Hidden variation is what increases your costs. Permanently eliminating the causes of variation is the only way to truly reduce your costs. Standardize materials and sourcing;
Standardize work;
Standardize gaging;
Do not be seduced by ‘Low cost’ or ‘Magic Solutions.’
This article lists 9 variables NOT in control of the heat treater, and 14 that are under their control (furnace temperature uniformity, load configuration) or shared by the customer ( process selected, batch size, part size).
“By controlling the important variables, dimensional changes in heat treatment can be controlled.” Patrick McKenna
Variability is the enemy in our precision machining shops, and reducing variability is a key to sustaining our businesses and improving our capabilities.