JP Amiel

The Editor’s Corner

Michael Bournazian

Michael Bournazian

By Michael Bournazian, Eng., Newsletter Editor, ASQ Senior Member, CSSGB

As this is the final Newsletter of 2020, I want to take up this space by saying THANK YOU to everyone who has taken the time to read them this year.

This year had been unique to say the least. So I think I speak for all my Section Leadership Team colleagues when I say that your participation in 2020 ASQ events it is wholeheartly appreciated. We have more coming in 2021, so stay tuned.

Finally, a thank you to my former work colleague Diego Lythgoe on his presentation to the Section last month. It was wonderful to see how he has taken his Quality expertise onwards and upwards. Continued success Diego!

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Next Event – Prochain RDV

Exploiter votre système de management de la qualité (SMQ) certifié ISO pour garantir la sécurité des données critiques (en Français, Q&R Bilingue)

Mercredi 25 novembre, 2020 à 19:00

For more information on this upcoming event, see our Newsletter, myASQ or myASQ-FR.

Information | Reservations Webex Reservations

Cristian DragnefCette présentation par Cristian Dragnef, président de Seratos Consulting, vous apprendra comment tirer parti de votre cadre ISO 9001 pour mettre en œuvre un SMSI certifié ISO qui protégera les données de votre organisation.

Dans un monde et un environnement de travail de plus en plus numérisés, les cyberattaques et les accès non autorisés peuvent facilement compromettre la qualité de vos produits et menacer votre propriété intellectuelle. En vertu de la GDPR et d'autres règlements de protection de la vie privée actuellement en vigueur, le fait de ne pas reconnaître ou signaler une violation peut également s'avérer financièrement catastrophique.

Cristian nous expliquera comment exploiter un système de gestion de la qualité (SGQ) certifié ISO, pour obtenir à la fois la certification et la tranquillité d'esprit avec l'ajout d'un cadre de sécurité de l'information certifié ISO 27001:2013 Système de gestion de la sécurité de l'information (SGSI). Ce SGSI vous permettra de répondre plus efficacement aux exigences réglementaires et législatives sans cesse croissantes, de réduire les instances de duplication des tâches et de rationaliser les processus standard tels que le contrôle de la documentation et des enregistrements, les audits internes, la revue de direction, le contrôle des non-conformités et la gestion des actions correctives.

Cristian Dragnef est auditeur principal accrédité ISMS auprès de l’IRCA, un ISMS certifié, un formateur QMS auprès de RABQSA et un auditeur accrédité par STAR Alliance. Il possède plus de 20 ans d’expérience et une vaste expertise en matière de gestion des risques et de la sécurité de l’information, de systèmes de gestion de la qualité, de gestion des services informatiques et de développement de logiciels.

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Word from the Chair – Mot du président

Eric Hosking

Eric Hosking

By Eric Hosking, Senior Consultant to Shainin, ASQ CQE, CSSBB and CQA

Unfortunately, the very encouraging Covid trend we saw through the summer has reversed sharply and we are faced with tightening restrictions on our personal and professional activities. Fortunately new restrictions have not impacted the Section any more than was the case in the summer. We are still in virtual mode. So is ASQ HQ. This comes with pros and cons. The biggest con is that lack of personal networking that we could facilitate with our monthly events. The big pro is the convenience of virtual events and that more members are taking advantage of them. Our most recent event, “Managing Rrisk with ISO31000” with Jim Moran, was a case in point with over 30 attendees, well above our norm for live events. I leave it to others to talk about this well received event below.

I encourage you to attend our upcoming event “Coaching Lean Six Sigma Teams” with Diego Lythgoe. Details for registration are on our website and our MyASQ sites.

Another event that you should make a point of attending is the ASQ Canadian National Conference being hosted by Toronto this month on the 18th through the 21st. I talked about it at length in the last newsletter. All the details are now available through the Montreal section MyASQ sites. This virtual format conference is spread over four days with 7 live sessions and 8 on demand presentations. The first three days will have a keynote speaker and all four days will have an interactive and lively ‘Kitchen Party in the evening”. To date more than 150 attendees have registered. There is still time to register and you can choose how much or little you participate in. I think you will be well served to make a point of joining us.

