What Is Poka Yoke?

Although the concept of poka-yoke has existed for a long time in various forms, it was Japanese manufacturing engineer Shigeo Shingo who developed the idea into a formidable tool for achieving zero defects and eventually eliminating quality control inspections. * The methods he advocates were formerly called "fool-proofing." Recognizing that this label could offend many workers, Shingo came up with the term poka-yoke, generally translated as "mistake-proofing" or "fail-safing" (to avoid (yokeru) inadvertent errors (poka)).

The idea behind poka-yoke is to respect the intelligence of workers. By taking over repetitive tasks or actions that depend on vigilance or memory, poka-yoke can free a worker's time and mind to pursue more creative and value-adding activities. Many things can go wrong in the complex environment of the workplace; every day there are opportunities to make mistakes that will result in defective products. Defects are wasteful, and if they are not discovered, they disappoint the customer's expectations of quality.

Behind poka-yoke is the conviction that it is not acceptable to produce even a small number of defective goods. To become a world class competitor, a company must adopt not only a philosophy but a practice of producing zero defects. Poka-yoke methods are simple concepts for achieving this goal.

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