Improvement Tool Kit


Training Overview

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Improvement Tool Kit

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Current Offerings

Few consulting firms have world-class expertise and capability in as broad a range of improvement tools as does SatiStar. If we have any bias at all, it is towards simple, proven tools that can deliver results quickly, often within the framework of a workshop. We advocate the use of more sophisticated tools such as six sigma only when the simple continuous improvement toolset does not provide the improvement desired.

Our commitment to you is to always recommend the improvement tool that is most relevant, rapid and effective in achieving your particular improvement goals. This website lists many of the major tools that we offer training in. Many more training courses are offered on a custom basis. Call us if you would like to review your improvement goals and strategy.

Basic Statistical Techniques

This course is designed to provide participants with the statistical tools needed to drive improvement of business processes throughout the entire organization. Participants will learn how to select the most appropriate statistical tool, and then will have an opportunity to implement SPC within their own jobs.
 


Business Process Reengineering (BPR)

Companies that are successful at Business Performance Improvement know how to rapidly and effectively improve everything they do – both incrementally and radically.
 
Reengineering is the most exciting way to take your business processes apart, and then rapidly put them back together again in a radically different way!
 
This course is designed to provide participants with the strategies necessary for effective leadership of dramatic improvement of business processes throughout the entire organization. Participants will learn how to design and structure their strategic, value-added business processes to maximize throughput and reduce costs and cycle time.
 


Cause Analysis

This workshop will provide information on a structured method to defining problems and determining the root causes of the problems. Participants will be able to use effective and efficient methods to reduce and eliminate chronic problems in their work environment.
 


Design of Experiments (DOE)

Design of Experiments (DOE) or Multivariable Testing (MVT) as it is sometimes known is a simple and incredibly powerful tool to rapidly test many ideas simultaneously. The power of the method lies within its ability to collapse hundreds or thousands of trial and error experiments that would otherwise be required to optimize your business, into a small number of highly structured experiments.
 
The outcomes of a DOE include proof of which specific ideas or combination of ideas will have the greatest business performance improvement impact. DOE will also indicate which improvement ideas have little or no impact, so that yo
 


High Reliability Problem Solving

This 2 day course is designed to provide participants with a structured methodology for uncovering and addressing the causes of problems in business processes through multi-functional, multi-level teams. This methodology is equally applicable to Administrative, Service, Design & Development, Manufacturing and Delivery processes. Participants will learn how to be part of a team of employees focused on achieving rapid resolution to identified problems across the entire organization.
 


Managerial Analytics & Troubleshooting

Even in the best run of processes, problems will sometimes arise – and the more complex those problems, the harder it is to resolve them.
 
This workshop provides participants with the methodology and skills needed to be able to rapidly troubleshoot, analyze and resolve complex problems in business processes.
 
Equally applicable to Administrative, Service, Design & Development, Manufacturing and Delivery processes, this step-by-step methodology enables participants to fully understand and identify issues, to uncover causes, determine, select and plan the implementation of solutions (including the development of contingency plans).
 


Measurement System Analysis / Gauge Management Training

“You can’t improve it if you can’t measure it.”
 
Measurement systems are the eyes of your business processes. It’s critical for those eyes to be able to see how close the process output is to the desired result. Measurement systems are often overlooked in the rush to improve our processes, yet they are often the cause of unacceptable process output. The process cannot be seen if the measurement system has too much variation or is out of control.
 
Calibration alone is not enough! Until you ensure that the measurement system is both capable and in a state of statistical control, your process will continue to perform unacceptably.
 
Our methodology will enable you to assess the precision and accuracy of your measurement systems, understand sources of variation and thereby stabilize and enhance their capability.
 


Principles of 8D

This course is designed to provide participants with a structured methodology for addressing customer complaints and improving business processes in multi-functional, multi-level teams. Participants will learn how to be part of a team of employees focused on achieving rapid resolution to identified problems across the entire organization.
 


Principles of Continuous Improvement

This 2-day, customer-focused course provides participants with a methodology for rapidly improving business processes across the entire organization. Participants learn how to participate on multi-functional, multi-level teams targeting a wide spectrum of improvement opportunities. This methodology, used world-wide, provides a reliable approach for achieving world class performance improvement and employee involvement. Continuous Improvement teams are often used to complement Lean Manufacturing efforts, and to address the corrective / preventive action and customer complaint requirements of many formal management standards, including ISO9000, TS16949 and ITIL / ISO20000.
 


