Month: September 2005

Newell Rubbermaid, famous for their storage containers and Sharpie pens, launched the Newell Operational Excellence program in 2002 to reduce costs, inventory and lead times, and to improve service and quality levels. The 2004 Annual Report sums up the Newell Operational Excellence program to date: “It is critical to have a process for achieving cost […]

Benchmarking results consistently identify examples of Six Sigma success. Even so, getting “naysayers” on board is a continuous challenge. What do you tell them? Nayism 4: Six Sigma projects take too long to complete. I need to get this fixed now. Actually, they should have probably had the problem fixed 3 years ago. And maybe […]

Six Sigma stories have graced the pages of this specialty chemical company’s annual reports since 1999. Six Sigma at Grace has been a corporate-wide initiative from the start and has spread outside of the manufacturing processes to other functions including administration, sales, service, and R&D. Lean manufacturing and Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) methodologies are […]

Six Sigma at Air Products and Chemicals is doing more than just blowing hot air. The 7.4 billion dollar chemical company is a worldwide supplier of industrial gases and equipment, specialty and intermediate chemicals, and environmental and energy systems. They piloted Six Sigma in the Polyurethane Chemicals division in 2000, and the initiative grew into […]

The Wall Street Journal article “Rethinking Quality Improvement”, published this morning, raises the question of whether Six Sigma and new product development, research, and innovation can work together: “The critics say process management helps improve existing products and routines, but can hinder a company’s ability to innovate. ‘For stuff you’re already good at, you get […]

The Cox-Box is Copyright © 2000-2005 iSixSigma LLC and Gary P. Cox – All Rights ReservedReproduction Without Permission Is Prohibited – Request Permission

Benchmarking results consistently identify critical factors that are needed to increase the probability of Six Sigma success. Even so, getting “naysayers” on board is a continuous challenge. What do you tell them? Nayism 3: When picking a Black Belt, I can’t afford to let one of my best people go. Open any book about Six […]

ArvinMeritor is a global supplier of integrated systems, modules and components to the automotive industry. They began their lean journey in 2000 with a pilot initiative at the Asheville, North Carolina (USA) plant. Then only a year later the senior leadership team deployed the “ArvinMeritor Performance System” (AMPS) and “S3” (S-cubed) throughout the company: “AMPS […]

   Six Sigma Slogan: Pleasant and Happy Changes For POSCO, Six Sigma is not merely a series of projects to be completed, but a potent tool for management reform designed to help reach business objectives, change corporate culture, and present the most ideal solutions for every business issue. 2004 Annual Report POSCO, the South Korean […]

Burlington Northern Santa Fe, one of the largest Railroads in the United States, has developed a system called World Class Maintenance (WCM) which includes several methodologies including Six Sigma and Lean Process. In September 2002 BNSF CEO, Matthew Rose, spoke at the AREMA conference in Washington D.C. In his address here viewed the WCM system […]

Benchmarking results consistently identify critical factors that are needed to increase the probability of Six Sigma success. Even so, getting “naysayers” on board is a continuous challenge. What do you tell them? Nayism 2: I’m already working 60 hours a week, so how do you expect me to devote anytime to champion a Six Sigma […]

Six Sigma at CSX is a GE success story. What started out as a GE “At the Customer for the Customer” engagement, turned into a corporate-wide deployment of Six Sigma at one of the leading transportation companies in the United States. Bill Smith, National Account Executive at GE Transportation Systems, tells the story best in […]

Fortune 1000 and Global 500 companies in the Transportation and Logistics industry that are practicing Six Sigma: Burlington Northern Santa Fe CNF CSX Corporation FedEx Norfolk Southern Sirva Union Pacific United Parcel Service United States Postal Service

The Cox-Box is Copyright © 2000-2005 iSixSigma LLC and Gary P. Cox – All Rights ReservedReproduction Without Permission Is Prohibited – Request Permission

Benchmarking results consistently identify critical factors that are needed to increase the probability of Six Sigma success. Even so, getting “naysayers” on board is a continuous challenge. What do you tell them? Nayism 1: Black Belts and Green Belts are actually doing the work, so why does the senior leadership team need to be “belt” […]

In October 2000 Norfolk Southern began an initiative called “Norfolk Southern for the 21st Century” (NS21). NS21 is an internal effort to improve performance, focus on customer service, and reduce costs. Six Sigma is used in conjunction with NS21 and has helped the railroad giant become one data-driven locomotive! In 2003 Norfolk Southern refocused the […]