Improving the improving process

What do testing rocket engines, replacing hazardous chemicals in electronics fabrication, and determining passenger interest in faster airplanes have in common? All are examples of work that has benefited from a testing methodology called Design of Experiments that is much more efficient and reliable than traditional one-at-a-time testing.

The methodology, based on mathematical principles and involving the scientific process, is helping employees throughout Boeing make better decisions and improve products and processes in less time and with less money and waste.

DOE certainly isn't new. Sir Ronald Fisher, an English statistician, was the first to consider a methodology for it more than 80 years ago. He described how to structure tests and analyze data to obtain more reliable conclusions in the noisy and poorly controlled testing environment of agricultural research. Over the years, Fisher's concepts caught on as a more efficient way to help improve everything from growing corn to operating chemical processes and building cars.

Employees in the Applied Statistics group in the Phantom Works Mathematics and Computing Technology organization have taken the basic DOE concepts, integrated them with the latest thinking in mathematics and computing, and combined them with a working knowledge of problems and issues specific to aerospace. The result is a very efficient methodology for designing experiments and analyzing data at Boeing, regardless of whether the work is in design, fabrication, assembly, testing or administrative environments.

During the past several years, the group has applied DOE in many ways throughout Boeing. Applications have involved alternative component design evaluation for military programs, composite repair in commercial airplanes, RS-68 rocket engine testing, wind tunnel testing, and computer hardware and software design and testing. Other applications have involved market research for new programs including the 7E7, ergonomic and health studies, and evaluation of training methods and Web interfaces such as the Employee Timekeeping System. The group also has used DOE with computer simulations in many applications, including aerodynamic and structural design.

Roberto Altschul, manager of the Applied Statistics group, and Stephen Jones, a senior DOE statistician, believe the increased use of DOE within the company is fundamental to reducing the cost of testing while improving the quality of decisions.

“We're here to help apply DOE techniques to processes, testing, and decision making throughout Boeing,” Altschul said.