Donna C.S. Summers is a Professor of Industrial Engineering Technology at the University of Dayton and has wide experience in industry and academia. She also has worked as a consultant to a number of companies and, since 1995, for the University of Dayton's Continuous Quality Improvement Programme. She has been the Chairperson (Education) for the American Society of Quality Control since January, 1994.
The book comprises 15 chapters (grouped into 4 parts), 8 appendices, and Answers to Selected Problems. Appendices contain Z Tables for normal curves, factors for computing central lines and 3 Sigma control limits for average and range charts, values for t distribution, Binomial Probability Distribution, and the Poisson Distribution, and instructions to use the Student Version of “CHARTrunner” Software provided in the CDROM Accompanying the book. A comprehensive bibliography and glossary of key terms are also included. Some websites for quality are given in Appendix 8.
The first three chapters, forming Part I, deal respectively with definitions of “quality” and the evolution of quality principles, seven important advocates of quality (Shewhart, Deming, Juran, Ishikawa, Crosby, Feigenbaum and Taguchi) and their contributions, and the application of the Plan‐Do‐Study‐Act problem‐solving method and the basic quality improvement tools: process maps, check sheets, Pareto Analysis, Cause‐and‐effect diagrams, WHY‐WHY diagrams, Scatter diagrams, Run and control charts, and Force‐Field Analysis.
Part II comprising 4 chapters covers in detail the theme of Control Charts for Variables. A review of statistics is given in Chapter 4, which is followed respectively in the subsequent chapters by an in‐depth treatment of control charts for variables, process capability, and other variable charts such as moving‐average and moving‐range charts, short‐run charts, etc.
Control Charts for Attributes is the theme of the next part, and is covered in 2 chapters. The first chapter covers probability theorems, permutations and combinations, discrete and continuous probability distributions, and distribution interrelationships and approximations. The following chapter shows how to construct and interpret control charts for nonconforming units and counts of nonconformities.
Extending the Scope of Quality, the theme of Part IV, is covered in 6 chapters. The concept of reliability and measures such as failure rate, mean life, and availability are briefly considered in Chapter 10. Quality Function Deployment and Design of Experiments form the topic of Chapter 11. It would have been useful had the work of Dr Noriaki Kano on customer delight and dissatisfaction been included in this chapter. The next two chapters focus respectively on Quality Costs and using them for decision making, and product liability issues. The final two chapters briefly cover respectively Quality Systems (ISO 9000, QS 9000, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, and Six Sigma), and Benchmarking and Auditing.
Each chapter commences with a list of contents and “Learning Opportunities” and ends with “Lessons Learned”, Problems/questions to encourage readers to assess their understanding. The text is well supported by 318 exhibits, 127 examples and 28 case studies from industries, and 32 “Real Tools for Real Life” features that give insight into how real people use the concepts and tools presented in the text.
