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Pareto Visual Tools for Process Analysis and Progress Monitoring

George Zeliger, PhD, Env. Engineer
Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection
One Winter Street, 4th Floor, Boston, MA 02108
George.Zeliger@state.ma.us

This presentation discusses quality control tools stemming from the Pareto principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, and utilizing human vision.

Pareto charts, a graphical representation of the Pareto principle, are one of the seven most basic quality control tools. Features of the traditional Pareto charts will be reviewed .

Then a less popular tool known as a Pareto matrix will be described. A new, enhanced version of the matrix, the use of which results in a more efficient diagnostics of a relationship between possible causes and observed effects will be introduced. The improvement in power of the novel approach comes from a fuller utilization of Pareto charts features.

Finally, Z-plots, a novel tool for displaying and analyzing progress of a multistage process, will be discussed. A Z-plot is a combination of the Pareto charts describing two consecutive stages of the process put together much like a known in statistics q-q plot. Such an arrangement makes changes that took place as the process moved on to the next stage very visible, thus allowing for a more efficient process monitoring, easier detection of currently critical issues and, correspondingly, more efficient resources allocation.

Presenter:

George Zeligerholds an MS cum laude in mathematics from Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) University, Russia. He worked on his PhD in applied statistics/quality control at the National Research Institute for Standardization in Moscow.

He is a senor consultant at Quality & Productivity Solutions providing consulting and training for Six Sigma, Lean and Quality System.

Upon arrival to this country nearly seventeen years ago George worked as an applied mathematician, statistician and software developer at a few companies in the Greater Boston area and taught as an adjunct faculty at Boston University, Suffolk University, and Emerson College. For a number of years George was an instructor for the Boston Section of the ASQ teaching various statistical courses, and until recently served as the Region 1 Councilor for the ASQ Statistics Division.

George was a presenter at numerous national and international conferences on quality and industrial applications of statistics and mathematics. His own research focuses on methods of sequential experimental optimization of processes and products.

At this time George works at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, until recently in the Enhanced Emissions Inspection and Maintenance Program. Currently he does some in-house training and works on some statistical projects in the Bureau of Administrative Services. Occasionally George consults on statistical and mathematical issues through his research DBA Anvical-Simplex.

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