IE673 TQM ASSIGNMENTS

MID-TERM
HUMAN ERRORS:

AUTHOR: YOGYA SRI YARAGORLA(NJIT ID-313-29-323, YY288)

CLASS : IE673 ONLINE
DATE : NOVEMBER 9TH 2014
CLASS CODE : IE673-FALL-2014-63-15

Introduction:

Human error has been cited as a primary cause in accidents and disasters. Human error
means that something has been done that was "not intended by the person; not desired by
a set of rules or an external observer; or that led the task or system outside its acceptable
limits". Logically, human actions can fail to achieve their goal in two different ways: the
actions can go as planned, but the plan can be inadequate which leads to mistakes; or, the
plan can be satisfactory, but the performance can be deficient (leading to slips and lapses).

Human error includes:

Failing to perform or omitting a task
Performing the task incorrectly
Performing an extra or non-required task
Performing tasks out of sequence
Failing to perform the task within the time limit associated with it
Failing to respond adequately to a contingency

Causes for Human Error:

Performance requirements that exceed human capability
Design that promotes fatigue
Inadequate facilities or information
Difficult tasks
Dangerous tasks
Unpleasant tasks
Repetitive or boring tasks
Tasks at odds with the person's aptitude
Laziness, Stress, Illness, Sleep Deprivation, Injury

Human Error Detection Methods and/or Prevention Methods:

1)At Colgate-Palmolive Co, where I previously worked, they manufactured the Soft-soaps in
addition to many other things. The Soft-soap soap dispenser I use daily is an example of
product waste in the design of a Soft-soap soap dispenser. In this example a certain amount
of soap is left at the bottom of the soap dispenser with no means of pumping it out because it
is hard to get out due to its viscosity. It ultimately goes to waste because it does not come
out in relation to how it is supposed to come out. It is also supposed to be dispensed out like
the rest of it. An immediate solution may be to unscrew the top and tilt the container over and
wait for the highly viscous soap to slowly pour out of the top but this is not the intention of the
soap containers design. In relation to the size of the bottle, the amount of soap left
is extremely significant. This illustrates how Softsoap can implement quality management
into their design process to develop a more effective bottle that would waste less soap.
Waste management is crucial to adhering to green engineering compliant processes and that
too, in an eco-friendly, sustainable way. The little amount of soap left should not be stuck at
the bottom. Especially since customers expect to use all the soap they can get out of that
small-sized bottle. Are they meeting customer requirements? Are they incorporating and
implementing a collaborative TQM into their product, Softsoap design? I believe not because
they are not only creating waste but their design of the product should be more efficient and
reliable and they could still improve on their continuous quality system. Let me reiterate,
human detection is quality design for better efficiency and improvement in the reduction of
waste.

1)

Prevention:
Softsoap could implement numerous quality control techniques to detect these design
defects prior to product release or even during the products life cycle. Of course the
objective is to detect any product flaws prior to product release, but in some cases not all
issues can be detected so early. As indicated in the eLearning book a necessary quality
control technique is to search continually in the system to seek ways to improve in order to
decrease cost or in this case decrease waste. How? Well, by using concurrent engineering
which will aid in getting rid of waste, organize your knowledge and focus on new
opportunities driven by the customer or advanced integrated product and process design
methods as a part of collaborative TQM. By performing actual operating tests of the soap
dispenser the amount of wasted product would be easily identified. Even by performing
customer feedback workshops and using the requirements analysis through the CORA
method tool, this design defect would be raised as a customer complaint. Designers must
have critical process knowledge, a good idea of product functionalities required by the
customer In addition, through incorporating sustainability and reduction of product waste into

the design these objectives would be identified as a high priority and the design process
would seek ways of reducing wasted product. This would need to be enforced by upper
management and identified as a Softsoap objective. By changing and finding a way for the
viscous soap to come out is the main objective. For example, changing the shape of the
bottom of the Softsoap Dispenser or making the soap inside the dispenser not so viscous.
This would all part of design control where the design function should be capable of taking
the customers needs and translating these in a systematic and controlled way, into a
specification which defines, in this case Softsoap. Also in reducing waste, the method of
Kaizen/JIT and Kanban can be used. This method will assist in attacking the sources of
waste. Kanban belief is that waste, unevenness and unreasonableness create defective
parts.
In the workplace, we use computers daily. In other words, constantly. Even when we are not at work,
we use computers. Although, there has been a rapid advancement in technology and has made
rapid progress, especially at work, I come across many errors in computers such as the computer
freezing up or the Internet being too slow or even coming across viruses after going to many
websites. Why does this happen? Are these issues from the computer itself or its design? Or maybe
the way we should go about using the computer, in a more healthy way. No matter how well the
smart machine operates, there are still many errors resulting in human operating. For example,
secretary uses computer to collect and settle the data everyday and report them to her boss for a
conference, if there is an error with the stock share data that may influence the fate of the
shareholders, even the whole company. So we should take care of this kind of human error. And
there also may have error with the computing, and then human error occurs. Another example, we
usually use USB devices to copy or storage the data, and whether the data we input is correct is a
problem or a kind of human error. Yet unless the transmissions are obviously degraded, we are
completely unaware that these errors exist. So in this part, I will state this kind of human error in our
daily work and come up with some methods to detect them and correct them.

