From Chapter 11 to World Class Manufacturing

The concepts and practice of World Class Manufacturing (WCM) have helped Siliconix come back from bankruptcy to profitability in the space of three years. The paper discusses changes in the company's vision, mentality, and engineering organization that made this remarkable turnaround possible. A key factor in this effort was overcoming the engineering staff's preoccupation with trouble-shooting and the supposed conflict between creativity and the imperatives of manufacturability. Results so far include dramatic increases in the speed of new product releases, production efficiency, outgoing quality, and company profitability.<
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