Page 43 - Six Sigma for electronics design and manufacturing

Six Sigma for Electronics Design and Manufacturing
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acts as a guide to the design team on what areas of design or specifi-
cations to improve, and which others could be left alone.
QFD could be used as a design tool to generate appropriate specifi-
cations for new product designs based on customer expectation and
competitive analysis as well as marketing inputs. An example is given
by Figure 1.3, a modified QFD matrix for the design of a new cable TV
connector by Raychem Corporation. This case study was authored by
Marylin Liner and published in a book edited by the author (Shina,
1994). Only a portion of the matrix is shown for brevity. Several cus-
tomer needs obtained from a survey of cable installers are shown,
with each having an importance rating (not shown). The relationships
are outlined in the top left-hand part of the matrix, with a strong rela-
tionship given a value of 9 instead of the commonly used 5, to empha-
size the strong customer input contribution in the design of the prod-
uct. Some of the product characteristics are shown at the top of the
matrix. The QFD relationship matrix output is the target value of the
design characteristics, where symbolic numbers are shown. The ar-
rows at the bottom show the direction of the enhanced specifications.
One of the product characteristics, the number of installation modes,
scored the highest total for weighted requirements. This indicated a
need for the most important specification change, to a smaller number
indicated by the arrow. Hence, the target value or specification for the
number of installation modes was assigned a 1. Another product char-
acteristic, the force on equipment panel, which also scored high on
weighted requirements, should have its target value or specification
Target
Relationships Values . . . 1 mode x lbs xx dB n steps
Strong = 9 pts Product . . . Installation Force on RF Installation . . .
Medium = 3 pts Characteristics . . . modes Equipment Shielding steps . . .
Weak = 1 pt Panel
Importance
Customer Needs
Clear picture . . .
Easy to tell when installed . . .
Long lifetime . . .
Simple to install . . .

Weighted Requirements . . . 327 314 322 234 . . .
Enhanced Specifications Direction
Figure 1.3 Raychem CATV new connector QFD matrix.