Process Capability Studies

Process Capability Studies- Six Sigma methods have become very popular among businesses and organizations everywhere. There are many Six Sigma tools that can be used for a wide variety of reasons from measuring productivity to keeping up with company progress. Capability analysis is one such statistical tool that can be very useful for a number of reasons.

Capability analysis occurs twice in the Six Sigma process. It provides a number of different ways to measure capability. Capability analysis allows organizational leaders to measure the variation and bias of a particular process against specifications. Here, specifications are defined as the requirements of the customer. The number that is acquired comes in the form of a statistic that indicates the level at which the process actually meets the customers’ needs. You can see the variations in the form of diagrams that will accurately depict important data that will help you reach useful inclusions.

Capability can be measured in a number of ways. All of the measurements you can yield are simply different ways of expressing the same idea. There are not many differences between measuring methods so you can easily choose the one you prefer.

So why should one use capability analysis in the context of Six Sigma? One reason is baseline process performance and another is to measure improvement. When baseline performance is being measured, a individual needs to figure out how well the intended function is performed in terms of the process at hand. This is what capability truly is, and illustrates why this tool is useful during the Six Sigma Process. Before changes are made, it is required to know where the process stands right now. That is what will serve as your baseline, and it is also what will allow going back later and make any necessary changes.

Once the baseline has been established, it’s time to figure out what improvements need to be made. The individual will then formulate a plan to put them into place. After implementing this plan, it will allow the process to continue running for quite a while so one can clearly assess its success once more. The comparison will happen with the new performance to the baseline in an effort to determine the amount of improvement that been made through the entire duration of using Six Sigma and capability analysis.

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