Al,

I agree with your logic in not wanting to put up a chart just to please Management. However, management has apparenlty recognized that SPC can provide valuable information.  I recommend evaluating your process and your quality records. Determine what is of most concern to you that you feel needs to remain as consistant a possible. Look at it initially from a process stand point and not measuring what come off the line. Before you can obtain any useful data from " after the fact" measurements you must first detemine what elements of the process is most likely to contribute to any negative results you are currenlty obtaining. Once you have identified the most important process elements ( ie: temps, speeds, solder condition/purity, ionic levels, etc...) you can chart and monitor those elements to insure they are maintained as consistant as possible. Once you have determined the process is stable, then start monitoring the results. Remember , you already have data on what your currenlty getting.  A chart monitoring a process result that is intially and continously out of control really does nothing but tell you what you already know. Control Charts can only be used as an effective tool once you have the process in control and now can use the information on the chart to react to out of control indicators..

Just my two cents.

Ed Cosper
Director Quality Assurance and Engineering 
Graphic Electronics Inc, 
Tulsa, OK 

----------
From:   Alan Kreplick
Sent:   Monday, November 16, 1998 6:16 AM
To:     [log in to unmask]
Subject:        [TN] SPC

Hello Technetters:

What are you doing to meet management's desire for SPC on the PWA Process - both
thru-hole and smt.

I'm using the Wave Solder Optimizer at wave and counting the number of misses at
auto-insert (p-t-h), although this does not seem to be value-added.

Any success stories out there.  I don't want to put a chart up just to please
management.


Thanks in advance,

Al Kreplick
Sr. Mfg. Eng.
Teradyne, Inc.
Boston, MA 02111
617-422-3726

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