Quality Tools in Manufacturing

A quality tool is an instrument or technique you can use to support and improve a process. Organizations, team members and individuals can use basic quality tools to identify and analyze ways to better satisfy customers, reduce defects and improve the bottom line.

Among the most widely used tools for improvement in manufacturing is a simple quality model—the plan-do-check-act (PDCA) cycle, also known as the Deming Cycle, PDSA cycle (“plan-do-study-act”) and the Shewhart Cycle. The basic steps:

• Plan: Identify an opportunity and plan for change.
• Do: Implement the change on a small scale.
• Check: Use data to analyze the results of the change and determine whether it made a difference.
• Act: If the change was successful, implement it on a wider scale and continuously assess your results. If the change did not work, begin the cycle again.

Some manufacturing organizations use PDCA as a framework for applying tools to identify issues and opportunities, collect data and analyze processes and results.

Interested in learning more about using quality tools?

Here are more about tools you can use for continuous improvement. For each tool, you’ll find a definition, instructions on when and how to use it, and specific examples or tips for application.

Cause analysis tools

• Fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram
• Pareto chart
• Scatter diagram

Data collection and analysis tools

• Check sheet
• Control chart
• Design of experiments
• Histogram
• Scatter diagram
• Survey

Evaluation and decision-making tools

• Decision matrix
• Multivoting

Idea creation tools

• Affinity diagram
• Benchmarking
• Brainstorming
• Nominal group technique

Process analysis tools

• Flowchart
• Failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA)
• Mistake-proofing

Project planning and implementing tools

• Gantt chart
• Plan, do, check, act (PDCA) cycle