Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Moderator/Coordinator – Don Klesser

SCA Packaging-North America, Plant Tour & Dinner

SCA Packaging has graciously volunteered to host this event. The plant was formerly Tuscarora Plastics, and was purchased by SCA Packaging about 4 years ago. The facility primarily manufactures polystyrene packaging for its' customers. Other products include ICF blocks for construction of new buildings and floats. The session will include a presentation on the company's plans for Continuous Improvement and the housekeeping scorecard program, and a tour of the manufacturing facility, integrated materials, pre-expanding and warehouse areas.

Location:  SCA Packaging, New Brighton, PA

Cost: Inclusive cost is $18:00 per person. Payment is by cash or check at the door.

Tour & Dinner : 5:30pm – 8:00pm Attire is Business Casual.

A RESERVATION IS REQUIRED FOR ATTENDANCE. ALSO, PLEASE, NO CANCELLATIONS AFTER AUGUST 18.

To reserve your seat to this session, please send an email with the following information to WCopeland@hydrogenllc.com by Friday, August 18th.

Name: ______________________________

Title: _____________________________

Company Name: ______________________

Preferred email address for confirmation: ______________________

We will return a confirmation of your reservation and additional information.

DIRECTIONS TO SCA PACKAGING FROM PITTSBURGH…

Route 65 North to New Brighton, and in town, turn right onto 9th Street. Go straight at the traffic light; and then up the hill. On the way down the hill, stay to the right at the "Y" in the road. Go straight through the next traffic light, and you will come to a "T" in the road - Turn left onto Blockhouse Run Road. The plant is approximately 100 yards and on the left hand side. There is a parking lot for cars with tractor trailers in the docks. Pull into the parking lot and walk across the lot to the entry door. There will be someone inside to direct you.

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Pizza Networking Event - LeanSigma Focus Group

Location: Roberto's Pizzeria located in Bellevue at 516 Lincoln Avenue.

Meeting Time: 6:00 – ???

If you think you may want to attend, please let Bill Copeland WCopeland@hydrogenllc.com know so that we can get an initial count for planning purposes.

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Dinner Meeting - LeanSigma Focus Group

Topic: Experiences Implementing 5S

Location: Highland Country Club

Meeting Time: 5:30 – 8:00pm

The presentation includes a description and results from the May meeting held at Thermo Electron, and also other presenters will describe their experiences with implementing 5S at their sites. Contact Bill Copeland at WCopeland@hydrogenllc.com for reservations.

The cost is $25.00 per person. Attire is Business Casual.

Directions: I-279, Bellvue/West View exit, follow Gass Road to Highland Ave.

To reserve your seat to this session, please send an email, by Monday, June 19th, with the following information to WCopeland@hydrogenllc.com.

Name: ______________________________

Title: _____________________________

Company Name: ______________________

Preferred email address for confirmation: ______________________

We will return a confirmation of your reservation and additional information.

A RESERVATION IS REQUIRED FOR ATTENDANCE.

ALSO, PLEASE, NO CANCELLATIONS AFTER JUNE 19th.

Thursday, May 25, 2006

Meeting - LeanSigma Focus Group

Topic: Hands-on 5S Exercise in a Manufacturing Environment

Location: Thermo Electron Company

Meeting Time: 1:00 pm – 5:00pm

The May event will be a hands-on 5S exercise in a manufacturing environment. This is a limited participation event being held at Thermo Electron Company on Thursday, May 25 between 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. The attendance is limited to 10 participants and if you have an interest, contact Bill Copeland at WCopeland@hydrogenllc.com by May 18 for details.

Meeting Location: Thermo Electron Company 171 Industry Drive, Pittsburgh

A RESERVATION IS REQUIRED FOR ATTENDANCE.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Moderator/Coordinator – Hank Sobah

Employee Training Programs: Conforming to the Letter and Spirit of ISO, Reducing Variation in Training Outcomes, and Building Objective Evidence that Your Training Programs are Effective

Presenter: Doug Hagy

Location: Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania

• Doug will provide training performance criteria that dispel misconceptions about ISO QMS compliance.
• He will present a training framework that ensures learning objectives are met, business goals are achieved, and training efficacy can be concretely demonstrated to senior management and quality management system auditors.
• He will show you ways to design training programs that perform well.
• He will show you ways to measure performance of training programs.
• He will show you how to build a body of objective evidence that your training programs are effective.

