|
Featured Article |
|
|
Are you a pain to your
customers?
By: M. Dreikorn
|
| Our Sponsors
We know the Aviation,
Space, and Defense Industry.
Let
us help your organization to succeed!
|
Visit Our Sponsor
The IPL Group brings
sustainable performance
to AS&D
organizations. Support areas
include:
Back to the basics
training Leadership
development
Integrated process
teams
Knowledge management
Process-based risk
assessments
Supplier
development
Supplier
oversite
Lean/Six-Sigma
Quality
management
Regulatory
support
Auditing
processes
Level III NDT
Operations
support
Project management
Web-based learning
Web-based QMS
Training
People placement
Urgent response
Due diligence
|
Visit Our Sponsor
The Aerospace and
Defense Learning Institute (ADLI) is a 501(c)(3),
not-for-profit organization which is dedicated to the
sustainable knowledge base of the AS&D
industry.
ADLI
also offers think tank services. We bring the
right minds to the specific
challenge.
Sponsorship opportunities
are available.
|
The IPL Group will be at the ASQ
Conference of Quality for the Space and Defense Industry
(CQSDI)
We hope to see you at our booth.
3-4 March,
2008
|
With the average age of an AS&D
professional at 58, how much longer will you be able to
hold on to your workforce?
With all of the
challenges in the AS&D industry regarding the loss
of knowledge, how is your organization dealing with
it?
The
IPL Group offers a process-based approach to
organizational knowledge management. We can help
with immediate and long-term
solutions.
Contact The IPL Group
today to help you manage your critical knowledge
and skills.
|
Did you
receive this newsletter from a friend and would like to
ensure you are on the mailing list. Click the
above button to stay informed on what's going on in the
AS&D industry. It's
FREE!
|
Product Certification
Support
FAA/EASA/DoD
The IPL Group
has demonstrated capabilities in product certification
projects. Regardless of the type of product or
magnitude of certification project, The IPL Group can be
your partner to a successful certification.
|
|
Visit Our Sponsor
The IPL Group can meet
and knowledge transfer and training needs you may
have.
www.TrainingNow.org offers AS&D
relevant training, in-house, public, or over the
internet. New courses are being added, so check
the website for updates.
TrainingNow.org is the Training practice of The
IPL Group, LLC.
|
|
The
more you know the faster you
go.
If
your organization is not actively managing its knowledge
capability then you are running way too slow. Call
or email The IPL Group today to find out how we can help
your organization gain speed through applied knowledge
capability without adding undue complexity.
The power of execution is
in tacit knowledge. We can help you identify and
manage your intellectual
capital.
239.283.2839
No lean journey should ever
occur without learning and capturing learning for future
value.
|
|
Visit Our Sponsor
For
indepenent analysis of issues relating to the aviation,
space and defense industry, consider the Aerospace and
Defense Learning Institute's "Think Tank"
services.
As a
not-for-profit organization, we assemble the right
talent for the issue.
|
U.S.S. New
York
A tribute to 9/11 is
progressing
The bow stem of the USS New York
was cast in 2003 using tons of steel salvaged
from the World Trade Center and the keel was laid in
September 2004.
|
In need of expert witness
services?
Expert
Witness: An expert is a person with
credentials or experience beyond that of the
general public and recognized by the
court.
Michael Dreikorn and Associates have
a demonstrated track record of supporting AS&D
litigation needs. Within the AS&D industry, we
are experts in:
Quality
Regulatory
compliance
Supplier controls
Manufacturing
Maintenance
Log book records
Product
investigation
Contract compliance
We can
also show you how to avoid litigious situations by being
proactive.
|
STS-122
Getting Ready to
GO!
NASA managers formally set the launch of space
shuttle Atlantis for Feb. 7 at 2:45 p.m. EST, pending
analysis of a flexible hose in the shuttle's radiator
cooling system.
|
|
Value-Stream
Risk Assessments (VRSA)
Do You Know
Where The Risk Resides In Your
Value-Stream?
