Statistical process control (SPC) is not a new technology—its methods were pioneered by Bell Labs in the 1920s, and the technology was first applied in the war efforts of the ‘30s and ‘40s to boost munitions production. The problem was that without easy computer access to automate the calculations, SPC was not easily applied to most industrial processes, especially real-time processes such as those found in the food and beverage industry.
Today, with PC-based SPC software available from many sources and an arsenal of sensors to measure just about any process parameter, SPC can be applied to processes to peak their efficiency, control product quality and monitor and control the parameters that affect food safety. John Clemons, director of manufacturing IT for MAVERICK Technologies LLC, has authored a white paper, Putting SPC to Work in Manufacturing: Reducing Variability and Increasing Productivity. MAVERICK, a system integrator, recently partnered with Northwest Analytics (NWA) to provide integration of NWA’s SPC software with process control systems.