OutSofting

Empirical Process Control

The word "empirical" denotes information gained by means of observation, experience, or experiment. The empirical process control constitutes a continuous cycle of inspecting the process for correct operation and results and adapting the process as needed.

There are three legs that hold up every implementation of empirical process control: transparency, inspection, and adaptation.

The first leg is transparency. It means that those aspects of the process that affect the outcome must be visible to those controlling the process. 

The second leg is inspection. The various aspects of the process must be inspected frequently enough that unacceptable variances in the process can be detected.

The third leg of empirical process control is adaptation. The process or the material being processed must be adjusted if one or more aspects of the process are outside acceptable limits and the resulting product will be unacceptable.