The IPL Group
has developed a robust methodology for understanding
where the real risk resides in an organization's
value-stream. Applying the tools of process
mapping, FMEA, and visual illustration, leadership is
provided the intelligence required to apply informed
action to risk mitigation.
Contact
us today to take the guess work out of value-stream
management.
239.283.2839
|
|
Worldwide Complete Supplier Management
Support
The IPL Group offers complete supplier
management support, to include:
Source
inspection
First
Article Inspections
Level III NDT
support Supplier
auditing
Supplier development
Special process development
Quality plan development
Quality engineering
Product development support
Supplier qualification
Project management
Regulatory compliance
FAA DER
Support
We offer the
highest level of professional support in the AS&D
industry. Give us a call to see how we might
help you.
239.283.2839
Our support services are
offered worldwide.
Offices in:
Bokeelia, Florida
|
| Are you interested in U.S. space
flight? Click below to view the 2008 NASA launch
schedule
(Click here to view
the 2008 NASA launch schedule)
|
|
(P) 1.239.283.2839
(F) 1.239.283.2197
| | |
01
February 2008
AS&D Quality, Safety and
Regulatory
Newsletter
Your
source for professional connection
|
The objective
of this newsletter is to provide perspective to the
Aviation, Space, and Defense (AS&D) industry on
current and relevant quality, safety, and regulatory
matters in our industry.
|
Are you a
pain to your customers?
Obviously the
best method to assess if an organization is meeting its
customers' expectations is through engagement, dialogue,
and measurement.
In such, the organization engages with the
customer to understand how they perceive performance,
then establishes methods of control, measures
performance, and takes appropriate action as the data
dictates.
This is a much easier task if an organization is
delivering products and/or services to a small number of
customers.
But how can an organization establish effective
measures if they have a larger customer base?
Traditionally,
organizations will measure the obvious such as delivery
schedule, internal cost, and quality. Customers will
measure deliver schedule, price, and quality. On the surface,
those would appear to be easy attributes to
measure.
So, let's say the customer complains about the
number of escapes it receives from the
organization.
Subsequently, the organization commits to an
X-percentage in escapes reductions. Again easy
stuff, the organization needs only to perform a Pareto
analysis to find the highest quantity of escapes and
then eliminate such to hit the reduction
target.
We do the same
thing when we attempt to achieve those targets for
six-sigma.
Bring the quantity of escapes or defects down and
your performance numbers improve. But, what about
the perception of the customer? Just because the
organization reduces the numbers of escapes, does not
mean they are doing anything to improve the perception
to or the performance of the customer. So, when
selecting the performance measures that will make a big
time difference, the organization needs to consider the
index of pain related to escapes and near
misses.
For example, the
pain associated with the absence of documentation for a
part delivery is going to be much lower than the pain
associated with a product escape that causes an
in-flight shutdown of an engine. By analyzing the
impact of escapes and potential impact of near misses,
the organization can establish measurements which more
closely align to safety risks and economic impact.
When developing a
pain measurement process, the attributes for measurement
need to be real.
Don't allow the politics of performance
measurement become an undue influence. Ideally, engage
key customers in the assignment of weights to individual
measurements and to encourage buy-in. And, be
consistent.
Meaning, ensure those who are calculating the
measurements are calibrated so that measurement
variability is controlled. By understanding
the level of pain you are giving your customer, and the
associated causes, organizations are not just playing
the numbers game.
But rather, organizations are empowered to apply
the scarce resources of the organization to the issues
that have the greatest influence on customer
satisfaction.
Written by: M.J.
Dreikorn
The IPL Group, LLC
(The IPL
Group provides comprehensive support in all areas
of performance culture development and sustainability of
intellectual capital.)
|
 The following are news links
relevant to quality, safety, and regulatory matters in
the AS&D industry. These are events which
have been reported in the month of January 2008.
