FIX THE PROBLEM

Fix the Problem I: Eliminate Variability, or Adapt to It – Case study of identifying where variation in a process comes from, and how to handle it.

Fix the Problem II: Medical Blister-Pack Punctures – Case study of finding the location of where a customer-found problem originated, and some proposed solutions.

Fix the Problem III: Ink Adhesion to Plastics – Case study about adhesion to plastics, and how it was solved.

Fix the Problem IV: Water Ingestion into a Headlight – Case study examining a problem at an OEM customer.

Fix the Problem V: Cultural Awareness is Critical – Case study of how an understanding of Japanese culture avoided costing people face.

Case Study: Choosing Plastics for a LEGO Toy Truck – Case study about how to select plastics for an application from my career.

Design for Assembly: A Child Sippy-Cup Cap – Case study of a DFA problem showing how partial symmetry can be a problem.

Fix the Problem VI -The Role of Material Microstructure in an Overmolding Application

Choosing Plastics – Why it’s important to think of the end goal – minimized part cost – and not obsess over price per pound of resin pellets.

Visiting Suppliers – Three examples of why visiting suppliers, whether prospective, established, or best-in-class, is a very good idea.

Fix the Problem VII: Product Launch Crisis – Case study about a product launch going particularly badly, and how we worked to identify the critical areas to focus attention.

Fix the Problem VIII: The Problem Toggle – Two examples of solving a problem by truly understanding the root cause… and how I found those root causes.

Fix the Problem IX: Three High-Scrap Issues on a Product Family – Tracing the root causes and eliminating the scrap on three different automotive radiators.

Fix the Problem X: Learning from Interview Problems  – Three short case studies of problems I was presented with in interviews, as a part of seeing how I approach problems.

Fix the Problem XI: The Measles Chart – A very simple graphic, used as a first-pass data collection scheme in production trouble-shooting, can reveal tremendous amounts of useful information.

Lean Manufacturing: Weighing Theory vs. the POF – Lean Manufacturing in Theory and Practice, with a case-history overview.

Fix the Problem XII: When Chemicals Attack – Three short examples, with lessons-learned, about when chemicals attacked products and/or equipment.

Pegging Out the Nerd-O-Meter: My Morning Commute – A statistical analysis of my morning commute time.

Fix the Problem XIII: What’s Different, What Changed? – One of the key parts of production problem-solving is understanding what might have changed from good to bad, and how good parts differ from bad parts.