Process Flow Diagramming / Process Mapping

Process flow diagrams are particularly useful for displaying how a process currently works, and enable personnel to uncover problem areas or steps where miscommunications can occur. Process flow diagrams (PFD) or process mapping is a technique used to describe the steps of a process using defined symbols. Flowcharts are maps of graphical representations of a process. PFDs create a picture that allows the reader to visualize the process: “A picture is worth a thousand words”. Steps in a process are shown with symbolic shapes, and the flow of the process is indicated with arrows connecting the shapes. These pictures allow the reader to see the process “inputs” and “outputs”, all of the steps and decisions involved in the process, as well as links to other processes.
 
These process maps enable you to easily identify where rapid improvements could be made to the process.
 
This course is designed to provide participants with the theoretical and practical knowledge needed to create and analyze process maps, and identify potential process improvements. This course is designed for personnel at all levels of the organization who need to become proficient at the use of world-class process standardization and improvement tools. There are no prerequisites for this course.
 


Setup Time Reduction

Setup Time Reduction is the process of reducing changeover time (i.e., from the last good piece of the previous run to the first good piece of the next run). Since setup activities add no marketable form, fit, or function to the product, they are by definition non-value adding. By reducing setup time toward Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED), more setups can be completed each day. SMED is a systematic approach to reducing changeover times to less than ten minutes. This allows batch size reduction, which is critical for flow and improves manufacturing flexibility.
 
Among the many benefits are:

  • Shorter lead times
  • Less material waste
  • Fewer defects
  • Less inventory
  • Smaller space requirements
  • Higher productivity
  • Greater flexibility
  • Increased capacity

Through the setup reduction process, you will find that some operations that are done during setup can be completed prior to setup. Other functions can be eliminated entirely. And some functions simply need to be streamlined. Decreases in setup time of 50% or better are common. And that impacts your ability to meet deadlines, adjust to uncontrollable demand and increase the throughput in your organization.
 
This 1 day course is designed to provide participants with the theoretical and practical knowledge needed to begin implementing setup reduction.
 


Six Sigma - Black Belt Training

This course is designed to provide participants with a profound and in-depth understanding of the six-sigma approach to driving improvement of business processes throughout the entire organization.
 


Six Sigma - Executive Overview

This course is designed to provide participants with an overview of the six-sigma approach to driving improvement of business processes throughout the entire organization.
 


Six Sigma - Green Belt Training

This course is designed to provide participants with an understanding of the six-sigma approach to driving improvement of business processes throughout the entire organization.
 


Standardization

This course is designed to provide participants with the ability to apply structured methods to design and deploy standardized processes. Participants will understand process control-based standardization, standardization requirements, creation of control plans, benefits of effective standardization, standardization failure modes, impact of performance failure and how standardization affects quality.
 


Statistical Process Control (SPC)

This course is designed to provide participants with the statistical tools needed to drive improvement of business processes throughout the entire organization. Participants will learn how to select the most appropriate statistical tool, and then will have an opportunity to implement SPC within their own jobs.
 


WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

SatiStar's Experience Makes The Difference!

  • . . . worked extremely well with the departmental and site managers . . . goal oriented and met the objectives set within the quoted budget and ensured the results were attained for the Company.

  • The guys from SatiStar did more in one week than we were able to do in 6 months.

  • Achieving ISO registration was far less onerous than we thought, our employees really rallied to the cause. The registration effort really brought us closer together as a team, and SatiStar really came through for us when we needed them.

  • We started this process a year ago with Mickey helping us create a spaghetti map of our processes on the whiteboard, and then his team guided us through their streamlining methodology and got us to where we are today. Our processes now look nothing like the spaghetti map – and we’re much more efficient today

  • This projected cycle time reduction of over 80% annual cost savings amounting to over 3% of sales, one-time savings of roughly $10 million, and working capital reduction of roughly $30 million really have us excited!

  • An outstanding success with Motorola’s vendor audit! What made this an exceptional achievement is that it typically takes 4 to 5 attempts to pass this audit. SatiStar’s expertise made it easy to avoid all the extra attempts.