The 29th annual Quality and Productivity Research Conference will take place this year from June 4–7 in Long Beach, California, and feature a wide range of technical sessions covering topics in reliability, the design and analysis of experiments (including computer experiments), statistical process control, and measurement systems analysis.

On June 4, Di Michelson of SAS Institute will provide the short course “Topics in Statistical Process Control.” It will cover topics such as profile monitoring, multivariate SPC, stability indexes, and process capability. Registration is now open for both the short course and conference.

Joint Statistical Meetings

The section will sponsor one invited session and four roundtable events during the 2012 Joint Statistical Meetings in San Diego, California. Christine Anderson-Cook organized the invited session “Statistical Engineering Case Studies in Industry and Government,” inviting Peter Parker of NASA, Grant Reinman of Pratt & Whitney, and William Brenneman of Procter & Gamble to speak. Ron Snee will serve as discussant. This talk will cover three case studies of statistical engineering that highlight the integrated use of multiple statistical tools to solve large complex unstructured problems of high impact, the development of supporting software to sustain the gains from the solutions, and the process for how these solutions were developed.

Roundtables are a great opportunity to interact more closely with a small group of individuals interested in a specific topic while enjoying breakfast of lunch. This year’s roundtables include “Multivariate Process Monitoring for Nonmanufacturing Applications,” with Blair Christian; “Common Misconceptions in Response Surface Modeling,” with Thomas Bizik; “Enabling Process and Product Robustness with Data-Driven Decisions,” with Daksha Chokshi; and “Differences Between a Career in Clinical Statistics vs. Industrial Statistics,” with Todd Coffey.

Fall Technical Conference

After JSM, the 56th annual Fall Technical Conference will take place in St. Louis, Missouri, from October 4–5. The theme is “Statistics and Quality: Expanding the Horizon.” Two short courses will be offered on the day before the conference and two more on the day after.

Call for Short Courses

All three annual conferences in which the Section on Quality and Productivity is involved offer short courses. The section is always interested in receiving proposals for courses you have or would like to develop in addition to hearing about courses you would like to attend or have seen at other venues. Contact Rachel Silvestrini at rtjohnso@nps.edu with ideas and proposals.