I did want to shout out to Ray, Chantale and J.P. who have agreed to host the Francophone kitchen party. Thanks for the help folks.

After six months or so of waiting, we now officially have all the members of 404 included in our Section following the dissolution of that section in February. This will make our lives easier as we can now use a consolidated mailing list for our communications. To the former members of 404 . . . je vous souhaite la bienvenue and welcome aboard!

We have submitted our budget and plan for next year. Chantale put this together and she has provided for a significant investment in member events next year, assuming relaxation of the Covid restrictions.

If you wish to hear about the details, plan to attend the Annual General Assembly, which will be held on October 28th, 2020, just ahead of our regular speaker event.

In closing, I made an appeal last month to members to come forward and join the Leadership team. The 2021 slate is now fixed, and we have some new faces so we will be introducing the new team at the GA. Thanks to Sam, our Nominations Chair, for stick handling that effort.

Give me your comments

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Section Executive Committee (Leadership Team) Meetings

Section Executive Committee (Leadership Team) Meetings are held at different locations, starting at 6 PM. Our next regular meeting is tentatively scheduled for:

November 3, 2020

Note that all dates planned are subject to change. Please call ahead to attend by contacting the Section Chair or the Section Secretary.

Consult the List of Your Executive for 2020 here.

Note: Available on request for section members only are minutes of section executive meetings (contact the Secretary) and section operating budget information (contact the Treasurer).

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Upcoming Events – En préparation

Novembre 25, 2020
Exploiter votre système de gestion de la qualité (SGQ) certifié ISO pour garantir la sécurité des données critiques avec Cristian Dragnef de Seratos Consulting.

Please note that, while the presentation will be in French, the Question and Answer portion will be bilingual.

Cristian Dragnef

Cette présentation par Cristian Dragnef, président de Seratos Consulting, vous apprendra comment tirer parti de votre cadre ISO 9001 pour mettre en œuvre un SGSI certifié ISO qui protégera les données de votre organisation.

Dans un monde et un environnement de travail de plus en plus numérisés, les cyberattaques et les accès non autorisés peuvent facilement compromettre la qualité de vos produits et menacer votre propriété intellectuelle. En vertu de la GDPR et d’autres règlements de protection de la vie privée actuellement en vigueur, le fait de ne pas reconnaître ou signaler une violation peut également s’avérer financièrement catastrophique. Cristian nous expliquera comment exploiter un système de gestion de la qualité (SGQ) certifié ISO, pour obtenir à la fois la certification et la tranquillité d’esprit avec l’ajout d’un cadre de sécurité de l’information certifié ISO 27001:2013 Système de gestion de la sécurité de l’information (SGSI). Ce SGSI vous permettra de répondre plus efficacement aux exigences réglementaires et législatives sans cesse croissantes, de réduire les instances de duplication des tâches et de rationaliser les processus standard tels que le contrôle de la documentation et des enregistrements, les audits internes, la revue de direction, le contrôle des non-conformités et la gestion des actions correctives.

Cristian est auditeur principal accrédité ISMS auprès de l’IRCA, formateur QMS auprès de RABQSA et auditeur accrédité par STAR Alliance. Il possède plus de 20 ans d’expérience et une vaste expertise en matière de gestion des risques et de la sécurité de l’information, de systèmes de gestion de la qualité, de gestion des services informatiques et de développement de logiciels.

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We are already preparing on slate of topics for 2021, all virtual for the time being . . .

  • Virtual Auditing
  • Lean Start-up for a Centre for Pediatrics Emergencies
  • Variability Reduction”B Corp” Certifications
  • The Future of Quality Jobs
  • Critical Thinking for the Quality Professional
  • International Women of Quality (panel event)
  • Pecha Kucha Night

If you have any subjects that you would like to see us present in the future, please drop on an e-mail to anyone on the Section’s Leadership Committee.

Upcoming Events – En préparation Read More »

Student Outreach Committee – 2020 Eric Stern Award

Farnoosh NaderkhaniBy Dr. Farnoosh Naderkhani – ASQ Member, Assistant Professor @ Concordia, Student Outreach Committee Chair.

