If you left the projectA unique, temporary endeavor with a defined goal that is important, urgent or complex enough to need its own organization outside the normal line organization. Click term for full definition tomorrow, who would know what to watch? The Control PlanA living document defining what's controlled, how it's measured, its boundaries, and the reaction plan if it goes out of control. Click term for full definition answers that on one page, and tells everyone what to do when the alarm sounds. Watch the short video, then work with the toolkit PDF: it explains the method, shows a worked example and gives you a blank template to fill in.
Tool video
The short tool video will appear here.
Control Plan in short
- Revisit the FMEA. The failure modes with the highest RPN are your critical-to-control points.
- Pick smartA standard for writing project goals. A SMART goal is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound, so everyone knows exactly what success looks like and by when. Click term for full definition controls. One Poka-YokeJapanese for "mistake-proofing"; designing a process so an error is either impossible to make or immediately obvious. Click term for full definition or one chart that catches several failure modes beats a new checklist per error.
- Define measurement. Method, frequency and owner for each critical X or Y.
- Set the boundaries. Specification LimitsThe boundaries set by the Customer (Voice of the Customer or VOC) that define the acceptable range for a product or service characteristic. They typically include a Lower Specification Limit (LSL) and an Upper Specification Limit (USL). Any output outside these limits is considered a defect. Click term for full definition from the customer, Control LimitsStatistically calculated boundaries on a Control Chart that define the expected range of variation for a stable process. They are based on the process's historical performance (typically set at ±3 standard deviations from the process average) and are used to distinguish between common cause (normal)... Click term for full definition from your new data.
- Write the OCAP. Who is notified, who stops the work, what is the first recovery step.
Key points
- Protect the task, not just describe it.
- Focus on the highest-risk Xs and Ys.
- Keep VOC and VOP side by side.
- Every control needs an OCAP.