Mechanical variation exists due to the reality of small errors and imperfections in the manufacturing process. These small deviations in the various parts of an assembly can cause products to fail if not managed properly. Managing variation is essential to improving product quality, reducing cost, and shortening cycle times allowing companies to become more profitable and competitive.
Sigmetrix serves these needs with its robust portfolio of tolerance analysis software solutions. Through the intuitive modeling technologies and advanced visualization techniques within CETOL 6σ, Sigmetrix provides customers insight into the source of error in their products that would not otherwise be seen until production starts or field failures are observed. James Stoddard, President of Sigmetrix was with the CEOViews team to share details about how they are helping companies to manufacture higher quality, lower cost and more robust products.
Tale of Inception
It all started with a team of leaders who came together to help develop a tolerance analysis solution within the producibility group of a large defense contractor using technology from BYU years ago. The group had the belief that they could provide a better, easier-to-use tolerance analysis product to the market. From that belief and perseverance, Sigmetrix was born.
Founded in 1999, Sigmetrix has always believed that tolerance analysis is fundamental to the design process. With over 25 years in the industry, the company has managed to help businesses across different industries to produce better products through mechanical variation management.
Key Solutions Offered By Sigmetrix
Sigmetrix is promoting an innovative approach to mechanical variation management. Tolerance analysis is often seen as a single-point activity that is done at the end of the design process to validate that the specified tolerances will meet desired product quality. Sigmetrix feels there is a greater benefit in expanding this view. The principles of tolerance analysis can be applied much earlier and used to influence the design process. This same understanding can be extended throughout the remaining product lifecycle to help ensure product quality and company profitability.
Business Value Propositions
Sigmetrix’s people and technology help companies produce better products through five Business Value Propositions (BVP). First, Sigmetrix can help improve profitability by balancing product quality with manufacturing cost. Second, they help companies achieve faster time to market by reducing design and prototype cycles. Third, Sigmetrix can help deliver more innovative products through a better understanding of mechanical variation. Fourth, BVP allows help companies to capture, transfer, and retain critical product and process knowledge. Finally, it focuses on maximizing MBD/MBE investment.
Improving Mechanical Variation Management
Mechanical variation is a reality of manufacturing and assembly processes. Companies that successfully manage this variation reap many competitive benefits. Sigmetrix helps companies achieve sustainable quality by helping them under- stand the impact of variation. Variation can be controlled in reasonable ways or as an aid to help identify that it is not achievable before expensive investments are made in material and equipment. Sigmetrix wants to emphasize how mechanical variation management is needed to become an integral part of the product development process.
A Global Leader
Mechanical variation management is an under-served discipline and Sigmetrix’s approach is unique in the market. To succeed as a global leader, Sigmetrix has adopted this five-part strategy:
- Be a thought leader – Sigmetrix’s vision is often counter to the conventional wisdom and product development They believe they need to be recognized by industry as a thought leader to be able to make significant change.
- Deliver best-in-class technology – Their approach is different than most companies are used It is necessary to provide companies with tools that they can trust and that make it easy for them to change.
- Provide an ideal customer experience – Change is hard There is a need to give companies a reason to choose Sigmetrix and not an excuse to say ‘No’.
- Be an agile, data-driven company – Sigmetrix is paving a new path, trying to change an industry. They have a strategy but need to be able to quickly adapt and make changes to that strategy as they learn what works.
- Establish global reach – Many of their ideal customers are large multinational corporations. Sigmetrix is trying to meet the needs of these companies that are spread across the
Challenges Along The Journey
Entrepreneurship brings in new challenges, especially in the initial phases, with extreme lows and highs at times. James shared, “The early years for Sigmetrix were difficult as we worked to develop the products that would best meet our customers’ needs. We invested in providing the best customer experience and helping the market better understand the value we provided. It took some time to find an ideal customer experience. Our hard work has paid off and we have seen steady growth for over the past 10 years.”
Standing Out From Peers
Sigmetrix is unique in its own approach that focuses solely on the customer experience. The team works together to provide a full solution to the customer to better solve their business needs. They strive to provide the best user experience for the tools to enable a greater number of users. Sigmetrix’ core values are respect, teamwork, integrity, and ingenuity. They are constantly looking for ways to innovate not only in terms of products and services but also in how they run the business and partner with customers to raise their level of competence.
Sigmetrix helps companies achieve sustainable quality by helping them understand the impact of variation.
Future Goals
Sigmetrix sees significant growth opportunities in helping companies incorporate mechanical variation management in their entire product development process. Speaking about their future goals, James said, “We will continue to provide the tools and training that will best support each aspect of the development process. We are committed to making these tools easy to use and compatible with one another to help with adoption. We measure our success by the number of companies we can help and by the difference we are making in the industry. We want Sigmetrix to be synonymous with sustainable quality.”
