CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM

To investigate the causes of poor performance of the manufacturing process

 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Define the relationship between Cause and Effect

Explain use and construction of:
 Fishbone Diagram
 Guidelines for Brainstorming
 Cause and Effect Matrix
Learn how to integrate Fishbone Diagram and
Cause & Effect Matrix into your Company
SOPs
 WHAT IS A FISHBONE DIAGRAM?
1. CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM

2. FISHBONE DIAGRAM

3. ISHIKAWA DIAGRAM (1rst USED IN 1960)

4. ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS(RCA)

(improving process performance)

5. C&E MATRIX ( help to investigate process

problems and failure in detail)

THESE NAMES ALL REFER TO THE SAME TOOL.

WHAT IS A FISHBONE DIAGRAM?

USEFUL FOR:
A VISUAL TOOL USED TO IDENTIFY, EXPLORE
AND GRAPHICALLY DISPLAY ALL THE
POSSIBLE CAUSES RELATED TO A PROBLEM
TO DISCOVER ROOT CAUSES

IDENTIFY AND ISOLATE THE INDIVIDUAL

CAUSES OF PROCESS / PRODUCT VARIATION

ORGANISE THE MOST IMPORTANT CAUSE –

EFFECT RELATIONSHIPS FOR FURTHER
STUDY.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY “ CAUSE & EFFECT”?

A PROBLEM WHICH A POTENTIAL

HAS OCCURED FUTURE PROBLEM
(FMEA)

CAUSE EFFECT CAUSE EFFECT

Events/conditions Symptoms that Events/conditions Symptoms that
that led to provide evidence would result
of the problem
that would lead to
the problem the problem from the problem

Dave Wessel, “An Ounce of Prevention”, Quality Progress, Dec, 1998

 CAUSE - EFFECT RELATIONSHIP

A PROBLEM WHICH
HAS OCCURED

CAUSE EFFECT
Events/conditions Symptoms that
that led to provide evidence
the problem
CO
of the problem
Eli CAU blem

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RR

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ap

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ACTION
Dave Wessel, “An Ounce of Prevention”, Quality Progress, Dec, 1998
SOME NOTES REGARDING DR KAORUS ISHIKAWA

Quality control statistician

Professor in University of Tokyo
One of the pioneers of Japan’s
quality revolution in the 1940s
Played major role in growth of QC
circles
Best known for formalizing use of
Cause-and-Effect Diagram
Won the Deming Prize and
Shewhart Medal
ASQ established the Ishikawa Medal
to recognize the human side of
quality
 WHY USE FISHBONE DIAGRAMS?
To discover the most probable causes to a
problem (or effect)

Sometimes, the effect can be a desirable effect.

When something desirable has happened, it is

useful to find out what caused it so that you can
make it happen again (incase maintenance is
not done what will be the desirable effect?)

To visualize possible relationships between

causes for a given problem under
investigation
 WHY USE FISHBONE DIAGRAMS?

1. Establish what the problem (effect) is

 It must be stated in clear and concise terms,
agreed by everyone.
2. Write the effect on the head of the fish
3. Decide the major categories of causes
 Brainstorming
 Use standard categories such as 5M+E
(Machines, Materials, Methods, Manpower,
Measurement & Environment)
 Use major steps in the process if the effect is
resulted from a recognizable process
• See example????
 FIVE KEY SOURCES OF VARIATION

Man

Machine Methods
Five Key
Sources of
+ Environment
Variation

Materials Measurement

Use cause and effect diagram to single out variation sources within the
“5M’s + E”
 CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM LAYOUT

Line of questioning

EQUIPMENT MATERIAL MACHINE

PROCESS
QUALITY
CHARACTERISATION
(PROBLEM TO BE
RESOLVED) [EFFECT]

NVIRONMENT MANPOWER METHOD

CAUSE EFFECT
CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM LAYOUT

Main Category

Problem/
Desired
Improvement
Sub-Cause

Root
Cause
 CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM LAYOUT

Causes Effect

Main Category

Problem

Cause
u se
-Ca
b Root
Su
Cause

Shows various influences on a process to identify most likely

root causes of problem
CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM LAYOUT

