The 7 Basic Quality Tools

It is the definition given to the set of graphic techniques recognized as the most useful for solving problems related to quality. They are called basic tools because they are suitable for people with little training in statistics, they can also be used to solve the vast majority of quality issues.

1) Cause - effect Diagram: These diagrams show the sequence of paths and the possibilities of ramifications that exist in a process that transforms one or more inputs into one or more outputs.

2) Flowchart: The flowcharts show the activities, the decision points, the ramifications, the parallel routes and the general order of process.

3) Verification or Checklist: These sheets are used to organize all the facts in a way that facilitates the collection of useful data about a possible quality problem.

4) Pareto diagram: It is a vertical bar diagram that is used to identify the few sources responsible for most of the effects of the problems.

5) Histograms: They are a special form of bar chart used to describe the central tendency, dispersion and form of a statistical distribution.

6) Diagrams or control chart: They are used to determine if a process is stable or has a predictable behavior. It contains some limits; the upper and lower, the specifications are based on the previously established requirements, likewise, these reflect the maximum and minimum values allowed.

7) Dispersion diagrams: They represent ordered pairs (X, Y) and are often called correlation diagrams since they are intended to explain a change in the dependent variable Y in relation to a change observed in the independent variable X.