Layered Process Audits - Recommended Reading?

[Crusader]

I have been searching the Cove for LPA's and I have learned a few things. But does anyone know of a really good book to purchase?

[Howard Atkins]

There is a guidline from AIAG, $50 if you are not a member for 30 pages.
They also have an even more expensive workbook
There are some good presentations in the attachments. Let us write the book with our discussions.
I understand your feeliongs for a book but I don't think there is a "really good" one
What do you want to ask, let's try

[Crusader]

Originally Posted by Howard Atkins

There is a guidline from AIAG, $50 if you are not a member for 30 pages.
They also have an even more expensive workbook
There are some good presentations in the attachments. Let us write the book with our discussions.
I understand your feeliongs for a book but I don't think there is a "really good" one
What do you want to ask, let's try

Well. I didn't know LPA's existed until I was perusing the auditing threads. Then I was wondering... what is an LPA and how does it differ from an internal audit? So then I searched for that in the Cove and found out some more....so hence my question about finding a "good book". I just want to read and learn....self-training.

[AndyN]

It's an interesting story, some of which I have here.......

DaimlerChrysler has a new transmission plant in Kokomo, IN. When they launched the plant the product only had an FTC of about 47%. The (then new) Manufacturing EVP (Tom LaSworda) of DCX had used LPA's at GM (can't remember why, I was told but I've lost that detail!).

The LPA's at Kokomo increased the FTC to 95% and showed that assembly workers didn't follow their work instructions. As a result, DCX made it a requirement of their suppliers to do LPA's to feel the benefit........

As mentioned before, there's an AIAG Guideline on LPA. It states that industry data shows poor quality comes from people not following instructions, so LPA's ensure that they do.

To me this seems to be flawed data and doesn't consider one or two key points which should be addressed: -

The 'Hawthorne Factor' - the well documented issue that people do better if they think someone's watching.

Deming's teachings which tell us that fear should be driven out of the workplace (how do you feel about being watched by the bosses' bosses) and that a defective process produces defects, no matter what the operator does. (The famous 'red bead' experiment).

Who said the work instructions can be followed? Who wrote them? Expeience shows W.I's are often ficticious and written by one group of people (engineers) for another group of people (operators).

And......who launched a product with only a 47% FTC - what happened to the APQP process???????

Whoops.....

Andy

[Jim Wynne]

What is "FTC"?

[moiraknows]

Thanks for asking that question Jim, I thought I was the only one in the dark!

[Jim Wynne]

Originally Posted by moiraknows

Thanks for asking that question Jim, I thought I was the only one in the dark!

No, I think there are lots of us here where the light doesn't shine

[student]

This is what I know about FTC:
Freedom Technologies Corporation
This is a leading provider of error proofing solutions in the automotive industry.