• Even if you don't have direct responsibility for employee training.
• Even if you don't have ISO requirements for assessing the effectiveness of your training programs.
• You'll still want to participate; to gain insight about ways training can be designed and delivered for maximum impact.

Cost: $22.50 advance reservation (ESWP 412-261-4300) / $25.00 at the door.

Social Hour: 6:30pm – 6:45pm

Dinner: 6:45pm – 7:30pm

Program: 7:30pm – 8:30pm

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Dinner Meeting - LeanSigma Focus Group

Topic: 5S - One Pillar of the Lean Organization

Presenter: Don Klesser, V.P. - Continuous Improvement and Quality for PTC Alliance

Location: Highland Country Club

Meeting Time: 5:30 – 8:00pm

The 5S process is a fundamental tool of Lean Manufacturing. Organizations undertaking 5S find that, by itself, it reduces process wastes, and provides a solid foundation for deeper Lean Manufacturing implementation. This presentation will describe the 5S process and its benefits, and will include an exercise.

The inclusive cost is $25.00 per person. Payment is by cash or check at the door. Attire is Business Casual.

To reserve your seat to this session, please send an email with the following information to WCopeland@hydrogenllc.com by Friday, April 21st.

Name: ______________________________

Title: _____________________________

Company Name: ______________________

Preferred email address for confirmation: ______________________

We will return a confirmation of your reservation and additional information.

A RESERVATION IS REQUIRED FOR ATTENDANCE.

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

(Note: The Post Office Bulk Mail Center tour is being rescheduled. ASQ-Pittsburgh thanks Dennis Snedden, a renowned consultant and sought-after speaker, for volunteering to help us improve our time management skills.)

Time Management: Organizing for Success

Presenter: Dennis Snedden

Location UNO Chicago Bar & Grill, 1294 Freedom Road, Cranberry Township, west of Rt. 19/ I-79 (724-772-1711)

If you’re too busy to attend this event, then you really NEED to come !

Payoffs:

• More time / energy for you
• More time / energy for others

What To Bring:

• Three to five written questions about your top time management frustrations, struggles, bottlenecks, and/or breakdowns

Purpose:

• Have some insightful fun
• Review, refine and refresh your personal organizing systems

Process:

• Features a Question and Answer format with practical how-to's
• Includes a personal time management inventory
• Discover the best approaches and tools for your time management needs, wants, desires, and style
• Delivered using large group, small group, and individual exercises

People:

• For you and yours
• Bring your friend - bring your colleague - bring (or be) your own guest

About the Speaker:

Dennis Snedden has invested the last 19 years as a trainer and speaker. 15 years as owner of Time Management Services, based in Pittsburgh. He works with the overwhelmed and underorganized who want to get more done, feel more accomplished or go home on time more often. Thousands have benefited from his timely wisdom on timely topics. Clients range from Sr. Executives, to Owners, to Management, to Production, to Sales, to Administration.

REMEMBER TO BRING YOUR WRITTEN TIME MANAGEMENT QUESTIONS

Cost: $25.00 (call ESWP at 412-261-4300), advanced registration requested.

Social Hour (cash bar): 6:00pm – 6:30pm

Dinner: 6:30pm – 7:30pm

Program: 7:30pm – 8:30pm

Friday, March 31, 2006

Pittsburgh Regional Healthcare Conference

Sponsored by ASQ and Hospital Council of Western Pennsylvania

"THE NEW ROUTES TO QUALITY"

Moderator/Coordinator – Robin Dudash and Steve PettyJohn

National Speakers...

Robert Burney, MD, Medical Services - US State Department

Dr. Burney is a board certified anesthesiologist and started his career with university anesthesia departments in VA, NC, and MA. His private sector experience includes work in community hospitals and managing ambulatory surgery centers. He has been a member of ASQ since 1991 and has written papers and book chapters on quality in healthcare. Dr. Burney has served as an examiner for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and worked five years as a surveyor for the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Currently, he is Director of Quality Improvement for the Office of Medical Services, U.S. Department of State where he is directing their journey to ISO registration.

