_stagliano@aoncons.com.

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