In memory of Eric Stern – a respectfully remembered ASQ Montreal Section Leader and Concordia Alumni, the “Eric Stern Award” is granted to Master students at Concordia. The 2020 Eric Stern Award competition is organized by the Student Outreach Committee of the ASQ Montreal Section, together with the rest of the Leadership Team at ASQ Montreal, and Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science. The Eric Stern Award competition is open to full time Master of Science (MASc) or Master of Engineering (MEng) students registered at Concordia Institute for Information System Engineering (CIISE) or Industrial Engineering from Mechanical, Aerospace and Industrial Engineering (MAIE) at Concordia University.
Interested students are invited to participate in this competition with a $500 CAD award to win. The focus of this competition is on individually defined quality related projects on topics such as inspection, defect detection, and quality control, to name but a few. We hope the students see the exercise as a rewarding learning exercise and small financial incentive to compete and win, as well as learn more and appreciate a fellow alumnus that made his mark with several societies, not just ASQ and Concordia.
The deadline to submit projects (report of maximum 5 pages) is October 31, 2020. The reports should be emailed to Dr. Farnoosh Naderkhani via farnoosh.naderkhani@concordia.ca. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Dr. Naderkhani.
See the 2020 Eric Stern Award for more details.

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Voice of the Customer – Voix du client

Amine DjeffalBy Amine Djeffal, ASQ CQA, RAC, Quality and Regulatory Affairs Professional

Here is a quick rundown of the comments made by our virtual participants to the ISO 31000 Risk Management Webinar with Jim Moran on September 30th, 2020.

Most of the 35 participants were ASQ members (full and senior members). Feedback from the participants was highly positive on both the Subject and Approach categories, with scores above 90% whereas results for Presenter and Exchange categories were 87% and 73% respectively.

One participant mentioned that although the topic was relevant and the presenter highly knowledgeable, it would have been better to link ISO 31000 to practical examples and case studies. Another participant proposed we have a brief round-table introduction from each participant at the beginning of the event in order to discuss the presentation findings later on with people who were connected.

Based on poll results nearly 62% of the participants heard about the event through the Section’s Newsletter, which demonstrates it is still the perfect communication channel to reach a maximum of ASQ members and keep them informed about the Section’s events. Finally, it was shown that 7:00pm to 9:00pm was the best time to hold a webinar.

We would like to assure ASQ members that we welcome all comments. They will be reviewed and discussed within the leadership team. Identifying opportunities for continuous improvement is, and will always be considered vital at the Montreal Section.

Participants have expressed interest to attend other webinars. Several topics for upcoming webinars were proposed such as: critical infrastructure and risk management, ISO 45001, design FMEA, applied statistics, cybersecurity, lean tools and change management.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ASQ Montreal Section will continue to hold virtual events.

We would like to thank you all participants for your valuable feedback. We look forward to hearing from you soon at our Annual General Assembly scheduled on October 28th, 2020. At that time we will also have a presentation on “Coaching Lean Six Sigma Teams” by Diego Lythgoe, who teaches Lean Operations at McGill University and serves as Global Continuous Improvement Lead within Shell’s Trading and Supply business.

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Had You Connected to the Last Event

Raymond DyerBy Raymond E. Dyer, ASQ Senior Member, CMQ/OE, CQA, Internet Liaison and Section Secretary

Had You Connected . . . RISK MANAGEMENT

Our last event showcased Jim Moran, an experienced ISO standards professional, trainer, and speaker. The topic was managing risk with ISO 31000. Even before Jim could begin, I started the questions by asking him why ISO 31000 and not 31001 like ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 27001 (you get the idea). This was quickly addressed by Jim reminding us that standards that finish with a “1” are those you can generally get registered to. Those that finish with a “0” are typically guidelines that provide principles, a framework, and a process. In the case of ISO 31000, these guidelines are for managing risk. That is in large part what Jim went through, i.e. the principles, framework, and process for managing risk. He also went into the benefits of doing so. He showed a few approaches or tools used in managing risks, including Ishikawa Diagrams, Process Mapping, Risk Analysis Matrices, Internal Audits, etc. By the way, one attendee did comment that AS9100 was an exception of a standard finishing by “0” that you can get registered to (thanks Michael) . . . (Editor’s Note: You’re welcome).