Rita Ratcliffe, MD, Principal - Medical Excellence

Dr. Ratcliffe is a physician whose concerns about the implausible chaos embedded in the delivery of health services began in medical school. She has spent the ensuing 30 years championing improved communication, teamwork, and “fact-tracking;” streamlining, standardization, and “mistake-proofing” of processes; ready accessibility and regular use in decisionmaking of current, relevant “facts”; a common focus on the patient; and personal and enterprise vision and accountability. A consultant to health services organizations throughout New York, Dr. Ratcliffe, a graduate of the University of Virginia (M.D.), and the Simon School at the University of Rochester (M.B.A.), is an experienced clinician (Board Certified in Internal Medicine), educator (University of Rochester, Rochester Institute of Technology), health services researcher (NYS Department of Health), physician executive (regional health plan), and an auditor of quality systems, both internal (hospitals, nursing homes, health centers, home health agency, blood bank) and external (NYS Department of Health, NYS Department of Correctional Services Division of Health Services). She is an ASQ Certified Quality Auditor. She has been an Examiner for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and for the Empire State Advantage Program. She serves on the Advisory Council of SRI Quality System Registrar, and is active in advancing ISO systems and Baldrige to improve delivery of health services. A longstanding member of ASQ, Dr. Ratcliffe is the Health Care Division Regional Councilor for Region 2.

R. Dan Reid, Purchasing Manager - GM Powertrain

R. Dan Reid is a Purchasing Manager with General Motors Powertrain. He was the first Delegation Leader of the International Automotive Task Force (IATF) and is a member of the American College of Health Care Executives. He is best known as an author of QS-9000, ISO Technical Specification (TS) 16949, ISO 9001:2000, and the first ISO International Workshop Agreement (IWA 1), which applies ISO 9000 to healthcare. He also worked on the Chrysler, Ford and GM Potential Failure Mode and Effects Analysis, Production Part Approval Process and Advanced Product Quality Planning manuals. He has been a featured speaker at numerous quality conferences worldwide and has worked with other industry sectors including aerospace, telecommunications and health care on quality initiatives. Currently he is a contributing author for the American Society for Quality (ASQ) Quality Progress and AIAG ActionLine magazines, the ISO 9000 Handbooks by ASQ and McGraw Hill. Reid is a member of the ASQ Editorial Review Board and the SAE Automotive Quality and Process Improvement Committee and an AIAG QS-9000 internal auditor. Reid, an ASQ Fellow and ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE), has received awards including:

• 2004 ASQ Automotive Division Quality Leader of the Year
• 2003 Leadership Award from the European Quality Institute ISO 9000 International Conference
• 2002 Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) Outstanding Achievement Award

Regional Speakers...

Andrew Balazs, VP Information System Services - Antares Management Solutions

Andrew Balazs is Vice President of Information System Services at Antares Management Solutions, subsidiary of Medical Mutual of Ohio. He is responsible for the strategic direction for the Company’s Information Technology infrastructure. Mr. Balazs has more than 17 years of experience in Medical Mutual’s systems division, and is responsible for data center management, hardware/software acquisition and management, distributed system hardware and software, desktop hardware and software, voice and data networks, Helpdesk, and SLA management. From fall 1993 until spring 1994, Mr. Balazs was a loaned executive, serving as Interim Director of Technology for the Cleveland Board of Education. Working with the school system, he reorganized its Information Services division to consolidate five IS facilities into one and thus reduce expenditures by 20 percent. In recognition of his work with the school board, Medical Mutual awarded Mr. Balazs its Chairman’s Sentinel Award. Before joining Medical Mutual in 1986, Mr. Balazs worked for Sherwin Williams. Mr. Balazs earned a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Quantitative Business Analysis from Cleveland State University and a Master in Business Administration degree. Mr. Balazs serves as Chair of the Finance committee for the Kirtland school board.

Mary Blank, MPH, CIC Division of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology. With the The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center

Ms. Blank has 15 years of experience in Infection Control. She received her MPH from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and has been actively involved in quality and patient safety initiatives through her Infection Control positions and previous position with the Pittsburgh Regional Healthcare Initiative (PRHI). She served as President of the Three Rivers Chapter of the Association for Professions in Infection Control and Epidemiology in 2002. Most recently, she has had the opportunity to work on patient safety initiatives by improving the healthcare delivery processes through her work on the Toyota Production System (TPS) MRSA initiative in the medical intensive unit at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She has been instrumental in designing a real-time unit-based notification of newly identified pathogens that require transmission-based precaution reducing the time period of un-identified reservoirs of pathogens of epidemiolgical significance in the hospital environment.

