How Lean Six Sigma prepares workers for tomorrow’s workplace.

People outside of manufacturing often imagine that technology’s next step is to turn factories entirely over to robots. While factory automation is growing by leaps and bounds, the reality is most automation is paving the way for workers to be far more involved in critical decision-making on the factory floor. Just as Industry 4.0 is the driving force behind smarter machines that automatically analyze and adjust processes as they inspect product, Lean Six Sigma is paving the way for a smarter workforce, capable of analyzing production trends and optimizing processes.

The benefit of Lean manufacturing philosophy is a holistic focus on eliminating issues that create bottlenecks, defects and wasted effort. It aligns well with an Industry 4.0 vision, since greater levels of automation help drive reduced variation, and eliminate excess handling and errors related to manual processing. However, while a Lean vision helps drive efficiency and improve throughput, factories with a lot of product variation, as is found in contract manufacturing, do develop inefficiencies that need to be addressed. Six Sigma provides a powerful methodology and toolbox for addressing these inefficiencies. Implemented correctly, it creates problem-solving discipline that teaches production teams how to make good choices in the problems they choose to solve, thoroughly analyze root cause, test their preferred solution and make sure the improvement is sustainable over time.

A simple in-process test for determining component wettability.

This month we illustrate solderability testing using simulation. This is basically conducting simple on-the-shop-floor solderability testing to decide whether to use old components. I use paste printed onto glass slides using the paste and stencil from production. I use the same reflow profile for the board design and components in question.

These J-leaded component terminations wet successfully with the solder paste deposits on the glass plate. The paste has reflowed up, wetting the termination on the front face of the lead (FIGURE 1). However, look at the edge and the corners of the leads. If the solder paste has not added to the original tin plating, it calls into question the coating and component age. We have recently used this test to look at the compatibility of low-temperature solders on different terminations as well.

Or will the West continue to risk exposure?

The massive disruption caused by Covid-19 has revealed the fragility of the global supply chain. With proper leadership, however, many companies are adjusting (or will adjust) to the changes made necessary by this pandemic.

Predictably, this unprecedented disruption has prompted calls for nations to onshore their manufacturing. It’s an argument that pops up periodically. And on the surface, it does make sense. Why leave a domestic market so vulnerable to what’s going on in the rest of the world? Why not build all we need here?

But here’s some straight talk: It is simply not realistic to think we can bring all manufacturing – including printed circuit boards – back to Western shores.

Motivated by fear, businesses are valuing creativity as never before.

Over the past 60 to 90 days, I am sure I have heard the term “the new normal” at least a thousand times. Before Covid-19 has run its terrible course, I fully expect to hear it at least a zillion more. But what exactly is “the new normal?”

Sometimes global events become a catalyst for change. Events like the Great Depression and World War II had dramatic, difficult and often devastating impacts on the world. However, those impacts were mostly temporary reactions to transient events, like the aftermath of a very bad storm. Covid-19 is different, which makes trying to visualize and comprehend events, both in the now and the future, so difficult.

Covid-19 truly levels the playing field. Everyone on earth will at some point be impacted, regardless of gender, political orientation, geography, socioeconomic status or faith. Everyone is at risk, and everyone will be impacted in similar ways. That differs from past global events that typically were the cause of regional wars (even WWII did not impact all countries), economic downturns, political eruptions, or local plagues. We really are all in this together.