Kano Model is a product development and customer satisfaction theory classifying customer preferences; this offers insights into the important product attributes as perceived by customers and is used to support product specification and discussion through a better development of team understanding.
Taguchi Methods are statistical methods used to improve the quality of manufactured goods. This includes: specific loss function; the philosophy of off-line quality control; and, innovations in the design of experiments.
Computer-Aided Design or CAD is the use of computer systems as aids in the processes of creation, modification, analysis, or optimization of a design and is used to increase the designer’s productivity, improve the quality of the design, improve communications through proper documentation, and create a reliable database for manufacturing.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration or OSHA is an agency attached to the United States Department of Labor as established through a congressional act and signed into law in 1970. OSHA’s mission is to protect the workers by ensuring safe and healthy working conditions for them through setting and enforcing of standards, among others.
Job Design is the work arrangement or rearrangement that is aimed basically at reducing and overcoming any job dissatisfaction resulting from repetitive and mechanistic tasks; through this, organizations help increase productivity via non-monetary rewards, etc.
Work measurement is the systematic way of determining the amount of physical and mental work in terms of work units, using various techniques.
Six Sigma is a set of strategies and tools that are used to improve processes and the quality of process outputs by identifying and eliminating the causes of defects or errors and minimizing the variability in manufacturing and in business processes.
ISO 9000 is a family of standards that is used to help organizations ensure that they are able to meet the customer and stakeholders’ needs and at the same time meeting the statutory and regulatory requirements necessary for their product/s.
DMAIC or Data-Driven Improvement Cycle is a tool for improving, optimizing and stabilizing business processes and designs, and is a core tool that is used for six sigma projects, but is not exclusive for six sigma projects.
2. My problem at work is the prevalent tardiness among factory workers, resulting to low productivity. To solve using Deming’s PDSA Cycle: 1) Plan on a scheme of rewards for the workers with zero tardiness within 15 days involving the workers themselves; 2) Do implement said scheme with the management support, with clear policies and mechanisms in place; 3) Study the effects of the said scheme whether it yields positive results (e.g., less or no tardiness vis-a-vis previous records) and look at the advantages and disadvantages and other factors; and, 4) Act on revision of the scheme including policies, mechanics, etc. and immediate full implementation.
3. Ergonomics or human factors, is essentially the scientific discipline of designing equipment and devices that fit the human body and its cognitive abilities based on accurate understanding of the interactions of humans with other elements of a system. It is important to apply ergonomics in the workplace because it helps optimize the well-being of humans at work which result to significant increases in efficiency and excellent overall system performance.
4. 3 Guidelines for proper computer use posture, sit in a natural (neutral) and relaxed position, as follows: (1) ears should be in line with the tops of your shoulders, with the shoulders in line with your hip so that your spine will not be damaged; (2) your upper arms should hang relaxed and close to your body so that your shoulders will not be damaged and ache; and, (3) your hands must be in straight lines with lower arms to protect your wrists.
5. a) Time-Based Pay: Advantages are:(1) Work Paid or the employee is paid for the amount of time he/she works; (2) Employer Flexibility enabling the employer to juggle around several employees and schedules. Disadvantages: (1) Income can vary, which may disappoint employees; (2) Costly for company because computation of employees’ pays becomes a tedious process. b) Incentives-Based Pay: Advantages: (1) Increased volume output; (2) Reduced labor turnover; Disadvantages: (1) Union Issues; (2) More supervision required.
7. I’m thinking of producing an improved version of all-weather furniture that can withstand all kinds of weather conditions, using synthetic materials for durability and strength, combined with natural materials for aesthetic purposes. In producing such product, the legal issue would be the patent issue since there are already established and licensed producers of similar products.
