A finished product is only as good as the effort that was put into creating it. Every step in a process, whether it be assembly or another part of manufacturing, has to be perfected. A mistake encountered by quality control in the final stages of production should be able to identify itself: wherein the process did this mistake occur? And if the processes are continuously monitored and improved, your end result is naturally of high quality, and consistent in its quality. So tear away your focus from the end product for a bit, and focus on each step that leads up to it.

What constitutes a good process?

A process is more than a sequence of actions. It’s a carefully planned, fool-proofed, meticulously engineered sequence of tasks that flows well. There are a few characteristics that mark a solid process, such as:

• Simplicity: if it’s simple, there’s less room for error, and it can be inspected and (re)defined regularly, without hindrance.
• Transparency: the process should be thoroughly and clearly documented. This ensures the knowledge can be easily transferred, people can work independently by looking up the details whenever necessary, and this again allows for efficient quality controls.
• Verifiability: a good process should always be executed in a way that can be controlled and checked. If you can verify each step, check that it happened the way it should have, the same result will be achieved time and time again, which is ultimately the goal.
• Resilience: even when unexpected changes or problems show up, the process should remain unaffected.
• Fool-proofing: processes are designed (and described) in such a way that prevents mistakes, and that allows for someone relatively inexperienced to come in and do the task.

Poka-Yoke in process control

Poka-Yoke is a Japanese term that refers to error-proofing at work. In process design and control, Poka-Yoka is a crucial element to ensure that the different actions can be executed by (almost) anyone, without any opportunity for mistakes. Poka-Yoke follows similar principles to what has already been described above, namely making sure that the task is as easy as it can possibly be to complete and facilitating quick identification of flaws by having a verifiable process. It’s important to keep looking at which steps can be redesigned to prevent errors, or even if certain elements can be removed entirely. You can’t make a mistake in a task you don’t have to do. This practice is tried and true, and especially in the context of safety, prevention of human error is always on the list of goals.

Has Poka-Yoke already been introduced in your workplace, or what other methods of impeccable process design are you applying to achieve perfection time and time again?

Let us know!