Materials Methods

Problem/

Maintenance

Machinery Manpower

Brainstorm to determine root causes and

add those as small branches off major bones
Learning Exercise
 CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM EXAMPLE

ENVIRONMENT
WORKERS

TOO HOT TRAINING

UNHAPPY
WORKERS

OLD

MANAGEMENT MACHINES

EXAMPLE FISHBONE
SOME MORE DETAIL OF CAUSE & EFFECT
DIAGRAM

THE BASIC PROBLEM IS ENTERED AT THE RIGHT

OF THE DIAGRAM AT THE END OF THE MAIN
“BONE”.

THIS IS THE PROBLEM OF INTEREST

AT AN ANGLE TO THIS MAIN BONE ARE LOCATED

TYPICALLY THREE TO SIX SUB-BONES WHICH ARE
THE CONTRIBUTING GENERALS CAUSES TO THE
PROBLEM UNDER CONSIDERATIONS.
SOME MORE DETAIL OF CAUSE & EFFECT
DIAGRAM
SUB-BONES ARE THE CAUSES WHICH ARE
RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PROBLEM.

THE SUB-DIVISIONS CAN BE FURTHER SUB-

DIVIDED. (ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE LEVELS)

TO GO INTO THE DEPTH OF THE PROBLEM

CAN BE USED BY INDIVIDUALS OR TEAMS OR BY

GROUP

ONCE THE ENTIRE FISHBONE IS COMPLETED,

TEAM DISCUSSION TAKES PLACE TO DECIDE
WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT ROOT
CAUSES OF THE PROBLEM
SOME MORE DETAIL OF CAUSE & EFFECT
DIAGRAM

THE MOST CAUSES SHOULD BE

ENCIRCLED TO INDICATE ITEMS TO BE
ACTED UPON

AND THE USE OF FISHBONE TOOL IS

COMPLETED
SOME MORE DETAIL OF CAUSE & EFFECT
DIAGRAM
THE ISHIKAWA DIAGRAM, LIKE OTHER
QUALITY TOOLS, IS A VISUALIZATION AND
KNOWLEDGE ORGANIZATION TOOL

SIMPLY COLLECTING THE IDEAS OF A

GROUP IN A SYSTAMIC WAY

FACILITATES THE UNDERSTANDING AND

COMPLETE DIAGNOSIS OF THE PROBLEM

SEVERAL COMPUTER TOOLS HAVE BEEN

CREATED FOR ASSISTING IN CREATING THIS
DIAGRAM.
 CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM

A TOOL CREAED BY THE JAPANESE UNION OF

SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS (JUSE) A BETTER
TOOL WITH LIMITED NUMBER OF BONES
 CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM STEPS

STEP 1 IDENTIFY PROBLEM

STEP 2 DETERMINE CAUSE CATEGORIES

STEP 3 BRAIN STORM POSSIBLE CAUSES

STEP 4 VOTE THE MOST LIKELY CAUSES

STEP 5 IDENTIFY MOST PROBABLE CAUSES

STEP 6 VERIFY EACH OF THE CAUSES

SELECTED
STEP7 ANALYZE THE FISH BONE DIAGRAM
CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM PURPOSE

PURPOSE:

HELP TO SEPARATE THE IMPORTANT CAUSE-

EFECT RELATIONSHIPS, FROM THE
UNIMPORTANT ONES

IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIPS ------ WE NEED

TO CONTROL

UNIMPORTANT RELATIONSHIP ------- WE CAN

IGNORE
When brainstorming session is completed, every
cause should be labeled as either a “C”, “N” or “X”.