Prevention:
The process of prevention is very easy. There are a few possibilities such as before select a
candidate or employee, need to see his skills and experience in his profile. Secondly, test his
knowledge regarding field or work. Before forwarding or submitting the work there is a need to read
his report or work again and again so mistakes can be clear. One major thing works for detection is
common sense while it covers with carefulness. The method we should detect the error is using our
common sense based on daily life and knowledge. For example, this kind of human error could be
detected by common sense and prevented by carefulness. When does employee work, in some
cases they get stressed and make mistakes and human error occur? In fact, the knowledge is the

key that lead and help for detecting errors in daily work. For example, when an employee makes a
wrong job and boss has insufficient knowledge, how can he detect the mistakes? In another way, the
computer detects the problem according to feed its program when the computer gets instruction
wrong it display an error but its machine error. The same thing happened when a person has
sufficient knowledge he captures the fault in employee work. Computers are machines in a way.
They require patience and a healthy and sensible way of approaching them to get the best results.
Since we use computers a lot and that too globally, we need to pay close attention to using the right
way in using computers.

Computerized systems: The use of automated prescribing systems is recommended as

an effective tool to reduce medication errors. They can reduce the risk of harm that arises
from prescribing faults and improve the quality of medical care by reducing errors in drug
dispensing and administration. Computerized advice can give significant benefits by guiding
the prescription of optimal dosages. This should translate into reduced time to therapeutic
stabilization, reduced risks of adverse effects, and eventually reduced lengths of hospital
stay.
Prescription charts : Nevertheless, electronic systems are not yet widely available, are
expensive, and require training. Comprehensive interventions aimed at improving patient
safety using a systematic approach are progressing in different institutions, with the use of
uniform medication charts, on which all the relevant clinical information is shown along with
the prescriptions, so that transcription is abolished. This approach has been validated as a
relatively simple alternative to electronic drug prescribing and dispensing systems [24].
Furthermore, the use of electronic systems in addition to a single uniform medication chart
forces staff to develop interdisciplinary collaboration and procedures that allow immediate
feedback control both among prescribers and between prescribers and other staff.

3) Vehicle Crashes:

Detection: Human error has been cited as a primary cause of Accidents. The major
causes for accidents are Drunk Driving, Over Speed, Careless Driving, Driving while talking
over Phone, Inexperience, Asleep while driving and Loss of Control.

Prevention: You cannot really stop accidents, but you can be on safer side if you be careful
while driving and follow some serious rules such as:
Not driving when you're drunk.
Not driving when you're tired.
Not talking over phone while driving.
Using Indicators at the right time.
Following other vehicles indicators.
Always wear seat belt and
Never cross speed limit.
4) Scheduling Back Ups:

Detection: In today's world, almost all business are using techonology in some or the other
way. Most importantly for their employees profiles, company accounts, financial information
and many other important data. Though the latest systems have automatic backup for the
data stored, they might not back up the data up to date. And also your system might crash
all of sudden and you may lose all the important data.

Prevention: It is always good to back up files whenever the data is updated. Cloud is the
new bubble in the tech industry which is very useful for storing data. Cloud storage is a
virtual data center which lets you access your data anytime from anywhere in the world.

5) Gas Leakage Sensor:

Detection: Usage of Gas Cylinders at home in Kitchen is very common in India. People use
gas to cook and to make other stuff connecting the gas cylinder to stove and its a part of
their day. In this routine process, some times people may forget to switch off the stove
properly, or switch off the cylinder or the gas might leak through pipe. Probably this leakage
leads to an explosion if it is not noticed.

Prevention: Using Gas leakage sensor is the best option to prevent the explosion caused
by gas leakage. If this sensor is used, it can detect when the gas is leaked and pass the
message so that an immediate action can be taken to prevent dangerous damage.

