I no longer play the game but I am curious to know if the players out there are still ramping up their own games to play the way the cool kids play today. Back when I did play the buzzwords were Total Quality Management, Total Quality Leadership, Lean 6 Sigma, Black Belt and anything by Deming was regarded as writ from God. Prior to that we played by a system I understood pretty well which was simply called incremental progress. We'd get better every day simply by doing better every day. In every approach though there was always one point that seemed to be missed by the inspectors, what if there is no more room for improvement? Is that when you argue about what color it should be?
There are now a couple of very successful innovators out there who are making massively good products and I'm curious how they tool up, train, and operate their production lines because an organization that can build the most popular selling car, the best reusable rocket ships, the very best satellite internet systems and transceivers almost certainly knows how to get the most out of effort and capital. Are there books written by the people who actually built that stuff? Are people using it to build chip factories in America? Has someone applied it to how to streamline the law and compliance with building for industry?
If it is a teachable skill, is anyone teaching it? Are their college courses that cover it on both an approach and practical means of engineering and business? I suppose it might be time to read Eric Berger's books on Liftoff and Reentry. I don't see how if one is involved in building production facilities and capabilities, it could be possible to skip over Musk's accomplishments in this field.
4 comments:
Those that pursue quality should be very successful.
But are they? Looking around.
But looking at how NASA is trying to hinder SpaceX and Musk seems to show how useful government is to quality.
But then again, you've often spoke here about how governmental needs cripple navy ship designs.
When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion - when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing - when you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors - when you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you - when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice - you may know that your society is doomed.
Ayn Rand
Musk is standing proof that not all African Americans are worthless.
I spent a career as a Supplier Quality Engineer for a several major blue-chip companies. Basically the job was to perform audits at the suppliers facility to make sure they were meeting the engineering requirements.
Most suppliers were happy to see our team because we worked with them to clarified drawings and specifications that were a vague, or as was often the case, were never provided to them.
However 99% of the "quality issues" had nothing to do with the suppliers at all. It was with DEI engineers who didn't know their ass from a hole in the ground and MBA bean counters that intentionally went to cheaper suppliers regardless of whether or not they could meet our specs.
Of course the logistics and purchasing teams all got a pat on the back for saving the company money. Meanwhile the poor slobs in Manufacturing had spend countless hours reworking parts go get them to work or to fit correctly. And of course the Production Manger got jacked up for excess labor hours and the Quality Manager spent countless hours writing deviation requests because he wasn't allowed to reject the parts.
I knew a QA manager that got fired because he flat out refused to install defective parts. They just hired another guy and told him it wasn't his job to question the parts, it was his job to make sure they passed incoming inspection.
Same monkeys, different circus.
Yes, been there. It is shown over and over that it works and yet it requires expense and constant oversight and authority to balk the idiots and companies lose sight of that the instant you turn your back on it. Boeing in a classic case now because they once had a QA second to none and they DELIBERATELY THREW IT AWAY to save money.
With our space craft it is beyond irritating that this is permitted and yet ULA and Boeing are by far the worst examples of plodding mediocrity with no sign yet that they have any intention of doing it right. I think they have about 7 layers too many between the makers and the CEO and every one of those layers adds punitive destruction to management intent. They are literally there to build in destruction, so they do.
NPR was wondering to itself this morning about why starting around 1970 American's interest in joining Civic Association and Societies came to an almost complete end after hundreds of years of Americans gathering together to enjoy/share and do things together. I know why. Anybody alive back then knows why. It had a drastic impact on work as well. It never really recovered across the board except in one or two phenomenal places where Homey didn't play that game. You know Musk's stuff but there was also little things like Apple and Pixar that played ruthlessly by the old rules and succeeded like the old companies did.
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