Combining the Power of ISO 9001 and Six Sigma

Six Sigma and ISO 9001 can be very complementary. Unfortunately, the two concepts are often driven by different project leaders, who compete for resources and therefore do not deliver the best results. There is, however, a way to combine the power of both concepts to add value to a company.

An overview of ISO 9000

SO 9001 is a well-established international standard for quality management systems for all types of companies in almost all industries. Developed by Technical Committee 176 of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), it has evolved – based on contributions from companies and institutions – from a theoretical set of needs in 1987 to a practical, process-oriented approach to assessing the framework. for quality management in 2008.

 

Figure 1: Process Model of the ISO 9001:2008 standard

Leave us your data to advise you!

FAQ

What is the minimum number of hours in a Green Belt / Black Belt program?

According to the Body of Knowledge (BOK) of the American Society for Quality (ASQ) and the international certification programs recognized by Motorola University and the International Society for Six Sigma Certifications, the minimum hour number of the Six Sigma program is:

  • Green Belt – 80 hours
  • Black Belt – 120 hours

There are a number of Six Sigma programs that are widely marketed and apply only a fraction of the BOK for each level. Acosixsigma is recognized for the large amount of curricular content that applies to all types of industry. For example, the estimated time for a Black Belt certification course is 120 hours, not including additional time allocated to a Six Sigma project. Other providers offer Black Belt training courses totaling 90 hours and Green Belt courses advertised at 56 hours. Therefore the variability in class hours obviously serves as a warning for interested companies to carefully check the subjects when taking a particular course against the established criteria for certification.

What is a Lean / Kaizen / Blitz Event?

A Lean/Kaizen/Blitz Event is an intense effort where the team applies specific Lean approaches to reduce waste, defects, and cycle time and to implement improvements in a particular process or department.

What is Lean Six Sigma?

Lean Six Sigma is an integrated set of methodologies that encompasses both Lean and Six Sigma concepts. It combines two powerful toolsets to address all aspects of quality, cost, and delivery. Both sets of methodologies have a customer and quality focus and are based on continuous improvement, which allows them to be very complementary.
Lean focuses on offering competitively priced products and services by eliminating waste and its drivers, while Six Sigma focuses on minimizing and reducing process variation that causes nonconformities.

How is Lean Six Sigma different from Lean or Six Sigma on its own?

Lean Six Sigma combines the strength and rigor of Six Sigma and data-driven analysis with the simple tools of Lean to eliminate waste and its drivers. The combination of the two methods provides a more robust set of tools for organizations to apply to solve problems, using the tools and techniques that best suit the specific problem at hand. Rather than the traditional independent use of tools, Lean Six Sigma combines Lean approaches into Six Sigma through the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control) method, as well as allowing Lean approaches to be used on their own. in the DMAIC model.

How does Lean Six Sigma apply to process improvement?

Process improvement is necessary for the performance of an organization that does not meet customer requirements. Lean Six Sigma offers a comprehensive set of tools, techniques, and approaches to enable an organization to gather customer requirements, analyze existing performance against those requirements, implement solutions to address performance gaps, and maintain best-in-class status. The tools and techniques used are the most appropriate for the specific problem at hand.