My challenge in writing this article was that I was also moderating the webinar, and so not really taking notes. There were a few amusing stories Jim raised that caught my attention, most notably when he talked about “in his time” they used five and a quarter inch floppy disks. I reflected on that with amusement given I still remember a time we stored programs on cassette tapes and even go as far back as providing program instructions on decks of punched out cards back in university!

One of the benefits of being the moderator is having access to survey (or poll) feedback from our Webex host J.P. Amiel. I hope not to repeat too much information that our Voice of the Customer Chair Amine Djeffal will report, but here is some of the feedback:

– Great topic and presentation. – Great presentation! Much appreciated! – Thank you everyone, great presentation 🙂 – Thanks for organizing this excellent event! I only miss the human interaction! – Like the idea of survey as we go! Keeps the audience engaged! – Thanks for an outstanding presentation. – Very interesting subject. It will be nice to go a bit deeper on it. – Thank you, great presentation. – Interesting presentation on topic. Highly knowledgeable presenter. – Thank you Ray, ASQ Section and Jim Moran.

I shared the video recording with Véronique B. who could not attend, but wanted to know if she could hear the recording of the event. Her feedback was: “Great presentation, I really appreciate it. Jim is really a good communicator, he knows what he is talking about and I liked his vision. I also laughed several times such as when he mentioned the floppy disk ;-). Good job inviting him.” Thank you Véronique for the feedback.

Now we did get feedback about opportunities to improve on both the presentation and the format as well, namely to incorporate more practical examples in the presentation and to consider opening the format to encourage more exchange amongst the attendees, many of whom no doubt know each other. For example, one participant asked if it would be possible to see fellow attendees during the first few opening minutes of the event. We’ll need to explore the implications of this latter suggestion, but the feedback has been registered. Thanks!

As I said when kicking off the event, I’ve enjoyed Jim Moran’s weekly emailed bulletins on various topics surrounding the ISO world of standards for over a year and a half. They’re reasonable in duration, informative, and somewhat amusing, at least to me. If you’re interested in subscribing to them, visit https://simplifyiso.com/. I look forward to hearing from you at our next event! Thanks for attending and participating.

Had You Connected to the Last Event Read More »

The Editor’s Corner

Michael Bournazian

Michael Bournazian

By Michael Bournazian, Eng., Newsletter Editor, ASQ Senior Member, CSSGB

So the challenge to myself last month to not write about the “P” word or the “C” word has come and gone. I spent that article talking about participating in the ISO 9001:2015 revision committee for Canada.

One of the nice things that came from publishing that piece was having someone actually reach out to me and ask how they can participate, in a similar capacity, for the next revision. I was more than happy to provide them the information.

It also made me realize that 7-8 years ago when I participated in that activity, everything I did was done remotely (or as we say more often nowadays, “virtually”).

I never met one person with whom I communicated, and I never participated in any face-to-face meetings. Everything happened through the (technological) magic of telephones, computers, modems, e-mails, Internet, and yes, even Webex. Everything I did back then mirrors what I believe would NEED to be done now, if I was to participate in such a committee again. So my experience with working virtually and helping to achieve something with a global reach was already there.

Why then was I so apprehensive with everything going virtual with regards to my work in March 2020?

In retrospect, I think the initial (and continued) unknown of how our current situation will be resolved fed that apprehension.

As well, back in 2012-13 during my ISO involvement, and certainly as close as earlier this year, the OPTION of doing things live-and-in-person or virtually existed.

Not so much now at this given time, and humans by nature like to have options, the more the better. When you go to an ice cream establishment, do you want only chocolate and vanilla as choices? Hell no, 31 flavours no less, and while I am here, create a new one.

As Quality professionals, we often are presented with options: Which problem solving tool to use? Which SPC method to use? Immediately quarantine the nonconforming part or continue processing to gain some advancement and then quarantine? Sometimes the options are plentiful and require thought; sometimes the options are narrow yet require equal or more thought.

And then there are times when options are taken from you without your say, and you have to make the best with what you have, or else nothing will move forward and get done.

So as I like to say to anyone who will listen . . . “I am not perfect, but I always try to do my best. That way, I can never say I failed”.

OPTIONS: Make the best of them.

