2nd. Issue, July 2007
Thinking Hats
Inside this issue:
When we are faced with decisions or problems, our minds can be a
muddle of thoughts. In decision-makings, the discussions may swing
from positive to negative evaluations of a situation, and from rational
analysis to highly emotional and intuitive assessments. Edward de
Bono’s six thinking hats can help us to be more aware of our instinctive
patterns of thinking and to organize these thoughts and discussions in
order to develop a richer understanding of events and issues.
De Bono’s six hats represent the main patterns of thought, artificially
separated. The value of the model lies in helping us to recognize which
pattern of thought we are using (which hat we are wearing) when we
react to a situation, and helping us to adopt a different pattern of
thought (taking that hat off and trying on another).
Save Your Heart
Who Killed
John Doe
5
7
Interactive
Sessions
8
Quiz And
Blackboard
9
Brain Teasers
10
WHITE
Neutral, objective thinking, concerned with facts
RED
Emotional, intuitive thinking
BLACK
YELLOW
GREEN
BLUE
Gloomy, negative, critical thinking
Sunny, positive, optimistic thinking
Creative, innovative thinking
Cool, organized, summarizing thinking
… continued to page 2
A TQM Story
Economic Restoration of Locomotive
at Titagarh Generating Station
(Appreciated as an Innovative Project during “Best TQM
Team Award, 2006-07” presentation at Corporate Quality,
Mumbai.)
Shunting Locomotives play a vital role in handling and unloading
of coal wagons received at the power stations. The non-availability
of the locomotives often disrupts the coal supply chain management resulting in delay in returning the coal wagons back to the
Railways with associated higher wagon demurrage charges. Prolonged outage may also cause reduction of power generation.
… continued to page 3
… continued from page 1
Thinking Hats
The value of trying on other hats is perhaps greatest when we have looked at a situation for too
long and have become negative about it (Black hat), or when we are becoming too emotional or relying too heavily on intuition (red hat).
It is also useful, when we are facing complex situations that call for reactions of different kinds, to
adopt the different patterns of thinking one at a time. White hat thinking is necessary to establish
the known facts, for example, and green hat thinking is useful for speculating on causes of problems, or possible solutions, while Blue hat thinking is needed for drawing together the contributions
of different parties in a meeting.
Using the model
The thinking hats model can have a significant effect in helping you to achieve new viewpoints on
situations and problems.
The hats can be successfully introduced to a team, and used to address management problems. As
De Bono observes, the artificiality of the hats is a large part of their values.
The first stage is using the hats is to memorize their core meaning.
Typical questions for activating the different hats are:
Yellow –
Sunny
Green –
Growing
Black –
Gloomy
White –
Factual
Red –
Passion
Blue –
Cool
WHITE:
What are the facts?
RED:
How do I feel about this? What is my gut
feeling?
BLACK:
What can go wrong?
YELLOW: How can I add these ideas together into a
good plan? What are the benefits of doing
this?
GREEN: Is there a different way of looking at this?
What new things could we do here?
BLUE:
Taking it all together, what should I do?
(Ref: de Bono, Edward: Six Thinking Hats)
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 2
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
… continued from page 1
A TQM Story
Economic Restoration of Locomotive at Titagarh Generating Station
One of the locomotives suffered a critical fail-
of transmitting the required power.
ure due to mechanical fatigue in the transmission system on 10th July, 06. The failed component is one integral geared spindle of the rear
final drive gearbox. The nature of the failure is
quite unique and even the OEM also do not
have much records in their database. The OEM
wanted three months time for rectification and
demanded about Rs.10 lacs for manufacturing
of the spindle and other associated parts.
BRAKAGE FROM THIS AREA
Integral Bevel geared spindle and the failure
ENGINE
TORQUE
CONVERTOR
GEAR BOX
FINAL
DRIVE
Power train of Locomotive
Considering
the stringent power generation
target, the top management deemed it fit to
find out an alternate solution to re-commission
the locomotive at the earliest. A team ‘DAKSHA’
was formed involving members from different
cross-section of employee of Titagarh Generating Station.
The team members explored the possibility for
reverse engineering a new spindle with modification in the gear fitment and associated area.
