International Team Excellence Award

Case Studies

Ford Team Uses Six Sigma to Reduce Costs While Improving Environmental Impact (PDF, 332 KB)
A cross-functional team at a Ford Motor Co. site in Saarlouis, Germany, used Six Sigma to reduce paint expenditures, achieving a $2 million annual savings.
December 2011

Ford Team Project Builds Relationships, ImprovesQuality (PDF, 427 KB) 
When pre-launch reviews of the Ford Fiesta pointed to concerns about the quality of the vehicle's carpet, a team of Six Sigma Black Belts turned to design of experiments (DOE) to improve the carpet manufacturing process. The team redesigned the process in just two weeks, improving carpet quality and strengthening Ford's relationship with the supplier. 
September 2011

Reducing Check Returns With Six Sigma (PDF, 681 KB)
A Firstsource Advantage cross-functional team used Six Sigma to reduce the check return rate for a top client by more than 20 percent over a six-month period.
April 2011

Service Provider Improves Client's Metrics With Six Sigma (PDF, 480 KB)
Firstsource Solutions used Six Sigma to reduce a retail mortgage client's turnaround time to approve applications, boosting the client's revenue by 6.9 million pounds.
April 2011

No Evil Lasts More Than 96 Hours (PDF, 342 KB)
Using Six Sigma and quality tools, a Movistar Argentina improvement team reduced defects in the posting of customer payments by 50 percent, shortened the time needed to post payments from seven minutes to three seconds, decreased average allocation time from five to two days, and reduced rework by 68 percent.
March 2011

Barnes-Jewish Hospital Enhances Quality Patient Care by Embracing Lean (PDF, 530 KB)
The organization-wide lean curriculum at Barnes-Jewish Hospital combines an education program for all employees with focused improvements in value streams.
November 2010

Negative Press Motivates Impossible Mission (PDF, 390 KB)
Telefónica’s Impossible Mission team used a Six Sigma approach to increase on-time payments to media suppliers from two percent to 97.5 percent.
November 2010

Quality Revolution Reduces Defects, Drives Sales Growth at 3M (PDF, 392 KB)
By combining Lean Six Sigma and a Top-200 customer focus, 3M improved its belt fabrication processes. The improvement team reduced defects in parts per million by a factor of 28 times as sales increased by 54 percent.
November 2010

Teaming Up With Six Sigma to Improve Accuracy and Customer Satisfaction (PDF, 326 KB)
A Firstsource Solutions Six Sigma improvement team used the define, measure, analyze, improve, and control (DMAIC) approach to improve accuracy rates for a client’s enrollment forms. The client passed a regulatory audit, avoiding a financial penalty, and the team became a finalist in the 2009-10 International Team Excellence Award competition.
November 2010

Six Sigma Improves Productivity, Adds Financial Value (PDF, 588 KB)
Using a team-based Six Sigma approach, Firstsource Advantage improved collection call center productivity and added $250,000 in financial benefits. The improvement team earned finalist honors in the 2009-10 International Team Excellence Award competition.
November 2010

Critical Elements for Major Improvements
The MEDRAD packaging area’s Critical Elements improvement team used Six Sigma, brainstorming techniques, and a solution priority chart to reduce annual expenses by $160,000, eliminate excessive overtime, and reduce reliance on temporary workers.
September 2010

It’s a Matter of Time: Ship Servicers Use Quick Kaizen to Shorten Long Turnaround (PDF, 236 KB)
A team at the Yokosuka Calibration Laboratory, U.S. Naval Ship Repair Facility and Japan Regional Maintenance Center, used a series of kaizen events to shorten service lead time by 68 percent. The team qualified as a finalist in ASQ’s 2008 International Team Excellence Award process.
November 2009.

Piecing Things Together: Better Materials Organization Improves Ship Repair Service (PDF, 276 KB)
Employees at the Sasebo production shop of the U.S. Naval Ship Repair Facility and Japan Regional Maintenance Center used a lean 5S approach to establish a new way of managing their materials inventory. The team reduced time spent looking for parts by 80 percent and qualified as finalists in ASQ’s 2008 International Team Excellence Award process.
November 2009.

Texas District Uses Peer Assessments to Measure Scorecard Achievement (PDF, 194 KB)
The Aldine Independent School District’s peer review assessment model has received state and national recognition as a best practice for performance improvement. The model helps the district gauge the level of deployment for strategic goals, objectives, and action plans.
October 2009.

Optimizing Purchasing Processes Saves $1 Million (PDF, 258 KB)
Can a change in purchasing processes for the most basic manufacturing components, like bolts, actually lead to $1 million in savings? For an MWM INTERNATIONAL Motores Six Sigma improvement team, the answer is a resounding yes.
July 2009

Three improvement teams from the Singapore Housing and Development Board (HDB) qualified as finalists in ASQ’s 2008 International Team Excellence Award process.
June 2009

R. L. Polk & Co.: Making Every Issue the Only Issue (PDF, 191 KB)
Annual customer surveys for R. L. Polk & Co. identified opportunities for improvement in customer contact and issue resolution. By following the same steps for every issue and performing full root cause analysis for 100 percent of issues, Polk increased operational excellence and improved customer satisfaction.
February 2009.