Rick Beaver, VP - Quality, Heritage Valley Health System

Rick Beaver was appointed to the position of Vice President, Quality for Heritage Valley Health System (HVHS) July 9, 2001. Rick also serves as Principal of Six Sigma Connections, a separate business venture of HVHS that supports the integration of Six Sigma into other organizations (healthcare, manufacturing or service industry) and provides a full range of education for staff, leadership, board members and physicians. Rick previously served as the leader of Operational Excellence, Six Sigma Integration and Quality for Nova Chemicals Inc. in Monaca, PA. Prior to working at Nova, Rick was employed by Sony Electronics Inc. in Mount Pleasant, Pa. as the leader of Operations, Manufacturing, Engineering, Maintenance and Inspection. In both positions, Rick developed an expertise in 6 Sigma and other continuous improvement techniques that he is now applying toward improvement of the processes surrounding patient care. Rick was with Sony from 1993-1999 and with PPG Industries Inc. in Pittsburgh as an engineering project leader for the Fiber Glass Division from 1980-1993. Rick earned a B.S. in Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh in 1978 and continued his education with graduate work in polymer chemistry at Carnegie Mellon University. He has 14 patents and is published in the areas of health care quality, chemistry, engineering and Six Sigma. His most recent publication was in Hospital and Health Network Online, April, 2005 and he presented a model for Rapid Implementation of Six Sigma in an Organization at the Harvard Conference on Quality and Safety, August, 2005. He is an adjunct professor of the University of Wisconsin where he teaches black belt classes in Six Sigma for Healthcare and has also taught graduate classes at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Public Health and the Robert Morris University. Rick completed leadership training at the Center for Creative Leadership and obtained his “Master Black Belt” in Six Sigma techniques at SONY and NOVA Chemicals.

Roxanne Tata, (MT (ASCP) SBB; CQA (ASQ), VP - Institute for Transfusion Medicine

Roxanne Tata is currently Vice President, Chief Quality Officer for the Institute For Transfusion Medicine (ITxM). Roxanne is responsible for the ITxM Quality Assurance Program and oversight of Quality Assurance for the LifeSource Blood Center, located in Glenview Illinois, and Central Blood Bank, Centralized Transfusion Services and ITxM Diagnostics all located in Pittsburgh PA. Roxanne has an extensive background in blood banking and laboratories and has been in Quality for the last ten years. Prior to joining ITxM, Roxanne was a Quality Assurance Manager for Blood Systems. Inc. Roxanne’s expertise lies in process evaluation, redesign and auditing.

Cost: $75.00 advance reservation (ESWP 412-261-4300)

Conference: 8:15 AM - 4:30 PM

Thursday, March 23, 2006

Dinner Meeting - LeanSigma Focus Group

Topic: Problem Solving in the Toyota Production System

Presenter: Don Klesser, V.P. - Continuous Improvement and Quality for PTC Alliance

Location: Highland Country Club

Meeting Time: 5:30 – 8:00pm

Most companies emphasize the importance of lean tools, such as Kanban and manufacturing cells, during implementation of lean manufacturing in the organization. And there is little focus on the necessity for problem-solving, even in books and articles describing lean manufacturing.

Toyota on the other hand, the original developer of lean manufacturing methods, relies heavily on employee problem-solving as the basis for Continuous Improvement in the Toyota Production System (TPS). This overview will describe how problem-solving is integral to the success of TPS, and how problem-solving methods can facilitate the implementation of TPS in both manufacturing and non-manufacturing organizations.

Our presenter is Don Klesser, a member of the LeanSigma Steering Committee, and currently V.P. - Continuous Improvement and Quality for PTC Alliance, where he is leading the implementation of Six Sigma and Lean methodologies for the corporation. In the past, Don was Continuous Improvement Director for Dynamet, in Washington, PA, consulted at SPIRC and worked at Pittsburgh Tube Co. and LTV Steel. He has a Metallurgy degree from Penn State and Masters in Metallurgical Engineering from Univ. of Pittsburgh. He is also a Six Sigma Black Belt.