C variables that must be held as constant as

possible and require standard operating procedures
to insure consistency

N variables that are noise or uncontrolled

variables and cannot be cheaply/easily held constant

X variables considered to be ***KPIVs and

need to be experimented to determine what influence
each has on the output and what their optimal settings
should be to achieve customer-desired performance

***KPIV=Key Process Input Variable

The team should analyze and zoom in those
“most likely causes”.

Helpful Hint
Look out for causes that appear in more than one
category. They may be the “most likely causes”.

The most likely causes should be prioritized

for further investigation.
 POINTS TO N0TE FOR FISHBONE DIAGRAM

o Treat the cause-and-effect diagram as a living

document
o As new variables are discovered, update the
cause-and-effect diagram
o After your experimental investigations, when
you have optimized the “X” factors, and
implemented control, update them to “C”.
o Therefore, when the fishbone diagram has
more “C”s, the better we can control the effect
and improve its performance measure.
 CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM

Let’s create a Fishbone Diagram using

Minitab
CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM
Stat Quality Tools Cause-and-Effect
CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM and SCATTER
DIAGRAM

Solved Example 1
 CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM and SCATTER
DIAGRAM

STEP 5 Most probable cause STEP 6 Verify each of the cause selected

STEP 2 Main and sub causes

STEP 3 –B-Storm possible causes

sSSS
STEP 1

STEP 4 Vote the most likely causes

SCATTER PLOT AND CORRELATION

Solved Example 2
 SCATTER PLOT AND CORRELATION

Measurement
Measurement Human
Human Machines
Machines
Faulty
testing equipment Poor supervision Out of adjustment

Incorrect specifications Lack of concentration Tooling problems

Improper methods Inadequate training Old / worn

Quality
Quality
Inaccurate Problem
Problem
temperature
control Defective from vendor Poor process design
Ineffective quality
Not to specifications management
Dust and Dirt Material- Deficiencies
handling problems in product design

Environment
Environment Materials
Materials Process
Process
 SCATTER PLOT AND CORRELATION

Learning Exercise
Constructing a Fishbone Diagram
Using Your Quality Problem
SCATTER PLOT AND CORRELATION
Fishbone Diagram for Surface Flaws

Measurements Materials Man

List specific
causes in
each category

Surface Flaws

Problem (effect)
Environment Methods Machines
at the “head of
the fish”

Major categories of causes

(or sometimes call major bones)
 SCATTER PLOT AND CORRELATION
Identify possible causes through Brainstorming
Identify specific causes within each major category that may be affecting
the problem.

Fishbone Diagram for Surface Flaws

Measurements Materials Personnel

3. Continue Micrometers
Calibration Method Alloys Shifts
2. Repeat this
asking: ‘Why is procedure with each
Precision
this happening?’ Accuracy Lubricants Supervisors specific cause to
until you no produce sub-causes.
Microscopes Suppliers Training
longer get useful
information. Inspectors Operators
Surface Flaws
Machine feedrate
Speed
Machine rpm

Brake Lathes
Brand of bit
Condensation Engager Bits
Size of bit

Moisture% Angle Sockets

1. The team should ask :
‘What are the machine
Environment Methods Machines issues affecting/causing
the problem?’

When do we know we have reached the root cause ?

 How Cause & Effect can Fit into Process
Improvement Activities
C&E Matrix
The Big Picture Rating of
Importance to
Customer
9 9 7 10 10 9 3 2 6

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Homogeneity

Temperature
Consistency

Digets Time
Cleanliness
Gel Time

Viscosity
s

Solids
Color
t
Process Inputs Total

u Scales
In
tp pu
1 9 8 2 1 1 9 1 1 8 321
Accuracy
Preheating
2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 65

u
DICY TK

t
DMF Load
3 3 8 1 1 1 8 1 3 8 255

O s
Accuracy
DMF
4 1 1 4 2 1 2 1 1 1 105
Cleanliness
DMF Raw
5 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 74
Materials
DICY Load
6 9 7 1 1 1 9 1 1 2 269
Accuracy
DICY Envir.
7 8 5 3 1 1 8 1 1 2 247
Factors
DICY Raw
8 8 5 1 1 1 9 1 1 2 242
Materials
DICY Mixer
9 1 1 1 1 7 1 1 1 1 125
Speecd

