DMAIC is an acronym for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control; the five steps used in the quality improvement process. It is often used in lean manufacturing or for quality assurance initiatives. When a company is considering a new Quality Management System (QMS), the DMAIC process proves helpful when it is applied to the software implementation itself.

Most industry leading QMS solutions consist of a highly configurable complex set of integrated modules for the management, control, reporting, and analysis of a company’s quality operations. This complexity can sometimes present itself as a hurdle to successful implementation without a clearly defined plan. This is where the DMAIC process comes into practice.

The DMAIC process is a sound project philosophy for the definition and control of simple to complex projects. The steps of the process with their associated definitions, and the DMAIC QMS Implementation Concept are shown below.

 

	Meaning	DMAIC QMS Implementation Concept
D	Define the problem, improvement activity, opportunity for improvement, the project goals, and customer (internal and external) requirements	The most critical part of any project is the definition of work to be accomplished. This can be achieved by conducting a successful Engineering Review, which is an on-site visit by a QMS software vendor to assess current processes and identify potential improvements. In some cases, a customer will define the tasks to be performed in a Statement of Work document.
M	Measure process performance	As part of the Engineering Review/SOW and subsequent trips, an experienced consultant(s) will review current processes, systems, and procedures to assist in guiding the implementation team towards a successful implementation.
A	Analyze the process to determine root causes of variation, poor performance (defects).	Moving in parallel to the Measure step, the consultant(s) work with the team to define poorly performing concepts.
I	Improve process performance by addressing and eliminating the root causes	Leveraging the Analysis and Measurement, the consultant(s) work with the team to devise methods within the QMS solution to replace and enhance current operations and ensure seamless ERP system integration utilizing best practices to develop those business processes.
C	Control the improved process and future process performance	The overall implementation is controlled using multiple environments, testing, conference room pilots, and Go-Live coordination.

 

Overall, this is not a single pass concept but an iterative concept. Throughout a QMS implementation the consultant(s) and team can work together to ensure the define plan is proper, that consistent measurements are captured and analyzed, and the improvements are fully carried out. An implementation strategy of this type is a proven low-cost alternative that has resulted in many successful roll-outs.

TIP Technologies has helped many complex manufacturing leaders implement its TIPQA Quality Management Solution using the DMAIC process for implementation. Contact TIP Technologies today at (262) 544-1211 or at www.tiptech.com to learn how you can improve quality operations and successfully implement a new quality solution on time and on budget.