After lot of brain-storming and searching, the
ingot was picked up from worn out scrapped
pinion shaft of a Coal Mill which may be capable
The Broken Spindle
The ingenuity lies in selecting the part for Locomotive from a totally different equipment (Coal
Mill). The Integral geared spindle has thus been
converted in to a keyed driven gear with thrust
retaining collars and locking mechanism. All the
machining operations were carried in-house at
the station workshop. A make shift assembly bay
was fabricated with hydraulic jacks for fitment of
the gears.
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 3
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
The gear set was assembled and fitted back
into the rear final drive unit.
about Rs.15 Lacs from the manufacturing cost
and potential demurrage charges, this really
boosted the moral and the confidence level of the
members.
They
brought about an unprecedented success
story, which will pave the way for many more in
the future.
Members on Work
With
17 days of arduous work from all the
members of the team, the cherished dream was
achieved. The locomotive was put back into operation on 27th July, 06 and a real disaster
could be averted.
Final Assembly
Team ‘Daksha’
Sudipta Kr. Mukherjee, Manager (Leader),
Soumendranath Nath, Sr. Engineer, Gobinda Ch. Mondal, Asst. Engineer, Sk.
Jamil Khan, Technician, Netai Swain,
Technician, Monoranjan Dolui, Mazdoor,
Kishore Shaw, Mazdoor.
In House Machining
The
total cost incurred was only Rs. 16,000/for fabrication of requisite gadgets and tackles
and charges for machining.
Not only
there had been a tangible saving of
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 4
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
Save Your Heart
Dr. K. K. Sarda, DGM (Medical)
Heart Disease is the bye-product of the Development of society. With the all out Developmental process we are under more physical and
mental stress and strain, which is forcing to
change our life style and leading to Heart Disease, more particularly Ischaemic Heart Disease
(IHD).
Several
studies in the last two decades have
shown that heart disease tends to occur earlier
among the Indians than in western Caucasian
populations. So, we need to be more cautious.
Amongst
the various
heart diseases, here we
shall discuss about coronary artery disease (CAD)
especially as it is the
cause of ⅓ to ½ of all
deaths and 50% - 75% of
all cardiac deaths. The
disease affects men in
the prime of life and usually women are spared
for about 10 years relative to men due to their
Hormonal effect. Earlier the average age at the
time of the first heart attack was in the mid 50s
but now CAD has increased in frequency, especially in younger people.
sclerotic changes of our coronary arteries which
supplies Blood (Nutrition / O2) to the heart muscles. Basically the disorder comprises the development of focal fibro-fatty elevated plaques or
thickenings, called atheromas within the coronary
arteries. As the disorder advances the atheromas
undergo a variety of complications – calcification,
internal Haemorrhages and superimposed thrombosis – leading to full obstruction of the major
coronary artery / arteries and blood supply to a
particular portion of heart muscle is fully stopped
and eventually that portion of heart muscle is necrosed. This state of condition is termed as Heart attack.
Once
the Heart attack has
happened the necrosed
heart muscle of that area will
never come back to normal,
rather fibrous tissue will
grow and contractility power
of heart will come down
sharply jeopardising the
heart function permanently.
We
should learn the major
Risk factors leading to atherosclerosis. They are :
cause the clinical manifestations are unpredictable, the course is variable, and because in ⅓
to ½ of patients death is sudden and unexpected (“Sword of Damocles”).
(I) Family History (II) Environmental influences
such as diet, stress and life style (III) Obesity
(IV) Sedentary Habits (V) Diabetes (VI) Hypertension
(VII)
Hyperlipidemia, commonly
called cholesterol disorder
(VIII)
Cigarette
Smoking (IX) Personality Factors (X) Prostaglandions and Increased tendency to Thrombosis (XI) Oestrogen and other Hormonal factors.
In about 99% of cases CAD is due to athero-
So, with this depicted picture in the background
Why we should take care of CAD or IHD ? Be-
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 5
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
we have no alternative but to adopt some
measures immediately which minimises the risk
of IHD / CAD.
A
recent study by US researchers has shown that
people who adopted heart
–friendly life styles even
between the ages of 45 to
64 had 40% lower risk of
dying from heart disease
and 35% lower risk of Cardiovascular Incidents –
such as heart attacks.