Capability Summary Control Plan Summary

Operational Excellence
Control Plan

FMEA
K ey P rocess O utput V ariable Product: Core Team: Date (Orig):
Key Contact:
C apability Status S heet Phone: Date (Rev):

U pper Low er Process

Measurement %R&R Sample Sample Control
C ustom er R equirem ent M easurem ent % R & R or P/T Sam ple Process Process Step Input Output Specification (LSL, Cpk /Date Reaction Plan
Spec Target Spec Cp C pk D ate A ctions Technique P/T Size Frequency Method
(O utput Variable) Technique R atio Size USL, Target)
Lim it Lim it
G el Tim e DICY Turn Steam on Scales
Viscosity Accuracy

C leanliness Process/Product DMF Load DMF DMF Load

C olor Failure Modes and Effects Analysis Accuracy
H om ogeneity DMF
C onsistency (FMEA) DMF Load DMF
Cleanliness
D igets Tim e DICY Load DICY DICY Envir.
Tem perature Factors
Solids Process or DICY Load
Prepared by: DICY Load DICY
Product Name: Accuracy

DICY Load DICY DICY Raw

Responsible: FMEA Date (Orig) ______________ (Rev) _____________ Materials

DICY Load DICY DICY Mixer

Speecd

The Key Outputs are

DMF Load DMF DMF Raw
Materials
Process S O D R
Step/Part E C E P DICY Turn Steam on Preheating
Number Potential Failure Mode Potential Failure Effects V Potential Causes C Current Controls T N DICY TK

Spin Draw Fiber Breakouts Undersized package, High SD Dirty Spinneret Visual Detection of Wraps and

evaluated ability to meet Process panel-hours lost 2

Filament motion
8 broken Filaments

Visual Sight-glass
9 144

The Key Inputs are

5 2 8 80

customer spec. 8
Polymer defects
2
Fuzzball Light
9 144

evaluated for process

0

Key Inputs are explored while evaluating control

process for potential failure
VSM, Six-Sigma, DOE, Lean Mfg., FMEA, TRIZ
 How do we know when we have reached
ROOT CAUSE ?
Root Cause is the lowest cause in a chain of cause and
effect at which we have some capability to cause the
break
It’s within our capability to unilaterally control, or to influence,
changes to the cause

Products are failing for contamination

WHY? Base castings leak at mounting screw hole
WHY? Suppliers leak test may not detect porosity leak
WHY? Suppliers have different leak test processes
WHY? No standard process for supplier leak test
Before we begin, we must establish the context in which the
Cause-Effect will be used.

Span of Control - areas where we SPHERE OF INFLUENCE

have a high degree of control over (Influence or persuasion only)
parts or functions, virtually
complete authority to change
anything

Sphere of Influence - areas SPAN OF CONTROL

where we can influence things to (Full authority)
varying degrees but don’t have
direct control.

Outside Environment - where we

have neither control nor influence

OUTSIDE, UNCONTROLLED
ENVIRONMENT
1. The main objective is to identify as many potential causes as
possible for a given effect (of quality characteristic such as
surface finish problem, crack and pin holes problem in casting
or forging. etc;) with out regard to strength and importance of
any particular cause.

2. C & E matrix consists of an effect located on the right –hand

side of the matrix and series of causes along with the
branches and sub-branches on the left-hand side of the
matrix.
3. Identify causes related to a given effect.

4. Major categories are represented by branches and sub-

categories are represented by sub-branches.

5. C & E matrix is a basic tool should be mastered by every

member of an organization.

6. C & E matrix analysis is fundamental to understand process

7. C & E matrix is a good starting point for process control and
improvement exercises.

8. C & E matrix is the break down of the specific variables both

controllable and un-controllable

9. Broad conceptual - causes and effects are easily depicted,

showed, presented on a relation diagram.