July 14th, 2005

Six Sigma - Lean Acronyms Acronym Web Site

Dictionary Terms & Definitions for Six Sigma & Lean
4 Blocker Project Description, Project Scope, Metrics/Benefits, Project Plan/Timeline
4E Edge Enthusiasm Energy Execution
4M+I Mistaking Proofing - Me (Operator) Materials Machine Method + Information
5S Sort (Seiri), Straighten (Seiton), Shine (Seiso), Standardize (Seiketsu), Sustain (Shitsuke)
5 Whys? Find Root Cause by asking Why? five times.
80/20 Rule Pareto Principal. 20 percent of the defects causing 80 percent of the problems
85/15 Rule 85% of problems only managers can fix. 15% Operators can fix.
AAR After Action Review
APS Advanced Production Scheduling
B vs C Better vs Current
BAT Business Action Team
Big Y’s Why we’re focused on an Activity
Black Belts Leads high Impact PE Projects, Experts trained in DMAIC & Statistical Methods with Project Completion.
BPR Business Process Reengineering
BPx Business Process x = Reengineering, design, improvement, innovation…
CANDO Cleanup Arrange Neatness Discipline Ongoing Improvement
CEDAC Cause and effect with addition of cards
Champion Project Sponsor
CLM Career Limiting Move
CONWIP Constant Work In Progress
COPQ Cost of Poor Quality
CPI Continuous Process Improvement (Kaizen)
CQI Continuous Quality Improvement
CTQ Critical to Quality
DEx Design Excellence
DFSS Design For Six Sigma
DFx Design For (x) assembly, manufacture …
DMADV Define, Measure, Analyze, Design Verification Validate
DMAIC Define Measure Analyze Improve Control
DOE Design of Experiments (Statistical Analyze Term)
DPMO Defects per Million Opportunity
Drum Buffer Rope Monitor inventory at drum, Profile inventory at time buffer, How before inventory is turned into cash.
EMT Executive Management Team (Mike’s Staff)
EPA Every Product Every (interval in days between running a product)
FMEA Failure Modes and Effects Analysis
Gemba Place of Action
Green Belts Leads smaller more focused PE Projects.
GRR Gauge Repeatability Reproducibility
GT Group Technology – Simplify Products
Hawthorn Effect The fact of measuring only improves results.
Heijunka Scheduling in repetitive environment, Manual finite scheduler
Hoshin Policy Development
IDDOV Identify Define Develop Optimize Verify
IS Instrument Systems / Services

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Jidoka Improve Quality
JIT Just In Time - Inventory reduction (Taiichi Ohno)
Job Jar List of Prioritized Projects to be Done
Kaikaku Improvements (large gains) as apposed to Kaizen (small gains)
Kaisen Burst Focused Effort to Resolve a Bottleneck
Kaisen Burst Focused effort to resolve a bottleneck
Kaizen From the Japanese - Continuous Process Improvement
Kamishabi ‘T’ Card display board with a column for each day of the week
Kanban Signaling Devices i.e. out of stock
Kano Kano Factor Dr. Noriaki Kano Basic must be, Performance more is better, delighter excitement
LPO Lean Promotion Office
Master Black Belt Expert at the level to be able to teach PEx.
MBO Management By Objectives
MBWO Management By Walking Around
Milkround Pick up & deliver parts between supply chain members (Water Spider or runner is inside the plant)
MRP Forecast Based System
MSA Measurement System Analysis
MUDA Waste
MURA Unevenness
MURI Unreasonableness
Nemawashi Consensus building
OEE Overall Equipment Effectives
OPT Computer based finite scheduling package developed by Goldratt.
PACER Meeting Management: Purpose Agenda Code of Conduct Expectations Roles
Pareto Pareto Principal. Analysis 80/20 rule. 20 percent of the defects causing 80 percent of the problems
PDCA Plan Do Check Act cycle “The Stewart Cycle”
PE, PEx Product Excellence
Pokayoke Mistake Proofing
POLCA Paired cells Overlapping Loops Of Cards with Authorization
QCC Quality Control Complexity
QFD Quality Function Deployment
QRC Quality and Regulatory Compliance
R&R Repeatability & Reproducibility
RING Shared decision making
ROI Return on Investment
ROP Re Order Point
SILO Service In Logical Order
Silo A tall cylindrical structure, usually beside a barn, in which fodder is stored.
SILS Sequenced In Line Storage
SIPOC Suppliers Inputs Process Outputs Customers
Six Sigma Methodology that attacks Process Variability to Eliminate Defects
SLT Site Leader Team
SMART Synchronous Material Availability Request Ticket (Ford Kanban)
SMART Define: Specific Measurable Actionable Realistic Time Bound
SMED Change over reduction
SPC Statistical Process Control
SS Safety Stock

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ST Safety Lead Time for Safety Stock
STP Straight Through Processing
SWOT Strength Weakness Opportunities Threats
TAT Turn Around Time
TEMBA There exits many better alternatives
Tim Wood Transport Inventory Motion Waiting Over Production Over Processing Defects
TINA There is only one alternative
TOC Theory of Constraints: The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt
TP Thinking Process (Eli Goldratt)
TPM Total Productive Maintenance (Father Taiichi Ohno developed JIT at Toyota))
TPS Toyota Production System
TQM Total Quality Management (By Deming)
TRIZ Russian acronym for Theory of Inventive Problem Solving
VMI Vendor Managed Inventory
VOC Voice of the Customer
VSM Value Steam Mapping
Water Spider Runner pick up & deliver parts inside the plant, light but often (Milkround between plants)
WIP Work In Progress
WPM Workflow Process Model

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