6) Revolving doors at Hospitals:

Detection: In few hospitals there are electric revolving doors placed as their Hospital
entrance doors. The problem with these electric revolving doors is that patients on
wheelchairs or stretchers cannot enter this way because it is very hard to pass through the
doors in wheel chairs or stretcher. The doors will not revolve for too long when the sensor
does not detect motion. When the door is in power save mode, it will often stop. Also, if
there is a power outage, the door does not work because it is electronic and there are no
regular push/pull doors on either side of the revolving door. The closest normal door is on
another side of the hospital building.

Prevention: Instead of using these hi-tech doors which actually cause trouble to patients
who are old, on wheel chairs or stretchers, it is better to have a wide normal doors which
would make everyone comfortable entering into the hospitals, especially patients. Or they
can have normal doors additionally side to these revolving doors which are very useful for
patients mainly in emergency time.

7) Battery Life of Smartphones.

Detection: Today, Smartphones have become part of everyone's life. Gone are those days
where we used to charge our mobile once and use to for days or probably for a long time.
Its Smartphone time where we made our life's totally depended on phones connecting to
our family and friends, for entertainment purpose, or even our professional work. Multi
tasking all these stuff continuously suck the battery in our phones and make it unavailable
when we really need it.

Prevention: To have a long lasting battery life in your smartphone, there are few simple
methods to follow than can actually make your battery last a bit longer. Methods are as
follows.
Switch off the Wi-fi when not needed.
Uninstall Unnecessary apps.
Switch Off GPS
Use Power Saving Mode

 Exit all Apps running background.

Dump unnecessary Widgets on Homescreen
8) Mobile Phone Towers:

Detection: There are lot of Mobile Towers placed in the residential areas, top of the
apartments and some very nearer to the houses. Having Mobile towers near to you might
give a strong signal but it passes alot of radiation. Though some of the most powerful cell
tower installations are on mountains and hilltops outside of urban areas, but there are also a
lot of cell towers placed in residential areas. These EM fields have impacted and impact
humans, animals as well as the ecological balance. Studies shows that people who live
near these cell towers have been affected by many problems like stress and sleep disorders
to birth defects, cancer and Alzheimers.

Prevention: Stay away from the areas which are very near or under cell towers. If it is not
possible to stay away from the areas where cell towers are installed, you can follow some
safety measures to avoid health risks from these radiations. Get Some Reliable EMF
Readings by calling a qualified EMF consultant, But buying your own EMF makes more
sense in the long run. The advantage is if you buy the meter , you can use it over and over
again, which you need to do because EMF exposures are changing constantly. Also
economically it makes more sense. Often one consultation will cost you about the same

price as buying the meter. Once you get the EMF reading you can decide what to shield
your home. Shielding is the best option to stay away from health problems that are caused
by these radiations. You need not shield you entire home, but you should shield the place
where you stay more. ex: Bedroom.

9)Mosquito Repellent Spray:

Detection: Mosquito repellent sprays are chemical or naturally derived concentrations that
function to offer protection against a host of mosquito-borne diseases, such as yellow fever,
malaria, encephalitis, filariasis and dengue fever. While most commercial mosquito repellent
sprays provide adequate protection, they are associated with numerous side effects,
including mouth ulcers, nausea and blisters/burning and must be used with caution. While
mosquito repellent sprays are effective in protecting against annoying mosquitoes, they
have a number of disadvantages. Their effectiveness is short-lived (lasts only a few hours)
and they have undesirable solvent action and odors. DEET-based mosquito repellent
sprays are toxic upon ingestion and can cause coma, seizures and even death.

Prevention: Use mosquito repellent sprays sparingly and with caution. Use products that
state "USDA Reg." or "EPA Reg." on the label. Do not use formulas that contain greater
than 30 percent DEET on children. Read labels carefully and avoid products that contain
the banned chemical compound R-11 (2 butylene or 2,3,4,5-Bis). Do not use mosquito
repellent spray on scratches, cuts and broken skin. Do not spray directly into face or apply
near the mouth and eyes. Discontinue use if skin rash develops.

10) Team Leader:

Detection: Being a Team leader is a definitely a position that every employewe wants to be
in. But it is very competitive and challenging postion and not as easy as you think. Being a
team leader, you have to lead the team with many responsibilities, guiding your team in the
right way. And you also act as the responsible middle person between your team and the
company management. Being a team leader, you have to organize, split the team into small
groups and guide them and motivate them every time. In this process, you might go under a
lot of work stress, responsibilities and also the dead line given by the management. The
problem here is, if you take a bad decision, it might end your job or also a bad name in the
company as well as your team.

