Master Thesis: The implementation of SPC for process control within Ovako’s production

What do you get?

You will be a part of a company doing the right thing because its right, that already today has a world-leading CO2 position and is doing its best to create a sustainable society.

Ovako is an employer for you who likes the smaller organizations efficient decisions and the larger organizations security. At Ovako you can expect an energetic and forward-leaning place of work, with open discussions, good camaraderie and great organizational drive. As an employee you get (among other things)

• A workplace with focus on employee health, safety and wellbeing
• Great personal responsibility and freedom to how you solve your tasks
• A culture that likes to be challenged and welcomes new ideas that improves
• Ability to work in a dynamic environment with engaged and experiences coworkers

Backgrund and purpose

 What is the origin of the issue?
There are regulatory and operational requirements to implement SPC (Statistical Process Control),  Ovako’s production processes can benefit greatly from SPC to better monitor and control quality throughout the manufacturing flow.

Why is this relevant to study?
By introducing SPC, we can improve our ability to quickly identify and correct deviations in the process, leading to increased efficiency, reduced quality costs, and enhanced customer satisfaction.

Why do we want to learn more about it?
We need to identify which areas of the process would benefit the most from SPC and develop a systematic approach for implementing and using it in practice. 

Research question

What is the topic of study?
The implementation of SPC for process control within Ovako’s production.

What questions do we want answered?

Which parts of our production process would benefit the most from SPC? How can we systematically implement SPC to monitor and control these processes? Which SPC tools and methods are most suited to our needs?

What is our expected result?
A well-defined proposal for where and how SPC can be implemented in production

Project Setup

There is an opportunity to conduct study visits in production to gain a deeper understanding of current processes and identify areas where SPC would be beneficial. The work will also involve collaboration with production staff to ensure practical implementation and feasibility.

About the Team

The selected student will work closely with production and quality managers, as well as the IT department. Regular meetings and feedback sessions will be held to ensure progress and relevance of the work.

Your profile

To succeed in this thesis project, it will be helpful to have a good understanding of production technology and quality control, with an interest in statistical methods and data analysis.

You are likely studying industrial engineering, mechanical engineering, production technology, or a related field, with a focus on quality control or process management.

Experience with statistical tools (e.g., Minitab or similar), database management, and programming skills would be an advantage.

Information & other

Compensation

Ovako will compensate you for completed master thesis corrsponding to a value per "högskolepoäng". We can also in most cases assist with accomodation during the time you are performing your master thesis with us. Ovako will support with travel to and from our sites for interviews, eventual trips back to the university for meetings with supervisor and equivalent.

Recruitment

Selection will be ongoing and during the process you will get the chance to meet potential supervisors, relevant managers and stakeholder. The process will include ability tests, interviews, background check and references.

Other Information

This thesis project offers a unique opportunity to work on the real-world implementation of a quality control methodology in one of our production environments, which can lead to valuable career development within the field of quality control and production technology.