Make the Most of QFD and the Voice of the Customer in Six Sigma Environments Quality Function Deployment (QFD) techniques have helped thousands of organizations deliver higher-quality, more user-focused product designs. Now, Lou Cohen’s classic guide to QFD has been thoroughly updated to fully align QFD with Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) and other state-of-the-art Six Sigma methodologies. Revised by world-class Six Sigma expert Joe Ficalora and his team at Sigma Breakthrough Technologies, this new edition’s up-to-date perspective on QFD reflects dozens of successful Six Sigma and DFSS deployments. They offer a start-to-finish methodology for implementing QFD, and systematically illuminate powerful linkages between QFD and Six Sigma, DFSS, Marketing for Six Sigma (MFSS), and Technology for Six Sigma (TFSS). An expanded, start-to-finish case study demonstrates how QFD should function from all angles, from design and marketing to technology and service. Learn how to Identify the roles and advantages of QFD in today’s global business environment Understand every element of the House of Quality (HOQ) Use QFD to drive more competitive product and service development Move from the processes you have to the processes you want Anticipate QFD’s unique challenges, overcome its obstacles, and deploy it successfully Extend the HOQ concept all the way through project completion Deploy powerful Voice of the Customer (VOC) techniques throughout all phases of development, not just planning Adapt QFD for software development, service development, and organizational planning Whether you’re working in operations, engineering, marketing, technology, or service development, this book will help you drive maximum value from all your Six Sigma, QFD, VOC, and DFSS investments.

Table of Contents:
Foreword    xv Preface      xvii Acknowledgments    xxiii About the Authors    xxv Part I: ABOUT QUALITY FUNCTION DEPLOYMENT AND SIX SIGMA    1 Chapter 1: What Are QFD and Six Sigma?    3 1.1   Brief Capsule Description 3 1.2   What Is Six Sigma? 10 1.3   History of QFD and Six Sigma 19 1.4   What Is QFD Being Used for Today? 27 1.5   Discussion Questions 29 Chapter 2: How QFD Fits in the Organization    31 2.1   The Challenge to the Organization 32 2.2   Increasing Revenues 34 2.3   Decreasing Costs 35 2.4   Dealing with Market Shifts and Cycle-Time Reduction 36 2.5   Challenges to Rapid Product Development 38 2.6   QFD’s Role as Communication Tool 43 2.7   Concurrent Engineering: A Paradigm Shift 44 2.8   Kano’s Model 47 2.9   The Lessons of Kano’s Model 52 2.10 Summary 53 2.11 Discussion Questions 53 Chapter 3: Tying QFD to Design, Marketing, and Technology 55 3.1   QFD and Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) 56 3.2   QFD and Six Sigma Process Design 63 3.3   QFD and Marketing for Six Sigma 67 3.4   QFD and Technology for Six Sigma 69 3.5   Summary 75 3.6   Discussion Questions 76 Part II: QFD AT GROUND LEVEL    77 Chapter 4: Support Tools for QFD    79 4.1   The Seven Management and Planning Tools 80 4.2   Affinity Diagram 81 4.3   Tree Diagram 89 4.4   The Matrix Diagram 91 4.5   The Prioritization Matrix 93 4.6   Additional Tools for QFD Practitioners from Six Sigma 97 4.7   Summary 109 4.8   Discussion Questions 109 Chapter 5: Overview of the House of Quality    113 5.1   Tour of the House of Quality 114 5.2   Summary 118 5.3   Discussion Questions 119 Chapter 6: Customer Needs and Benefits Section    121 6.1   Gather the Voice of the Customer 123 6.2   Sort the Voice of the Customer into Major Categories 126 6.3   Structure the Needs 137 6.4   Summary 139 6.5   Discussion Questions 140 Chapter 7: The Product Planning Matrix    141 7.1   Importance to the Customer 144 7.2   Customer Satisfaction Performance 151 7.3   Competitive Satisfaction Performance 154 7.4   Goal and Improvement Ratio 158 7.5   Sales Point 162 7.6   Raw Weight 164 7.7   Normalized