Preface
Rationale
The Statistics Division of the American Society for Quality defines statistical thinking (http://www.asqstatdiv.org/stats-everywhere.htm, accessed 29 January 2011) as a philosophy of learning and action based on three principles:
- All work occurs in a system of interconnected processes.
- Variation exists in all processes.
- Understanding and reducing variation are key to success.
In a paper entitled ‘Six-Sigma: the evolution of 100 years of business improvement methodology’, Snee (2004) states that ‘The three key elements to statistical thinking are process, variation and data’ and that ‘Statistical thinking enhances the effectiveness of the statistical methods and tools’. He describes Six Sigma1 as a strategy and methodology for the deployment of statistical thinking and methods within an organization. This book aims to explain some of the most important statistical methods and demonstrate their implementation via the statistical software package Minitab® (Release 16). Minitab® and the Minitab logo are registered trademarks of Minitab, Inc. There are many excellent texts available on statistical methods for the monitoring and improvement of quality. In writing this book the author set out to complement such texts by providing careful explanation of important statistical tools coupled with detailed description of the use of Minitab, either to implement the statistical tools or as an aid to understanding them.
In Six Sigma Beyond the Factory Floor, Hoerl and Snee ...
