SPC-a team effort for process improvement across four Area Control Centres
This paper describes an innovative application of statistical process control to the online remote control of the UK's gas transportation networks. The gas industry went through a number of changes in ownership, regulation, access to networks, organization and management culture in the 1990s. T...
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Published in | Journal of applied statistics Vol. 28; no. 3-4; pp. 307 - 324 |
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Main Authors | , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Abingdon
Taylor & Francis Group
01.03.2001
Taylor and Francis Journals Taylor & Francis Ltd |
Series | Journal of Applied Statistics |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | This paper describes an innovative application of statistical process control to the online remote control of the UK's gas transportation networks. The gas industry went through a number of changes in ownership, regulation, access to networks, organization and management culture in the 1990s. The application of SPC was motivated by these changes along with the desire to apply the best industrial statistics theory to practical problems. The work was initiated by a studentship, with the technology gradually being transferred to the industry. The combined efforts of control engineers and statisticians helped develop a novel SPC system. Having set up the control limits, a system was devised to automatically update and publish the control charts on a daily basis. The charts and an associated discussion forum are available to both managers and control engineers throughout the country at their desktop PCs. The paper describes methods of involving people to design first-class systems to achieve continual process improvement. It describes how the traditional benefits of SPC can be realized in a 'distal team working', and 'soft systems', context of four Area Control Centres, controlling a system delivering two thirds of the UK's energy needs. |
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ISSN: | 0266-4763 1360-0532 |
DOI: | 10.1080/02664760120034054 |