posted yesterday 2017-09-11 10:41 GMT+02:00 Adrie Kintziger <parser...@gmail.com>:
> Just an aside not related to this thread is that Tuuka posted on the Lila > Squad list, that Bodvar Skutvik has passed away.(yesterday) > > May he rest in peace. > > Adrie > > 2017-09-11 5:44 GMT+02:00 WES STEWART <wes...@shaw.ca>: > >> >> Hello Dan, Andrew and X-Acto; >> I have responded to your question towards the end X-Acto. >> Thanks for the response Ardie; >> >> Yes these are old ideas, concepts that are approaching 90 years, yet they >> still work for quality. >> >> I will build a story, that gives you an idea of Deming, and how his >> philosophy enhances Pirsig, and how Pirsig's philosophy enhances Deming. >> This is a simple story. >> >> The story begins with let us say; I am a new quality /safety manager for >> a company with 500 employees that work outdoors. >> A senior manager comes to me and tells me the workers injury compensation >> payments are too high. He tells me to do something about lowering injuries. >> He also adds its costing him on around $3000 dollars per injury, because an >> employee sits on average 4 days before recovering from their injury. >> >> I have some statistical data of injuries from the previous 36 months. It >> appears that ankle injuries are the most frequently occurring injuries. I >> add up the ankle injuries for the 36 months, I then divide by 36 and come >> up with a number of 41. So on average this organization has 41 ankle sprain >> or fractures that occur every month. >> >> I want to do something because it is a moral thing; lowering that average >> will also reduce the number of people who suffer pain and injury each >> month. Would someone say my moral thinking is subjective? A psychopath >> might. >> >> At this point I calculate standard deviation of 1, and come up with an >> upper limit of 47 ankle injuries and a lower limit of 35, I calculate >> standard deviation of 2 upper limit 53, lower limit of 29. I calculate >> standard deviation of 3 upper limit of 59 and a lower limit 23. >> >> Next month I can forecast the ankle injury rate with 99% certainty will >> fall between 59 and 23. I can also say that 68% of the time it will fall >> between a standard deviation of 1, from 47 to 35. >> >> Pirsig would call this a static pattern, Deming would say it is in a >> state of statistical process control. Pirsig would say it's a system that >> will not change unless there is "dynamic quality" added to it. Deming would >> say there has to be some "special cause" variation in order for change to >> happen, the static pattern he see's is "common cause" variation, it's a >> normal distribution curve, it is a normal pattern that occurs in nature. >> >> Let's say I do some research and visit 50 employees out in the field, and >> startled to find that 48 of them wear low cut running shoes, only two of >> them were wearing something with good solid ankle support >> >> I go to several work boot suppliers, ask them for advice and I am >> impressed with one of them having so much knowledge on what good ankle >> support is in a workboot. What's average better and best, in both comfort >> and support, then he shows me the longest lasting, high quality boot with >> those attributes. >> >> At a company meeting, I explain my rational and ask upper management to >> reimburse every employee for boot purchase from that one supplier. I add in >> that boots are personal protective equipment, and OHS regulations require >> us to reimburse our employees for this. Maybe there is a large debate, >> maybe the accountant says, "the guys out in the field are all idiots, they >> just have to be more careful." Maybe at the end of the meeting the CEO >> steps in and says "We have not been able to lower that rate in 3 years, in >> spite of threats of termination and terminations, we have lost lots of our >> most productive employees." He then agrees to go with my recommendations. >> >> >> I have done something to change the system, we wanted to see that average >> of 41 ankle injuries per month drop, and if we make the next month >> measurement and find, that it is below 23 (standard deviation of 3) , it >> may mean something. It may mean that the process of how ankle injuries >> occurr is no longer a stable process, something has changed in the system. >> As more people purchase boots we see, it drops to 20 then the following >> month it goes to 15, thats a trend, because in the past 3 years it never >> went below 23. Thats improvement in the quality of the working environment >> for employees out in the field, thats something that is measureable. >> >> I measure the ankle injury rate for another 36 months, after the changes, >> and see that the average is now 13 with the Upper control limit is 21 and >> the lower control limit is now 0, thats real, we can see those numbers. Now >> that is an improvement in the quality of the working environment of 68%, >> specific to ankle injuries. >> >> Maybe the CEO talks with me about those 0 ankle injury months, and tells >> me upper management has decided that they want them all to be 0 ankle >> injury months. I try to explain to him about human beings and variation. >> "Common cause variation in rain, wind, heat, terrain, stress, fatigue, >> having a baby, and worried about keeping your job all fix those static >> patterns of quality, from 0 to 21. Even the support of an employees direct >> manager affect those numbers along with cooperation and teamwork from >> fellow employees. Threats of firings or lay-off's do not help, after all, >> who can