The inclusive cost is $25.00 per person. Payment is by cash or check at the door. Attire is Business Casual.

To reserve your seat to this session, please send an email with the following information to tom.johnson@johnsonlean.com by Tuesday, March 21st.

Name: ______________________________

Title: _____________________________

Company Name: ______________________

Preferred email address for confirmation: ______________________

We will return a confirmation of your reservation and additional information.

A RESERVATION IS REQUIRED FOR ATTENDANCE.

Thank you again for your interest and participation. I personally look forward to meeting you at this important event.

Sincerely,

Thomas E. Johnson III

ASQ LeanSigma Focus Group Chair

724-454-5017

tom.johnson@johnsonlean.com

Wednesday, March 8, 2006

Moderator/Coordinator – Hank Sobah

Achieving New Heights in Customer-Supplier Relationships

Presenter:  Bill Thomas

Customer satisfaction and loyalty have received much attention over the past 10-15 years. And with today's competitive and economic landscape, that's not likely to change anytime soon. Recognizing that, companies have tried a variety of tools and approaches to improve quality, streamline their processes and sharpen their customer focus. Despite these efforts, many have come up short when it comes to creating customer-driven processes that really help satisfy and retain customers over time. This is a case study about one company's experience as it faced that same challenge. After spending much time and effort to better understand the satisfiers and behaviors of their customers, they found they still weren't getting the results they wanted. That changed considerably when they launched a customer-supplier initiative that went far beyond the metrics and data and helped them get to the heart of building a strong customer culture. This session will share the specifics of their initiative, what made it unique, the learnings and results that ensued, and how the company created buy-in, both internally and with the external customers. This session was part of the ASQ Annual Conference, and as a result of that, was later included in ASQ's Customer-Supplier Division annual conference.

Location: Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania

Cost: $22.50 advance reservation (ESWP 412-261-4300) / $25.00 at the door.

Social Hour: 6:30pm – 6:45pm

Dinner: 6:45pm – 7:30pm

Program: 7:30pm – 8:30pm

Tuesday, March 7, 2006

Best Practice/Case Study: How Labor and Management Partnered for UNIQUE Best-Practice Operator Training at Westinghouse SMP

Sponsor – This program is being sponsored jointly by ASQ Pittsburgh and CoREM: the Council on Realizing Excellence in Management (www.CoREM.org)

Forbes Road Career and Technology Center in Monroeville

607 Beatty Road

Monroevile, PA. 412-373-8100

The Westinghouse Blairsville Specialty Metals Plant has a long history of dedication to quality. SMP was the first winner of the Malcolm Baldridge Total Quality award for small companies in 1988, and has since won numerous other quality and safety awards. As an OSHA Voluntary Protection Program participant since 1997, we are one of only about 1100 (out of several million) worksites in the entire US who has been awarded STAR status by OSHA for our safety record and programs and our commitment to employee safety.

The group that will be speaking at the March 7 meeting consists of members of the Westinghouse Specialty Metals Plant (SMP) Area Training Teams. The work and product of these teams has been identified on several occasions as an industry "Best Practice", and shows how teams can institute high-quality initiatives in a supportive business environment.

Dedicated and well trained employees have obviously contributed to the ongoing success of our company. About four and a half years ago, a new plant manager, in the spirit of continuous improvement, called for re-emphasis on operator training. As a result, a joint union-management initiative was launched which laid the foundation for area training teams. The joint steering committee identified guidelines and expectations for the teams, and the union president personally invited his members to participate.

There are presently five area training teams in the plant, the oldest of which began its work in 2001. Several shop floor operators, an engineer, supervisor and a facilitator make up the 4-5 member teams who have worked diligently to develop an exceptional training package for new, as well as existing operators. They introduced an "adult-learning friendly" tool called a Process Picture Map (PPM) to significantly enhance our site training program. In addition, with concurrence and support of the union, formal, demonstrated proficiencies are administered to all operators regardless of their seniority in the plant.

Members of these teams will share with you the quality processes, products, frustrations, barriers, accomplishments and successes of their journey that have allowed them and their work to be identified as an industry "Best Practice".