Prevention:
Listen to others: Even though you are the team leader and you make the decisions, you
should always ask people what their opinion is. Try to incorporate them whenever it's
feasible. You aren't a dictator.
Include everyone: If some people are a little left behind, help them. Always try to include
them. Find a task for everyone no matter what their skill or level.
Encourage your team: Sometimes people are scared to try something and this is where
the leader comes in. You have to encourage your team mates and show them that the task
is possible, even if difficult, and try to make it fun for them. Show them the positive results of
their work.
Know what you are talking about: If your teammates are as confused as you are, how will
they know what to do? As the leader, you must do the research first, or have the most
information.
Take in others suggestions: When someone gives you an idea, work on it. Think of how
you can improve on it. A good leader is one that listens and not just talks. Show the team
you are flexible to consider their thoughts.

11) Crosswalks:

Detection: There are a lot of places where there are no crosswalks and no pedestrian
crossing lights at busy intersections. This causes a lot of confusion to the pedestrains when
to cross the road and where to cross. When there are no such signs, pedestrians usually
follow the same traffic lights for vehicles and cross the roads. This leads to a lot of
confusion for both drivers and the pedestrains and may lead to accidents some times. This
is very risky and dangerous to cross the roads

Prevention: It is safe for pedestrians if the Government make the crosswalks and
pedestrian crossing lights mandatory at every signal or intersection. Also if possible, it is
better and safer to have walkover bridges at the busy intersections. This could put alot of
people lives on safe side.

12) Privacy on Social Networking Sites.

Detection: Today more than 1 billion people are connected to the world through Social
Networking sites, sharing their every moment, events and even private stuff. Up to some
extent, it is good to share your opinions and information to the world, but there are few
things which you should never share on Social networking sites. Ex: Personal photos, family
photos, phone numbers, home address and places you check-in. When you share these
personal information to the public though these sites, you are probably putting your lives at
risk. There are many anti social elements that exist which could use your information for
their own reasons and put you and your family in risk.

Prevention: To avoid getting into risk, you must follow some simple steps on these Social
Networking Sites. Ususally, by default some sites hide your major information but some
sites do open it to public by default. All you have to do is edit your profile settings and hide
all your personal information to the public or unknown people.
Never add people whom you don't know outside.
Tell your parents if someone is troubling you or if you find them suspicious.
Never share your personal and family photos on these sites.
Never share your Phone numbers, Home address, places you check-in and even your
Date of Birth.

SOCIAL NETWORKING:

Re: Article: UK Shops Make 'Big Issue' of Homeless Vendors

From ubmfuturecities.com
Both sides have a good point. The private shopping centres are under no obligation to
provide space for a charity for which they do not care to host, regardless of their reason. It
would interfere with other charities...but that's irrelevant. The article writer also has a good
point that the shopping centres took over streets which used to be available for any other
types of vending, so maybe they owe a spot to a homeless vendor.As it seems they are
trying to fill every single space with vendors, i went to the mall I havnt gone to in ahwile and
what do i noticed, way more vendors in the middle, it seem so crowded now adays. I even
saw one vendor using the underside of the stairs space which has usually nothing, and they
actually fit a self server ice cream vendor stand. This was very smart and good use of that
space as is some other spaces but when is it too much.
Re: Article: From Wall Street Journal: Twitter Users' Diversity Becomes an Ad
Selling Point
The twitter article is not surprising since the corporate world is constantly mining for data
that will tell them how to sell you their products. They do not have a conscience and if you
keep that in mind then this makes total sense. Of course is maintains stereotypes and
segregates people because of their ethnicity but then they have stereotypes of old people,
young people, wealthy people, tall people, etc.
As Stated in the article, the crime starts from the demand. The root cause of the problem
needs to be addressed by implementing stricter laws in all countries that involve all of these
animals. Also, in many of these third world countries where people need to survive in one
way or another, they do not think about what will happen to their children's children. The
way to really fix this issue is by creating jobs and providing more education to the children.

Re: Article: Khama Rhino Sanctuary in Botswana

This is very unfortunate that people are willing to kill animals just to make profit out of it and
this is the main reason why certain kinds of animals get extinct. It would be very difficult to
solve this problem because as long as there is a demand, people who are greedy for money
will find a way to supply that demand regardless on how they do it.Few solutions I can think
of is making stricter enforcement and higher penalties for poaching,Sanctions against
consumer nations. Agricultural reform and wildlife management with exemtions for indigent
hunters.