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Recently, the Ford China Quality Department hosted a two-week 6-Sigma Master Black Belt training program at the Nanjing Research and Engineering Center, with 18 employees from various technical departments, including Ford China, Changan Ford, and Jiangling Motors participating in the training course. Within this group, 9 individuals successfully advanced to become Master Black Belts, marking the largest number of certifications in Ford China’s history.
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6-Sigma is a data-driven quality management methodology designed to reduce process variation as well as identify and eliminate defects, in order to drive near-perfect quality standards.
In the 6-Sigma system, specialists are classified based on their roles, responsibilities, required expertise, and project experience. The classifications include entry-level Green Belts, advanced Black Belts, and expert, advisor-level Master Black Belts.
The 18 selected colleagues underwent a rigorous selection and recommendation process, followed by a professional assessement from Ford North America, to become seed candidates for the two-week intensive training. Moreoever, this marks the first time in nearly a decade that Ford has relaunched the 6-Sigma Master Black Belt training program in China.
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Rick Rader and Scott Sterbenz, two 6-Sigma Master Black Belts from Ford North America, led the comprehensive training program, combining theory with hands-on application on topics such as: the role of a Master Black Belt, project selection strategies, quality data mining and insights, as well as mentoring and teaching methodologies.
After a thorough evaluation, nine employees were officially promoted to Master Black Belts, including Cai Shanshan from Ford China’s Quality Department, who achieved L2 Master Black Belt status.
Looking ahead, these newly certified Master Black Belts will not just handle complex, cross-departmental quality issues, but also have the capability to train and mentor Green Belts and Black Belts – thereby influencing the organization's quality management strategy while further embedding the 6-Sigma methodology into the operations and culture of Ford China and its manufacturing bases.
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Meanwhile, the Quality Department leveraged this valuable opportunity to provide specialized training in quality improvement workshops for management teams across product development, procurement, and manufacturing – reinforcing the enhancement of quality and reliability as fundamental pillars of their daily workflows.
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"When it comes to quality management, Ford China strives for 0 Defects and 100% Flow – doing things right from the start to meet customer needs." said by Jerry Lin, Director, Ford China Manufacturing, Quality and New Model Launch, "The 6-Sigma quality management system is an essential tool in achieving this goal, helping us to continuously improve by identifying problems, implementing solutions, and preventing recurrence of the same issues."
The concept of 6-Sigma originated in the 1970s through a series of quality management experiments at Motorola. By the mid-1980s, it had formed into an official quality management plan that was widely adopted by companies such as General Electric. Today, it is used across industries worldwide. The methodology applies a structured framework of Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC) to enhance process efficiency and product quality.
As early as 2000, Ford had integrated the 6-Sigma methodology with its own TOPS (Team-Oriented Problem Solving) system, applying it to the improvement of engineering and development processes. To this day, Ford's 6-Sigma quality management certification remains highly regarded in the industry.
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