Littelfuse to Showcase Lean/Six Sigma Solution at Global ASQ Competition

Defect-free throughput illustrates commitment to continuous improvement

2009-05-12 16:00:00

CHICAGO, Illinois, May 12, 2009 – A quality team from the Littelfuse, Inc. manufacturing facility in the Philippines will showcase the electronics manufacturer’s commitment to quality and continuous improvement when the team competes in the 2009 International Team Excellence Award competition, part of the World Conference on Quality and Improvement, scheduled for May 18-20 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

The Square Nano Quality Project Team of Littelfuse’s Lipa facility will illustrate how it has applied Lean/Six Sigma methodology to eliminate the chance of loose caps in square Nano fuses.

As part of this competition sponsored by the American Society for Quality (ASQ), the Littelfuse team will demonstrate how it leveraged the “factory within a factory” model and applied an arsenal of quality tools to reduce chemical handling, improve cap-retention strength by 166 percent, reduce cycle time by 52 percent and trim manufacturing costs by 9 percent.

The Littelfuse team developed a unique manufacturing process to guarantee the reliability of smaller fuses, relying in part on providing slotted fuse bodies to ensure the consistency and reliability of solder bonds built into the fuse.

A full description of the design and process is addressed in U.S. Patent Application 20090072943.

The Littelfuse team will make its ASQ presentation along with teams from such companies as Alcoa, Anheuser-Busch and The Boeing Company. Since 1985, more than 800 teams from around the globe have competed in the competition.

Members of the Littelfuse team are Albert Enriquez, Square Nano Department Manager; Edwin Silvederio, Assistant Product Manager; Ernesto Manuel Jr., Product Engineer; Agustin de Guzman, Process Engineer; Edwin Aberin, Maintenance Engineer; Ronald Auza, Continuous Improvement Project Manager; Josephine Tablada, Department Manager; Zorayda Zordilla, Continuous Improvement Manager; and Eduardo Bagadiong, Plant Manager.

Dennis Craig, Littelfuse Director of Global Operations and Lean Enterprise, is credited with spurring the quality advancement at the electronics manufacturer by establishing the Littelfuse EBU Manufacturing Mission and Strategy, which applies such now iconic quality tools as Six Sigma and Lean Enterprise.

“These tools are a means to achieve our mission as being recognized as a world-class manufacturing company,” said Dan Onken, Littelfuse Director of Asia Operations. “It is noteworthy that the project being presented is just one of several that could have been selected for the competition. Theirs is not a one-time Six Sigma event. Rather, it reflects the continuous-improvement culture within the plant and throughout the corporation.”

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About Littelfuse
As the worldwide leader in circuit protection products and solutions with annual sales of $531 million in 2008, the Littelfuse portfolio is backed by industry leading technical support, design and manufacturing expertise. Littelfuse products are vital components in virtually every product that uses electrical energy, including automobiles, computers, consumer electronics, handheld devices, industrial equipment, and telecom/datacom circuits. Littelfuse offers Teccor®, Wickmann® and Pudenz® brand circuit protection products. In addition to its Des Plaines, Illinois, world headquarters, Littelfuse has sales, distribution, manufacturing and engineering facilities in Brazil, China, England, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and the U.S.

For more information, please visit Littelfuse’s web site at www.littelfuse.com.


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