Location: Forbes Road Career and Technology Center in Monroeville

Cost: Free

Registration: Contact Brien Palmer at BrienP@adelphia.net or 724-733-5007.

Program: 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM

Social Time: 6:00 PM – 6:45 PM

Forbes Road Career and Technology Center in Monroeville - Directions…

Forbes Road Career & Technology Center, bordering Boyce Campus of CCAC.

Address: 607 Beatty Road, Monroevile, PA. 412-373-8100

From Downtown Pittsburgh: Go east on Interstate 376 (Parkway East) approximately 15 miles and get off the Parkway in Monroeville at exit 14B (Plum), just past exit 14A (Rt. 48). Proceed north through the intersection with the traffic light to the stop sign at Beatty Road. Van Horn’s Funeral Home will be on the far left corner. Turn right on to Beatty Road and drive to the second stop sign (Community College of Allegheny County--Boyce Campus entrance). Turn right and go approximately 100 feet. Turn left into the Forbes Road Career & Technology Center entrance (Gateway Press building is on the right). Enter the first building and turn right immediately into the conference room.

Thursday, February 23, 2006

Dinner Meeting - LeanSigma Focus Group

Topic: Financial and Business Case for Lean

Presenter: Tom Johnson, President of Johnson Lean Enterprise Consultancy

Location: Highland Country Club

Meeting Time: 5:30 – 8:00pm

We ask that you notify your company executives and managers to attend this session to understand the potential impact of Lean in their operations. There will be time during the session to address specific questions regarding Lean business philosophies and financial strategies.

For the dinner meal, you have a choice of Chicken Romano, or Char-grilled Norwegian Salmon with Lemon Butter. The vegetables will be Green Beans Almandine and Rosemary Roasted Red Skin Potatoes and a Mixed Green Salad. There will also be a dessert tray and coffee station.

The inclusive cost is $22.50 for ASQ members and $25 for non-ASQ members. Payment is by cash or check at the door. Attire is Business Casual.

To reserve your seat to this session, please send an email with the following information to tom.johnson@johnsonlean.com by February 20th.

Name: ______________________________

Title: _____________________________

ASQ Member Number: _________________

Company Name: ______________________

Preferred email address for confirmation: ______________________

Meal Preference: Chicken or Fish

We will return a confirmation of your reservation and additional information.

A RESERVATION IS REQUIRED FOR ATTENDANCE.

Thank you again for your interest and participation. I personally look forward to meeting you at this important event.

Sincerely,

Thomas E. Johnson III

ASQ LeanSigma Focus Group Chair

724-454-5017

tom.johnson@johnsonlean.com

Wednesday, February 8, 2006

Moderator/Coordinator – Jim Creiman

Respironics Manufacturing Facility Tour

Respironics Manufacturing Facility

1001 Murry Ridge Lane

Murrysville, PA 15668

ATTENDANCE WILL BE LIMITED TO THE FIRST 30 REGISTRANTS

Respironics has developed from one man’s desire to help people breathe better to become the leading global resource in the respiratory medical device industry. In a span of a little more than 29 years, Respironics has progressed from one man inventing masks in his home to having more than 100 products, 26 offices and manufacturing locations and over 4,000 associates around the world. Respironics has experienced record financial success with FY 2005 revenues totaling over $911 million.

Headquartered in Murrysville, PA, Respironics is a leading developer, manufacturer and distributor of innovative products and programs that serve the global sleep and respiratory markets. Focusing on emerging market needs, the Company is committed to providing valued solutions to help improve outcomes for patients, clinicians and healthcare providers.

Respironics is a recipient of multiple industry awards including seven Zenith awards given by the American Association for Respiratory Care to companies excelling in product quality, truthfulness of promotional materials and the overall support of the respiratory care profession.

Respironics currently has job openings in Quality and Manufacturing, a list of which can be accessed through its website at http://www.respironics.com.

Location:  1001 Murry Ridge Lane , Murrysville, PA 15668

Cost: $22.50 advance reservation (ESWP 412-261-4300) / $25.00 at the door. (up to 30 attendees maximum)

Tour: 6:30pm – 7:30pm

Dinner: 7:30pm – 8:30pm

Respironics Manufacturing Facility in Murrysville, PA - Directions…

From Pittsburgh to the Respironics Manufacturing Facility in Murrysville, PA

Take I-376 East toward Monroeville.