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Any feedback? Click on the link in the bottom right corner of this section and let me know. Thanks.

 

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Eric Stern Award 2020 – Winner

Eric Stern Eric Stern Award 2020 – Winner Eric Stern
A tribute to Eric Stern, well remembered ASQ Montreal Section Leader and Concordia Alumni

Farnoosh NaderkhaniBy Dr. Farnoosh Naderkhani, ASQ Member, Assistant Professor, Concordia University,
Student Outreach Committee Chair
Without a doubt, the COVID-19 pandemic has abruptly changed the world as we knew it, at the beginning of the 2nd decade of the 21st century. On the bright side, we all have learned to continue learning, working, and socializing in a virtual environment. I wish all students a healthy, productive and prosperous 2021.

It is my great pleasure to announce that Mr. Kamyar Azar is the recipient of the ASQ Montreal Section’s 2020 Eric Stern Award. Mr. Azar is currently a full time Masters student, studying Quality System Engineering at the Concordia Institute for Information System Engineering (CIISE), Concordia University.

Kamyar Azar - 2020 Eric Stern AwardIn summary, the intellectual merit of Kamyar’s work is in the development of advanced Machine Learning-based models (ML), coupled with Quality Control techniques to perform high accuracy predictions in the Healthcare industry. Nowadays, significant technological advancements have resulted in the availability of large multi-modal, complex and high-dimensional datasets within the Healthcare domain.

Due to the complexity of such datasets, using dimension reduction techniques is more important than ever before to increase the training speed and to provide better interpretations. In this regard, a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) control chart, a well-known quality control technique for data dimensionality reduction, is applied to analyze the Breast Cancer Wisconsin (Diagnostic) imaging dataset. Finally, multiple classification models are “trained” to predict a tumor’s malignancy. In addition to significant theoretical and technological implications of such projects, like Healthcare being a key driver of Canada’s economy, advancements in this line of research can have a significant impact on our Healthcare industry.

Congratulations Kamyar for your work. Great job.


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ASQ Montreal — Had You Connected To The Last Event — Food Fraud | La Fraude Alimentaire

Amine Djeffal

Here’s a brief description of the Section’s first Webinar on Food Fraud by Amine Djeffal, ASQ CQA, RAC, Quality and Regulatory Affairs Professional.

1054cf4809c203d0930fa699fbb46f6c-huge-deDeborah Esplin is a Food Safety and Quality Contract Auditor with SAI Global, with 16 years in food production and auditing. Before starting her career in consulting, Deborah worked 13 years for several companies ranging from nut and granola processing, gluten-free bakery products to natural products and packing of drink mixes.
As a food safety consultant, she has carried out almost 200 audits in food manufacturing plants in North America. Since fraud detection and controls are important elements in many of the standards audited, this webinar was an opportunity to learn more from Deborah’s experience and knowledge.

According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), food fraud happens when food is intentionally misrepresented. It may also happen through substitution, addition/adulteration and tampering at any point in the supply chain. In 2019, Canadians were shocked when confronted with news that counterfeit seafood had found its way onto retail store shelves and restaurants. Surprisingly, based on webinar poll results, only 44% of the attendees felt confident in the food they consume as being genuine.
Food adulteration is not easy to control due to supply chain complexity. In addition, one cannot rely solely on certifications to reduce risk. Some certifications like those issued by the Global Food Safety Intiatiative (GFSI) require food fraud risk assessment and controls from applicants. At government level, CFIA requires preventive control plans for meeting labelling regulations. Other initiatives and strategies to mitigate risks include stricter control over labelling. Definitely it takes a joint effort between industry, including all stakeholders in the supply chain, and governments.
It is also important to not forget the public, which needs to be part of the solution, by making information easily accessible in addition to having the ability to lodge complaints and report fraud.
As a bonus, instructions on how to do a taste test were provided at the end of the presentation.
In conclusion, the topic was very interesting and the webinar worth the attendance.

Give me your feedback by e-mail

Here’s a look at JP Amiel, ASQ Montreal Web Committee Chair, behind the scenes.
JP Amiel behind the scene

ASQ Montreal — Had You Connected To The Last Event — Food Fraud | La Fraude Alimentaire Read More »

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