The automotive industry is increasingly focused on waste management, elimination, and reduction to achieve sustainability and cost reduction. This focus drives the industry towards resource-efficient operations that minimize environmental impact while exceeding customer expectations. Meeting these demands necessitates the adoption of more efficient production methodologies, such as the PDCA cycle. This work presents a case study that illustrates the application of the PDCA methodology to minimize scrap generation due to process variability in a multinational company that manufactures electric motors for the automotive industry. The aim was to demonstrate how the PDCA methodology can improve quality standards by minimizing scrap generated during the manufacture of electrical armatures. Notably, the organization in this case study set a waste target of 0.7%, which was significantly exceeded. Finally, the implementation of this methodology can deliver significant economic benefits, with a total annual cost reduction of approximately USD 135,000.

The current study presents a non-random, quantitative experimental investigation detailing the steps required to accredit a non-regulated test method (referred to as its own) under the ISO/IEC 17025:2017 standard and the criteria set by the Mexican Accreditation Entity (EMA). The focus is on the methodology employed to validate the test method, particularly emphasizing the precision of the measurement system, along with the total variation in and tolerance of its components. For the measurement analysis, repeatability and reproducibility (r&R) studies were conducted using a variance analysis method variant (ANOVA). This variant is highlighted for its ability to estimate deviations more accurately. Furthermore, the chosen model incorporates random effect measurements for all factors or components of system variation (operators, parts, interaction, and instrument). This approach demonstrates the reliability, accuracy, and precision of the proposed measurement system within the test method, leading to its subsequent accreditation under ISO/IEC 17025:2017 as a conformity assessment body.

This research explores the effectiveness of Quality Management Systems (QMSs) certified under the ISO 9001 standard by applying Hotelling’s multivariate statistical test T². This research focuses on organizations in central Mexico, evaluating whether the adoption of the ISO 9001 standard generates the promised benefits (by the International Standardization Organization itself), such as process improvement, increased customer satisfaction, higher sales, and increased revenues. Using a comprehensive framework grounded in ISO 10014 and incorporating statistical tools, such as descriptive analysis, regression, simulation, and Hotelling’s T² test, this study examined performance differences across sectors and pinpointed the critical factors impacting QMS outcomes. The results demonstrated notable advantages, including average improvements exceeding 20% in anticipated benefits. Furthermore, the analysis underscored the importance of QMS maturity, process enhancement, and customer satisfaction as pivotal drivers of QMS success. Sector-specific patterns also emerged, revealing that public organizations prioritize process efficiency and customer satisfaction, whereas private entities emphasize sales and revenue growth. By employing multivariate techniques, this research offers valuable insights into the interconnected factors affecting QMS effectiveness and provides actionable recommendations for organizations to enhance their QMS performance.

The dynamic global automotive sector is characterized by an ever-evolving demand for high-quality vehicles and accessible prices. This research tackles the issue of scrap reduction in electric motor manufacturing for the automotive industry, specifically in a Chinese company, by employing the PDCA methodology. The paper delves into the company's background and current landscape, while pinpointing the problem: specific production lines segments experiencing hi-pot issues are the primary source of scrap. The overarching goal is to design and implement a strategy that, leveraging the PDCA approach, reduces scrap generated during the eight-months subassembly (armature) manufacturing process, from its current average of 2.92% to 0.7%, ultimately enabling the company to eliminate hi-pot defects.

Typical specifications for steel fiber-reinforced shotcrete primarily focus on early-age mechanical properties and do not provide much guidance on evaluating changes in capacity over time, particularly under humid underground service conditions. In addition, accelerated laboratory durability tests are rarely calibrated against measurements obtained from underground structures in service. This study addressed that gap with a 12-month dual-track approach: (i) maintaining controlled near-saturated conditions in the laboratory at 23 ± 2 °C and 95–100% relative humidity, with subsequent evaluation of the mechanical properties (compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and single-fiber pull-out resistance) at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months; and (ii) monitoring the compressive strength in three operating underground silver mines in Zacatecas, Mexico, using the mean 48 h production-control strength as the field reference and cores taken after approximately 12 months of service. The three laboratory trajectories were well described by first-order exponential models (R² ≥ 0.99) throughout the 12-month monitoring period. The observed reductions were 22.0% for compressive strength, 21.4% for splitting tensile strength, and 26.3% for single-fiber pull-out resistance. The apparent pull-out rate constant was approximately 18% higher than the compressive-strength rate constant, though the mechanism for this difference was not identified independently. In the field, there was an apparent reduction in compressive strength of 8–10% after about 12 months. Comparison of the chamber and field compressive-strength rates produced an apparent acceleration factor, AF ≈ 2.7, with a per-mine range of 2.4–3.0. The high pairwise correlations among the three laboratory properties (r ≥ 0.996) and the first PCA component, which explained 99.8% of their standardized trajectory variance, reflected closely aligned temporal trends. However, since these were based on five exposure-age means, they should be considered only exploratory evidence of co-variation rather than causation. MANOVA demonstrated significant multivariate effects on the combined compressive and splitting tensile responses across exposure ages (p < 0.001). The proposed acceleration factor is preliminary and restricted to the materials, sites, exposure context, and observation period studied. Routine compressive-strength core testing may be useful as a practical screening indicator, but it cannot quantitatively replace direct bond or post-cracking evaluation.