Potential application of Six Sigma tool in the integrated product development process

The Six Sigma program was first created to analyze the occurrence of defects with the reduction of variability around a target value of a characteristic that measured product performance. However, its objectives now transcend the original purpose, encompassing a new philosophy of problem solving that extols the analysis and diagnosis of the problem before actions are taken to solve it. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the implementation of the Six Sigma approach in companies and to identify difficulties and best practices that can contribute to the efficiency of the Six Sigma tool in the integrated product development process. Those practices are generated from literature and the companies' reality. An exploratory analysis is made from a sample of the greatest industrial and technological companies from Brazil. The main scope of the analysis consists of assessing the perception of those companies about the ability of Six Sigma tool to improve their processes of technological innovation and new products development. In addition, we compare long-standing theoretical issues against actions carried out by those companies. The results show that the main perceived contribution of Design for Six Sigma is to establish a structured method that conducts the translation of market demands into specifications for a new product development. The interviewed companies understand the Six Sigma tool as an isolated application of tools, which are not integrated in the New Product Development Process information flow.