Raw Weight 166 7.8   Cumulative Normalized Raw Weight 168 7.9   Summary 170 7.10 Discussion Questions 171 Chapter 8: Substitute Quality Characteristics (Technical Response)    173 8.1   Top Level Performance Measurements 176 8.2   Product Functions 181 8.3   Product Subsystems 184 8.4   Process Steps 186 8.5   Summary 189 8.6   Discussion Questions 190 Chapter 9: Impacts, Relationships, and Priorities    191 9.1   Amount of Impact 192 9.2   Impact Values 196 9.3   Priorities of Substitute Quality Characteristics 197 9.4   Negative Impacts 198 9.5   Many-to-Many Relationships 200 9.6   Summary 202 9.7   Discussion Questions 202 Chapter 10: Technical Correlations    203 10.1   Meaning of Technical Correlations 203 10.2   Responsibility and Communication 206 10.3   Correlations Network 207 10.4   Other Considerations 209 10.5   Summary 210 10.6   Discussion Questions 210 Chapter 11: Technical Benchmarks    211 11.1   Benchmarking Performance Measures 213 11.2   Benchmarking Functionality 214 11.3   Summary 215 11.4   Discussion Questions 215 Chapter 12: Targets    217 12.1   Numerical Targets 219 12.2   Nonnumeric Targets 223 12.3   Summary 225 12.4   Discussion Questions 226 Part III: QFD FROM 10,000 FEET    227 Chapter 13: The Larger Picture: QFD and Its Relationship to the Product Development Cycle 229 13.1   Cross-Functional Communication 230 13.2   Enhanced QFD and Concept Selection 232 13.3   Robustness of Product or Service 240 13.4   Summary 242 13.5   Discussion Questions 243 Chapter 14: QFD in an Imperfect World    245 14.1   Marketing Functions in Engineering-Driven Environments 246 14.2   Engineering Functions in Marketing-Driven Environments 247 14.3   QFD in Engineering-Driven Organizations 248 14.4   QFD in Marketing-Driven Organizations 250 14.5   Manufacturing and QFD 251 14.6   Sales and QFD 251 14.7   Service and QFD 252 14.8   Exerting Influence Beyond Organizational Barriers 253 14.9   Summary 255 14.10 Discussion Questions 256 Part IV: QFD HANDBOOK    257 Chapter 15: Introduction to the Handbook    259 15.1   The QFD Manager’s Role 261 15.2   Summary 262 Chapter 16: Phase 0: Planning QFD    263 16.1   Establish Organizational Support 264 16.2   Determine Objectives 265 16.3   Decide on the Customer 266 16.4   Decide on the Time Horizon 277 16.5   Decide on the Product Scope 278 16.6   Decide on the Team and Its Relationship to the Organization 279 16.7   Create a Schedule for the QFD 281 16.8   Acquire the Facilities and Materials 297 16.9   Summary 300 16.10 Discussion Questions 301 Chapter 17: Phase 1: Gathering the Voice of the Customer    303 17.1   Voice of the Customer Overview 304 17.2   Qualitative Data and Quantitative Data 308 17.3   Gathering Qualitative Data 309 17.4   Reactive Versus Proactive Modes 334 17.5   Analyzing Customer Data 335 17.6   Quantifying the Data 337 17.7   Classifying Customer Needs 338 17.8   Summary 343 17.9   Discussion Questions 344 Chapter 18: Phase 2 and Phase 3: Building the House and Analysis    345 18.1   Sequencing of Events 345 18.2   Group Processes/Consensus Processes 350 18.3   Summary 354 18.4   Discussion Questions 354 Part V: BEYOND THE HOUSE OF QUALITY    355 Chapter 19: Beyond the House of Quality    357 19.1   The Clausing Four-Phase Model 359 19.2   The Akao Matrix of Matrices 363 19.3   Summary 366 19.4   Discussion Questions 367 Chapter 20: Special Applications of QFD    369 20.1   QFD in DFSS Environments 369 20.2   Total Quality Management 373 20.3   Strategic Product Planning 374 20.4   Organizational Planning 378 20.5   Cost Deployment 381 20.6   Software Development 382 20.7   QFD for the Service Industry 384 20.8   QFD and TRIZ Environments 386 20.9   Summary 387 20.10 Discussion Questions 388 Chapter 21: QFD in Service Businesses    389 21.1   QFD in a Residential Solar-Power Installation 392 21.2   VOC and QFD in an Urban Coffeehouse Renewal 421 21.3   Discussion Questions 434 Index    435