As a professional, it's your responsibility to
remain relevant.
Workforce Issues
According to research published earlier
this year by recruitment consultants Angela Mortimer,
the average cost of recruiting a new member of staff
weighs in at a hefty £5000.
"...challenges for recruitment and
retention" but "it should be acknowledged that
recruitment to the armed forces remains robust" with an
increase in the number of people joining the forces.
Six out of 10 new air traffic controllers at Miami
Center, a major radar complex that guides planes in and
out of South Florida, do not receive adequate training -
and that jeopardizes safety.
President George W. Bush discussed the vital role
of military families, including Army Families, during
the Jan. 28 State of the Union address.
 Some shipyards have temporarily
hired foreign laborers, including from Mexico and
countries in Eastern Europe, under a federal program
that allows businesses to obtain so-called H2B visas if
they prove efforts to hire locally were unsuccessful.
 Buying foreign technologies,
hiring foreign lecturers and acquiring foreign syllabi
to train the shipbuilding labor force are vital to
Vietnam's burgeoning shipbuilding industry.
About 71 percent of the Army's 67,398 recruits last
year had at least a high school education, the National
Priorities Project think tank said in a study examining
the traits of new military personnel. That's down from
83.5 percent in 2005.
 In
a move widely seen as evidence of NATO's new strict
approach to its members' non-combat roles in crisis
zones, Germany has been asked to provide 250 combat
troops for a Quick Reaction Force in northern
Afghanistan to replace a 350-strong Norwegian force that
leaves in July.
A new report issued by the Conference Board of
Canada credits it with being the main force behind
Montreal's economy, which is expected to grow by 2.6% in
2008.
With increased life expectancy and rising
healthcare costs, individuals are faced with growing
challenges in maintaining their quality of health and
lifestyle in living to older ages.
 South Korea proposes to spend
more than 11 billion dollars this year on state
programmes to raise the birthrate and cope with a
rapidly ageing society.
Regulatory/Safety Issues
EASA to
rule on Bulgarian aviation (EU)
 By
the end of the month Bulgaria should receive the report
of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the condition
of Bulgarian aviation.
The Federal Aviation Administration has
completed its second look at a recent runway incursion
incident at San Diego International Airport/Lindbergh
Field, and placed the blame on a mistake by an air
traffic controller.
Air-traffic controllers who last year raved about
the potential safety improvements offered by a new
ground radar system at O'Hare International Airport have
done an abrupt about-face, characterizing the
technology as an accident waiting to happen.
FAA issues rules for
Mitsubishi planes (USA)
Following a series of accidents involving a
Mitsubishi-made plane, government regulators on Monday
finalized tighter rules for training pilots who fly the
turboprops.
Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz
announced Monday that he has adopted the recommendations
of the Lapidot Commission report on aviation safety
failures in Israel, and convened a "safety in flight"
forum at Ben Gurion International Airport to discuss the
report's findings.
Aviation summit sets
safety roadmap (UAE)
The Middle East Aviation Safety Summit has set up
an agenda for implementing a safety roadmap.
The downgrading by the FAA of the Philippine
aviation industry to "Category 2" status has drawn calls
from the country's government to revisit the rating in
90 days.
Progress being made
on airport safety (USA)
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is moving
ahead on short-term actions designed to improve safety
at U.S. airports, but recent incidents of runway
incursions and wrong way departures shows that further
steps are needed.
The European Aviation Security Association,
representing private aviation security providers
welcomes the compromise reached between the European
Parliament and the Council of the European
Union.
 The
United States will help Vietnam upgrade aviation
security to enable state-run carrier Vietnam Airlines to
launch direct flights to the United
States.
Philippine Congress approved a bill
authorizing the creation of a Civil Aviation Authority
(CAA) as part of efforts to improve the Philippines'
aviation safety standards.
