BAE SYSTEMS Achieving Excellence with Lean Sigma
states , “ Our culture focuses not on what we do , but on how we do it . If we focus on the how , the future that we wish to attain will follow . We have a culture of total performance ; a commitment to the highest standards in every aspect of the way we do business .”
One arm of its total performance strategy centres on lean six-sigma – a principle the business has adopted and endorsed for some time .
Six-sigma methodology Developed by Motorola in 1986 , six-sigma is a world-class , process improvement and problem solving methodology . It seeks to improve the quality of process outputs by identifying and removing the causes of defects and minimizing variability
‘ The concept of merging lean and six sigma can be traced back to 1997 when BAE Systems combined both principles ’ in manufacturing processes . It uses a set of quality management methods , including statistical methods , and creates a special infrastructure of people within an organization - Champions , Black Belts , Green Belts , Yellow Belts , etc . - who are experts in their fields . Those experts help teach fellow employees , problem solve and innovate processes when required by the business .
Each six-sigma project carried out within an organization follows a defined sequence of steps and has quantified value targets , for example : reduce process cycle time , reduce pollution , reduce costs , increase customer satisfaction , and increase profits .
BAE Systems Taranis is an unmanned combat aircraft system advanced technology demonstrator programme
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