At the End of I-376 E, Take the LEFT EXIT onto US-22 E / William Penn Highway toward Murrysville.

After 1.8 miles, Take the RIGHT EXIT onto PA ROUTE 286 East / Golden Mile Highway.

After approximately 5 miles, Turn RIGHT at LOGAN FERRY ROAD.

Take the SECOND LEFT onto MURRY RIDGE LANE and make the first left to the Homecare R&D Operations Building.

Follow the signs to Respironics Visitor Parking and enter the building at the front entrance.

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Meeting - LeanSigma Focus Group

Presenter: Tom Johnson, President of Johnson Lean Enterprise Consultancy

Location: Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania

Meeting Time: 5:30 – 6:30pm

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Moderator/Coordinator - Hank Sobah

Case Study of a Simplified Synthesis of Reliability

Presenter: Jennifer Akers

Creating reliable, high-quality products and systems is critical to increasing sales, reducing costs, and keeping customers satisfied. In this dinner program, various case studies will be presented to show the benefits of reliability analysis.

Jennifer Akers is an Application Engineer with Relex Software Corporation. She is an ASQ Certified Reliability Engineer and is responsible for all training services offered by Relex. She also serves in the technical support group to provide customer assistance for reliability software use and reliability theory. Jennifer has a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Lafayette College. Prior to joining Relex and the reliability engineering field eight years ago, Jennifer's work for a global consulting firm included the redesign of the computerized systems for a finishing mill in the steel industry.

Location: Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania

Cost: $22.50 advance reservation (ESWP 412-261-4300) / $25.00 at the door.

Social Hour: 6:30pm – 6:45pm

Dinner: 6:45pm – 7:30pm

Program: 7:30pm – 8:30pm

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

Moderator/Coordinator – Hank Sobah

Holiday Celebration – Jessica Lee

Jessica hosts the Entrepreneurial Thursday Jazz, Soul & Blues Happy Hour Show at Dowe's on 9th, in Pittsburgh. Entrepreneurial Thursday is the Pittsburgh region's most consistent, spontaneous and unique networking forum for the entrepreneurial and innovation communities. Created by Jessica Lee, a successful entrepreneur and musician, to promote live music in downtown Pittsburgh and to assist the entrepreneurial networking of the Pittsburgh region with funding and partnering opportunities, the show is now poised for continued high growth and service to the region's artistic, entrepreneurial and economic development communities! Entrepreneurial Thursday is a casual, weekly social and networking event featuring live jazz, soul and blues performance, networking for the entrepreneurial and innovation communities and it serves as a back-drop to Jessica Lee's mid-show, open-mike interview session with hot entrepreneurs, financing sources, economic development thought leaders and other business stars around the theme of "WHAT'S INNOVATIVE AND POSITIVE IN THE PITTSBURGH REGION." Visit Jessica's web site for more information on Jessica and Entrepreneurial Thursdays, at www.jessicaleesong.com.

Location: Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania

Cost: $22.50 advance reservation (ESWP 412-261-4300) / $25.00 at the door.

Social Hour: 6:30pm – 6:45pm

Dinner: 6:45pm – 7:30pm

Program: 7:30pm – 8:30pm

November 17, 2005

Moderator/Coordinator - Thomas E. Johnson III

Battle for Lean Dynamics

Presenter: Thomas E. Johnson III

The ASQ-Pittsburgh Chapter has started a new Lean Sigma Focus Group. This will be our first full meeting.

The topic will be “Battle for Lean Dynamics”, a short team exercise on Lean principles. This short team scenario will ask for volunteers to develop two teams. These teams will battle to produce the most effective manufacturing company using Lean strategies. It is a fun exercise that everyone will enjoy and appreciate. It brings home the strategies of Lean that make an effective operation. Please attend and be ready to volunteer for one of the teams.

Everyone is invited to attend. The main course dinner selection will be a choice of 6 oz. Petite Filet, Chicken Romano, or Char-grilled Norwegian Salmon with Lemon Butter. The vegetables will be Green Beans Almandine and Rosemary Roasted Red Shin Potatoes and a Mixed Green Salad. There will also be a dessert tray and coffee station.