Civil
Aviation
British Airways, the biggest airline at
Heathrow, said BAA, the airport operator, was
seeking to delay the introduction of improved customer
service quality targets by up to two years.
A much-lauded safety program at American Airlines
is at risk of being eliminated amid the latest dispute
between pilots and airline officials.
O'Hare International Airport is the titleholder for
both late and never. Once the "world's busiest airport,"
O'Hare now claims "world's most cancellations.
The administration's plan is a multi-departmental
effort that includes a bill that will establish a new
loan program in the Department of Commerce, Community
& Economic Development.
The UK general aviation (GA) community is bracing
itself for a bitter and protracted battle with 27
European Union member states.
An Indonesian low-cost airline is facing a
searching examination by air safety officials as it
attempts to fly international routes from
Australia.
Indonesia is planning to rapidly improve aviation
safety at select airlines in order to get a European
Union ban on the country's carriers lifted.
BA engines 'did not
cut out completely' (UK)
Both engines of the British Airways
jet that crash-landed at Heathrow were still running
when it came down.
 The
European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said that of the
18 out of 27 planes investigated, fully 16 were found to
have defects or lacking filters in the hydraulic
system.
The safety of hundreds of passengers
travelling aboard Melbourne-bound aircraft has again
been jeopardised by laser beams aimed at
pilots.
Maritime
 Sailors aboard High Speed Vessel
Swift (HSV 2) repaired a Pilot Research Moored Array in
the Atlantic (PIRATA) buoy Jan. 25, as part of an
ongoing effort of Africa Partnership Station (APS) to
support the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) and its programs to collect
environmental readings in the Gulf of Guinea.
Power+Energy has delivered is largest hydrogen
separation membrane assembly to the Naval Surface
Warfare Center (NSWC) in Philadelphia.
Defense
Iran enjoys modern
defense equipment (Iran)
Iran's
defense minister says the high quality of
domestically-made defense equipment has rendered
sanctions against the country ineffective.
S. African specialist armoured
and mine-protected vehicle design and manufacturing
company BAE Systems Land Systems OMC (Land Systems OMC)
has yet again had the quality of its designs endorsed by
the US Army, and, as a consequence, is set to earn
several millions of dollars (not rands) in
royalties.
Space
Gen. Col. Vladimir Popovkin, commander
of the Russian aerospace forces, expressed
concern about the Russian aerospace industry and
its ability to produce high-quality intelligence
apparatus in a timely manner.
The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel
will hold its 1st Quarterly Meeting for 2008. This
discussion is pursuant to carrying out its statutory
duties for which the Panel reviews, identifies,
evaluates, and advises on those program activities,
systems, procedures, and management activities that can
contribute to program risk.
Blast investigation
delays rocket engine work for SpaceShipTwo
(USA)
 An
ongoing investigation into a fatal explosion last summer
has delayed rocket engine development for the passenger
spacecraft SpaceShipTwo.
Continuing problems with its Visible/Infrared
Imager/Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) will delay launch of the
NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) from 2009 until
mid-2010.
National
Environmental Policy Act: Constellation Program (USA)
 The focus of the Constellation
Program is the development of the flight systems and
Earth-based ground infrastructure required to enable the
United States to have continued access to space and to
enable future human missions to the International Space
Station, the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
 Future thrill-seekers will ride a
sleek spacecraft berthed under a massive, twin-boom
mothership to the fringe of space in a design unveiled
Wednesday by Virgin
Galactic. |
AS&D
Events
The
following is a listing of upcoming events relevant to
the AS&D industry.
|
|
This newsletter is brought to you by The IPL Group,
LLC. We hope you find the content informative and
useful. If there are other features of this
newsletter that you would like to see, let us
know. The power of our industry is not solely
driven by mechanical means, it is our intellectual base
which brings innovation and strength.
Sincerely,
Michael
Dreikorn
President The IPL
Group, LLC
| | |
