STATISTICAL QUALITY CONTROL IN THE SINGAPORE ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY

Abstract

The purpose of this academic exercise is to understand and study the techniques of statistical quality control and the extent of its use in the Singapore electronics industry. This study acknowledges and serves to complement the one done by Toh Beng Ann, entitled Quality Control - A case study of techniques and applications in Singapore (1990). The scope of this study covers all common quality control techniques that is applicable to the electronics industry. In addition, other useful techniques and developments in the context of quality control are also introduced to the reader. Certain areas such as the design of experiments and process capability analysis are explored. An islandwide survey on the local electronics industry is included to complement this study and to determine the practical aspects of the quality control techniques discussed. A case study of a leading electronics firm is also presented, so as to give the reader a more comprehensive understanding of the statistical quality control tools used. Emphasis on the various topics are given to the more popular techniques used by Singapore electronics companies, based on the results of the survey. The method of discussion is not a mathematical one and is based solely to introduce the reader to the uses of the various statistical quality control techniques. From the survey, quality control practices in the local electronics industry are concluded as satisfactory in terms of the statistical quality control tools used. Many of the common tools like control charts, checksheets, histograms, etc are widely used. Most firms are also involved in acceptance sampling, with the use of the MIL STD 105D inspection table. However, it is noted that further improvement can be made in the field of experimental design, which is found to be at a low level. An interesting and commendable feature is the high level of awareness among local firms about quality control techniques and the need to consistently manufacture high quality products.