Please make your firm reservations as soon as possible since we expect great interest for this event. Also invite your friends and company personnel to join you for a very rewarding Lean Sigma Focus Group experience.

For reservations to attend this dinner meeting, or to answer any questions regarding the Lean Sigma focus group, please contact Tom Johnson

Location Highland Country Club 450 Highland Ave, Pittsburgh, PA., 15229

Cost: $20.00 at the door (bring a check or cash.)

Social Hour (cash bar): 5:30pm – 6:00pm

Dinner: 6:00pm – 7:00pm

Program: 7:00pm – 8:30pm

November 9, 2005

Moderator/Coordinator - Hank Sobah

PLANT TOUR - Robotics Institute

The Robotics Institute

10 40th Street

Pittsburgh, PA

Even when robotics technologies were relatively primitive, their potential role in boosting the productivity and competitiveness of the United States was foreseen in the evolving global marketplace. The Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University was established in 1979 to conduct basic and applied research in robotics technologies relevant to industrial and societal tasks. Seeking to combine the practical and the theoretical, the Robotics Institute has diversified its efforts and approaches to robotics science while retaining its original goal of realizing the potential of the robotics field.

NOTE – You must be a U.S. Citizen to enter the Robotics Institute and join us in this tour.

Location: The Robotics Institute, 10 40th Street, Pittsburgh, PA

Cost: $22.50 advance reservation (ESWP 412-261-4300) / $25.00 at the door.

Dinner and Registration: 6:30pm-7:30pm

Tour: 7:30pm

October 12, 2005

Moderator/Coordinator - Hank Sobah

Quality Horror Stories from Brien Palmer, Cas Welch and Greg Simkins With ghosts, ghouls, witches, goblins and other such monsters, October always brings us the best scares of the year. Working in Quality, I have had many experiences that would rival any headless ghost or vampire stories I've ever heard - usually, more scary to me on a far more personal level. I know most of you have had similar experiences throughout your careers.

Please join us as Brien Palmer, Cas Welch and Greg Simkins share with us, some of their own spine tingling quality horror stories. Hear about Headless ISO 9000 Leadership, the Mysterious Presence of the Axed Executive, and Customer Focused Quality versus the Giant.

Location: Pittsburgh Engineer’s Club

Social Hour: 6:30-6:45

Dinner: 6:45-7:30

Program: 7:30-8:30

September 14, 2005

Moderator/Coordinator - Hank Sobah

An Expert's Perspective on LEAN

Our September dinner meeting will give you an excellent chance to get involved with a leading-edge Quality topic: Lean Dynamics.

Lean Enterprise and Lean Manufacturing as formal concepts have been used for nearly 50 years world-wide, but are still very new to Western PA. With the development of Lean Enterprise concepts, it's appropriate for us to review the concepts of Lean Dynamics as a philosophy, strategy, and set of tools, and survey the best of contemporary Lean practices. The program will share major features and benefits of Lean Dynamics as well as the Lean concepts of Value, Waste, Time metrics, Customer Focus, and many others. It will also explain the techniques of Lean such as Value Stream Mapping, 5S, Visual Systems, Pull systems, Standard Work and many others.

About the Speaker: - Thomas E. Johnson III

Thomas E. Johnson III is President of Johnson Lean Enterprise Consultancy. He is a frequent speaker at seminars and conferences and a local knowledge expert of Continuous Improvements topics and strategies. He has 27 years of experience in providing solutions to complex business problems and has consulted to many companies world-wide.

This dinner program has three purposes.

1. Introduce ASQ-Pittsburgh to the elements of Lean that will enhance the knowledge base of our chapter and members.

2. Introduce a new Focus group for Lean Enterprise and set the stage for melding the interests of our current Six Sigma Focus Group with the new Lean Group; perhaps to the point of integrating the Six Sigma Focus Group with the new Lean Focus Group.

3. Ask for executives in our community to become a part of the Steering Committee to help the development of a Lean Enterprise Focus Group and provide guidance and support.

Location: Pittsburgh Engineer’s Club

Social Hour: 6:30-6:45

Dinner: 6:45-7:30

Program: 7:30-8:30