CONCLUSION :
So,
from today only we
should take care of the
risk factors :
ing immediately –
(I)
Abandoning Cigarette Smoking
(II)
Low fat / Low Caloric Diet, restrict Yellow
portion of egg, restrict Red
Meat / Ghee / Butter / Ice
cream / Alcohol, restrict fry
food / Spicy food / fast food.
(III) Restrict Carbohydrate
and encourage Vegetable and
fruits daily – it’s a MUST.
Restrict Maida, instead encourage whole wheat flour
Dr. Rabin Chakraborty, Chief Cardiologist,
Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, Kolkata addressing Senior Executives
(IV) Encourage Sunflower
and Rice bran / Kardi oil Mixture for cooking.
(V)
Walking
Daily for atleast 45 mins.
/
Swimming
Regular check up with your doctor and follow
(VI) Avoid mental stress / strain as far as possible.
his advice regarding medications. The major
part of alleviating the risk factors depend on
you only. At any cost we have to control obesity, Dislipidaemia, Diabetes, Hypertension, etc.
(VII) Try to adopt Yoga, Pranayam which certainly reduces our mental stress. Try to enlighten
our spiritual soul, it will immensely help us.
The
following are some suggestions for Life
style modification which we should start adopt-
Wow!
The Human Resource Development Ministry is working with experts from institutes such as the IITs to manufacture Laptops at almost half the price of the
cheapest mobile-$10 or just Rs 420.
(Source: Outlook Money)
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 6
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
Case Study
Who Killed John Doe?
John
Doe, age fifty-four was dead on arrival.
His wife drove him to the emergency room at 2
AM, but even before she pulled into the driveway his tortured breathing had stopped. Successive attempts by the hospital staff to revive
him failed.
John’s doctor said he was sorry. He could not
make house calls, because there is a shortage
of doctors and he is putting in an eighty hour
week as it is. Besides, Mrs. Doe had called at 1
AM on Christmas morning. The doctor told her
to rush John to the hospital.
The
hospital administrator was sorry. When
the patient had asked to be admitted earlier
that morning, his condition was not acute. The
patient had used up his insurance benefits for
the year and had no other resources. The hospital had exhausted its charitable reserve funds
and was required to limit admissions to
“paying” patients or those whose condition required acute and emergency care.
The
caseworker from the Department of
Health and Social Service was sorry. She had
explained to the patient that the state health
programme would cover him only after he had
incurred one hundred dollars in medical bills. If
he entered the hospital before incurring that
amount in medical bills, the entire hospital stay
would be disallowed for coverage by her office.
It was the law.
The people who made the law said they were
sorry. They had to balance the state’s budget at
a time when highway costs and educational expenses were going up. Originally the bill to es-
tablish health benefits would have cost the taxpayers an estimated eighty million dollars a year.
By strategic amendments, such as the one that
discouraged John Doe’s admission, they saved
the taxpayers three-fourths of the cost of the
original bill barely $6 million.
The
people who elected the lawmakers were
sorry. They had not wanted their taxes raised, so
they voted for the candidates who promised to
contain expenses and reduce waste in government spending. When a few political leaders announced that taxes would have to be increased
to continue
human
services , the voters
wrote letters and sent telegrams to their representatives protesting such tax increases.
Mrs. Doe was sorry. She was sorry that her husband died on Christmas morning and she was
also sorry that they had not saved more for their
old age or joined the more expensive comprehensive insurance plan offered by the union. She
especially regretted.
Decide
which of the following persons is the
most responsible for John Doe’s death, and put a
“1” (most responsible) next to the person’s
name. Complete the ranking from most responsible to least responsible (“7”).
John Doe __, Doctor ____, Hospital ___, Administrator____, Caseworker ___,
Lawmakers ___ , Voters ___ , Mrs. Doe ___
Mail your answers to [email protected].
Correct entries will be acknowledged in the
next issue.
