Fishbone Diagram

Fish bone diagrams are causal diagrams created by Kaoru Ishikawa (1968) that show the causes of a specific event. Common uses of the fish bone diagram are product design and quality defect prevention, to identify potential factors causing an overall effect. Each cause or reason for imperfection is a source of variation. Causes are usually grouped into major categories to identify these sources of variation. ​

The categories typically include:​
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• People: Anyone involved with the process.​
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• Machines: Any equipment, computers, tools, etc. required to accomplish the job.​
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• Materials: Raw materials, parts, pens, paper, etc. used to produce the final product.​
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• Measurements: Data generated from the process that are used to evaluate its quality.​
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• Environment: The conditions, such as location, time, temperature, and culture in which the process operates.​
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• Methods: How the process is performed and the specific requirements for doing it, such as policies, procedures, rules, regulations and laws.​

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