An application of Taguchi's robust parameter design methodology for process improvement

Robust parameter design is a methodology used in quality engineering for achieving high quality at low cost. It involves making the product's functional performance robust (i.e. insensitive) against various unknown sources of noise such as manufacturing variation, environmental variation and deterioration. This paper illustrates how robust parameter design can be used for optimising a process for radiographic quality welding of cast iron. The paper shows a step-by-step approach for conducting robust parameter design experimentation for process optimisation. Both the analysis of variance (ANOVA) on mean response and the signal-to-noise ratio have been carried out for determining the optimal operational settings of the process.