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 7
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
Interactive Sessions
Prize distribution to the winners of Electrical Safety
Skill Competition
“FORUM : Getting Together,
Growing Together”
Observance of World
Environment Day at
HRD Department
S a f e t y P r o g r a m m e o n ‘ W o rk i n g a t H e i g h t s ’ a t
B B G S . T hi s i n c l u de d V i d e o p r e s e n t a t i o n & L i v e
d e m o n s t r a t i o n o n u s e o f v a r i o u s P P Es ’ & s a f e t y
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 8
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
Quiz
Expert View on Air Crash
1. Spooksafe is an insurance cover against what?
2. How do we presently know the group of islands
that was transferred to the East India Company
from the Crown in 1668 for an annual rent of
10 pounds?
3. In business jargon, what is the Dilbert Principle?
4. If Wal-Mart has the second largest computer
database in the world, who has the largest?
5. MBWA, as termed by Tom Peters, stands for?
6. Which modern day technology concept shares
its name with a 10th century Viking king of Denmark?
7. What does the term 3G stand for in mobile
phone technology?
8. Which spreadsheet risk analysis model that randomly generates values for uncertain variables
over and over again to simulate a model, is
named after a European City?
9. Which trade name is derived from the short
form for ‘Excellent Oxide?
10. Which mythical animal is the symbol of Air India?
(Case Study of Previous Issue, April
2007)
There is no right or wrong answer. According
to the expert the leader will be Shanti Lal because:
√ Requisite balance between task and people
orientation, so he can lead and manage the
team.
√ As he developed his business from zero
state and obviously encountered awkward
situations.
√ Being stout and tough, his physical and
mental stability to be better than others.
Thank you for sending entries :
Mr. Arijit Ghosh, Mr. Gautam Banerjee &
Mr. T. M. Basu
Solution of the Number Puzzle
(Previous Issue April, 2007)
8
1
6
3
5
7
4
9
2
Thank you all for sending entries:
Mail your answers of the Quiz
to [email protected].
[email protected]. Correct entries will be acknowledged in
the next issue.
Ms. Philomina Joseph, Ms. Ranita Chanda,
Ms. Soma Das, Mr. Anindya Sen,
Mr. Gautam Banerjee, Mr. Nilanjan Ray
Chaudhury, Mr. Sanjoy Adhikari,
Mr. Surajit Banerjee, Mr. Surajit Laha &
Mr. Uttiya Chattopadhyay
Blackboard
A journey from unknown to known
Heard about the term “Fringe Science”.
Science” To know more on this.
Topic of the previous issue, April 2007 :
Underwater Electronics: This is a special branch of electronics that deals with the electronic signal processing inside the water.
Reveille, 2nd. Issue, July 2007
Page 9
Networking, Knowledge and Fun
2nd. Issue, July 2007
We welcome your Articles , Stories,
Jokes ….
Brain Teasers
1.
Please send us your valuable feedback to
make this magazine more attractive and
reader friendly:
• What you like.
• Where we need to improve
Which minimum number when divided individually
by 7, 9 & 11 will produce remainders 1, 2 & 3 respectively?
2. What is the difference between a “glass vase” & the
“branch of a tree”?
3. Can a matchstick be called bigger without touching
it?
ATTITUDE
A little boy went into a drug store, reached for a soda carton and ask him for a Phone Call. Shop-owner
replied Sweety this is not a STD, but you can do one call. The store-owner observed and listened to the
conversation:
The boy asked, "Lady, Can you give me the job of cutting your lawn?
The woman replied, "I already have someone to cut my lawn."
Lady, I will cut your lawn for half the price of the person who cuts your lawn now." replied boy.
The woman responded that she was very satisfied with the person who was presently cutting her lawn.
The little boy found more perseverance and offered, "Lady, I'll even sweep your curb and your sidewalk,
so on Sunday you will have the prettiest lawn in all of North-Palm beach, Florida."
Again the woman answered in the negative.
With a smile on his face, the little boy replaced the receiver. The store-owner, who was listening to all
this, walked over to the boy and said," Son... I like your attitude; I like that positive spirit and would like
to offer you a job." The little boy replied, "No thanks, I was just checking my performance with the job
I already have. I am the one who is working for that lady, I was talking to!"
ALTITUDE is decided by ATTITUDE...
Networking, Knowledge and Fun