think clearly when they are agitated, because distractions cause >> those ankle sprain injuries." >> >> I tell him to expect the average to remain the same around 13. I tell him >> the 0-21 variation from month to month is a normal distribution pattern >> that is seen in nature. I state to him matter of factly, that business men >> cannot really make demands on nature or science to change. Both safety and >> quality will always see these normal distribution patterns, and for that >> reason it will never reach 0 every month. I say to him that I will try to >> come up with some other ways to improve the quality of the working >> environment for our employees, but expect it not to move until I come up >> with some ideas and we implement those changes. >> >> Maybe the accountant meets me in the hallway moments later and says, " We >> can have a 0 ankle injury month, and if you cannot do it every month maybe >> we should hire a quality/ safety manager that can." >> >> Hello X-Acto, I will keep to Pirsigs or Demings description of a SYSTEM, >> because both of them talk about corruption, you can review Pirsigs full >> description in Chapter 8. >> Pirsig is extremely artful in his description because he has a Doctorate >> in Creative Writing; Deming a physicist, mathematician, and statistician, >> sometimes outwardly states they are corrupted by their greed. I think that >> the systems theorists description that you sent me was well thought out of >> what it should be; but naive as to what happens in real life, a SYSTEM can >> create the Iraq war and unknowingly produce an ISIS, but was it really an >> intelligent move? >> >> Here is some of what Pirsig states in Chapter 8; >> >> "But to tear down a factory or revolt against a government....because it >> is a system is to attack effects rather than causes, and as long as the >> attack is against effects, no change is possible. The true system, the real >> system is the construction of systemic thought itself, rationality of >> thought, and if a factory is torn down but the rationality of thought which >> produced it is left standing, then that rationality will simply produce >> another factory." >> >> "If a revolution destroys a systematic government, but the same >> systematic patterns of thought are left intact, >> then those same patterns will repeat themselves in succeeding >> governments." From Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert >> Pirsig >> >> In this imaginary story "the real system is the construction of systemic >> thought itself, rationality of thought" of the capitalist system >> which is based wholly on greed and self interest, which is a part of >> government just as much as it is part of business. The rationality of the >> CEO and the accountant in this made up story is the real system, "the >> construction of systemic thought itself, rationality of thought",is not >> science its disturbed and biased and will always make poor decisions >> concerning quality because of self interest, self importance and greed. >> >> From: "X Acto" <xa...@rocketmail.com> >> To: "moq discuss" <moq_disc...@moqtalk.org> >> Sent: Saturday, September 9, 2017 11:23:21 AM >> Subject: Re: [MD] The need for quality >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> > On Sep 7, 2017, at 11:35 AM, Andrew Chu <andrew....@gmail.com> wrote: >> > >> > From: "WES STEWART" <wes...@shaw.ca> >> > To: "moq discuss" <moq_disc...@moqtalk.org> >> > Sent: Wednesday, September 6, 2017 10:15:27 PM >> > Subject: Re: [MD] The need for quality >> > >> > Hell Dan and All; >> > >> > I get a lot of my philosophy of quality, not from Pirsig but from >> William Edwards Deming. It was back in the twenties when Walter Shewhart >> and Deming were searching for ways to improve the Quality of transmission >> lines at Bell Labs. They had defined Quality as a SYSTEM that is in a state >> of continuous improvement. Shewhart and Deming looked at all SYSTEMs then >> used their intellect or reason to search for ways to improve the SYSTEM. >> > >> > Martin Luther King also used his intellect for ways to improve the >> SYSTEM, in which he paid the ultimate price that was delivered from >> Biologically dominated human beings. >> > >> Ron interjects: >> Hello Wes,Dan, All, >> I've been following the thread off and on and I was curious about how Wes >> defined the term "SYSTEM". >> In system theory it is defined as >> an entity with interrelated and interdependent parts; it is defined by >> its boundaries and it is more than the sum of its parts (subsystem). >> Positive growth and adaptation of a system depend upon how well the >> system is adjusted with its environment, and systems often exist to >> accomplish a common purpose (a work function) that also aids in the >> maintenance of the system or the operations may result in system failure. >> With the goal being isotelesis. >> the intelligent direction of effort toward the achievement of an end. >> >> >> >> >> Moq_Discuss mailing list >> Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. >> http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org >> Archives: >> http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ >> http://moq.org/md/archives.html >> Moq_Discuss mailing list >> Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. >> http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org >> Archives: >> http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ >> http://moq.org/md/archives.html >> > > > > -- > parser > -- parser Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org/md/archives.html