Improving Productivity Through Lean Six Sigma Warehouse Design (PDF, 190 KB)
A Lean Six Sigma improvement team at New Breed Logistics employed quality tools such as value stream mapping, PICK charts, and the 5 Whys to increase product flow and meet customers’ packaging requirements. As a result, overtime decreased by 30 percent, productivity increased 5 percent, shipping accuracy reached 100 percent, and customer satisfaction improved, leading to additional business.
February 2009.

Medical Device Manufacturer's Continuous Improvement Approach Reduces Errors in Records (PDF, 236 KB)
Using a three-tiered approach that included technology-, process-, and people-related solutions, MEDRAD reduced errors in product history records by 26 percent.
February 2009.

Streamlined Enrollment Nets Big Results for Healthcare Leader (PDF, 193 KB)
Kaiser Permanente Colorado used Lean Six Sigma to evaluate and improve Medicaid enrollment processes. A three-month project resulted in a 45 percent gain in Medicaid membership while increasing Medicaid revenue by more than $1 million annually.
January 2009.

Contacts That Count (PDF, 205 KB)
Instant online access for ASQ members and subscribers.
A process improvement team used Lean Six Sigma tools to improve member contact rates by 65% at a healthcare support company. The effort earned the team a silver award in ASQ’s International Team Excellence competition.
January 2009.

On the Right Track: Rail Company Reduces Expenses with Six Sigma (PDF, 182 KB)
An improvement team at rail company CSX Transportation qualified as a finalist for ASQ’s 2008 International Team Excellence Award with a project focusing on train and engine expenses and accuracy in employee pay. The Six Sigma project led to annual savings of $1.4 million, with further reductions in waste resulting in $5.1 million in savings in 2007.  
September 2008.

Incredible Journey (PDF, 406 KB)
Instant online access for ASQ members and subscribers.
To eradicate injury rates and workers’ compensation costs, a Boeing C-17 team embarked on a world-class safety journey. Brainstorming, benchmarking and fishbone diagrams helped identify root causes and the solution.
June 2008. 

It All Ties Together (PDF, 541 KB)
A locomotive company refused to sit idly by, knowing a significant amount of diesel fuel was being wasted. Using quality tools, a company team found a way to conserve fuel and save millions of dollars. The team earned the Bronze Award at the 2007 International Team Excellence Competition.
May 2008.

A Gold Medal Solution (PDF, 148 KB)
Instant online access for ASQ members and subscribers
Boeing's C-17 stuffed tailcone team took home a prize for eradicating unsafe working conditions. The final solution eliminated safety hazards and reduced budget hours by more than 300%
March 2008.

Quality Tools, Teamwork Lead Boeing Team to a System Redesign (PDF, 191 KB)
A team from Boeing, as well as members of the Air Force and suppliers, worked to fix the C-17's inert gas generating system that previously needed constant repairs. The outcome was a 7,400% increase in system reliability and reduced initialization time.  The group was one of three teams to earn a silver medal in the 2007 International Team Excellence Competition.
November 2007.

Agency Files Away Inefficiency, Saves Taxpayers a Bundle (PDF, 228 KB)
One of the three silver medal winners in the 2007 International Team Excellence Competition created a solution that has the potential to save Florida taxpayers more than $18 million over time.
October 2007.

Employees Fuel Productivity Gains, Enhanced Service at U.S.–Japan Shipyards
This collection of case studies highlights several successful quality-improvement initiatives at the U.S. Naval Ship Repair Facility and Japan Regional Maintenance Center (SRF-JRMC) Yokosuka and its Sasebo detachment. Using quality tools and techniques, workers have made significant improvements to many key processes and facilities.
April 2007.

Siemens VDO Optimizes Processes Using Six Sigma (PDF, 185 KB)
Six Sigma is one of five pillars supporting the Siemens VDO quality strategy. The company earned global recognition for its use of Six Sigma when one project team earned the Bronze Award in the 2006 International Team Excellence Award competition.
February 2007.

Case Study: Reliance Industries Limited Wins Team Excellence Award Competition (PDF, 262 KB)
See how a team from India used quality tools to reduce waste and production costs while creating a cleaner environment.
November 2006.

Regional Team Approach Helps Energy Company Enhance Safety, Avoid Costs (PDF, 165 KB)
Xcel Energy’s Denver operation reduced accidents by 48% in one year and saved the company an estimated $714,000 over a 24-month period.
August 2006.

Baxter International Wins Team Excellence Award Competition (PDF, 126 KB)
Implementation of Lean techniques results in more than 70% improvement in overall cycle time.
Summer 2005.

2005 Gold Winner - Baxter International Case Study (PDF, 575 KB)

2005 Silver Winner - Reliance Industries Case Study (PDF, 288 KB)

2005 Bronze Winner - United Space Alliance Case Study (PDF, 137 KB)

Fidelity Wide Processing Wins Team Excellence Award Competition (PDF, 103 KB)
Continuous improvement journey boosts profits while fostering employee engagement.
Summer 2004.