ERIE, Pa. — Penn State Behrend will offer its Lean and Six Sigma Series, a sequence of process improvement and quality management classes, beginning this summer. The courses, which will be offered through the college’s Office of Community and Workforce Programs, will be held in the Jack Burke Research and Economic Development Center. Registrations are now being accepted.
“Six Sigma methodologies are regarded as the gold standard for process improvement. It’s a tried-and-true method for companies hoping to reduce costs and increase profits,” said Michelle Hartmann, director of Community and Workforce Programs. “For the Erie region, it’s a game-changer to now be able to offer these courses here at Penn State Behrend.”
Six Sigma is a set of techniques and tools first introduced by engineer Bill Smith while he was working at Motorola in 1986. The tools seek to improve the quality of the output of a process by identifying and removing the causes of defects and minimizing variability in manufacturing and business processes.
All courses in the Lean and Six Sigma Series are taught by instructors from RB Sigma, a Cleveland-based continuous and process improvement company. Each instructor is a certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt and has a minimum of 20 years of experience in multiple industries.
The schedule for the courses is below:
- Lean Six Sigma Black Belt: Weeks of June 4, June 18, July 16, August 13, Sept. 10
- Basics of Lean: June 25-28
- Advanced Design Tools for Manufacturability Training: July 23-26
- Robust Design: Drive Concepts to Profits: Oct. 8-11
For complete course descriptions and registration details, visit behrend.psu.edu/cwp or call the Office of Community and Workforce Programs at 814-898-6103.