What we do and why

This web site was set up originally to promote the use of advanced statistical approaches in industry. A number of documents are available on this site that show the historical thinking and analysis. We believe that the use of advanced statistical techniques in industry will result in savings in costs and improvements in quality of products. We do not restrict these comments to manufacturing industry - indeed application of even simple statistical tools in the much larger service sector will lead to enormous savngs.

The facilities include:

As things have evolved, new ideas have taken root and some of the original information-based needs have been met elsewhere. Therefore there has been a change in emphasis of the site towards the provision of an applications service - concentrating on but not exclusively devoted to statistical issues. This will, we believe, enable a sounder business base on which statistical facilities can be mounted. In particular, we have moved some of the professional toolkit issues to the back burner for the moment.

New software and systems have enabled us to devise a service that will offer full but protected shell access to a server farm running Unix that may be entirely protected from and invisible to other users. One of the reasons why computing power has remained essentially in restricted hands is the security threat and Unix is particularly vulnerable even though a properly run system should be robust to attack. For example, if you have access to a Unix system, look for the password file - maybe in /etc/passwd. Even if the actual passwords are elsewhere, just knowing who else has an account and what their details are can be abused by spammers even if hackers do not gain access.

Why statistics?

Almost everything in business today has a number attached to it and most of these are inexact.

• Do you really believe the weights and measures you see in the supermarket?
• What is the real distance your car has travelled?
• What profit will your company make from a new product?
• What is the probability of my product failing in service?
• How many people will buy my product?

To estimate these, you need to understand the uncertainty attached to them and the science of uncertainty is statistics. This appears in many guises but we believe in calling a spade a spade.

Statistics has a crucial role to play in manufacturing industry, from the design cycle through to production, in the analysis of field data and, where there is a large customer base, in the management of those data. Statistical techniques originally developed within a wide variety of areas have immediate applications in manufacturing industry, yet they are hardly known about, let alone used. It is notable therefore - and not only in the UK - that the use of advanced statistical techniques in manufacturing is very rare. Even in many larger companies, statistics is only used when all else fails.

In most countries - the UK in particular - manufacturing industry is very fragmented, with many suppliers contributing to a final product. The purpose of this web site is to provide a facility for all statistical applications - not only for these small companies but for larger ones as well; not only in manufacturing but wider industry; not only in the UK but by promoting international collaboration and cross-country working.

The Internet has many sites offering information that is either free or for subscription - national and international directories of companies, resources and various aspects of business - and there are several good sites for statistical resources as well. What is not on offer is a web-based system to enable you to locate a statistical resource and also a platform where you can carry out the necessary calculations with the correct software in collaboration if necessary. We hope to fill this gap - on an international scale.

In essence, this site is therefore aimed towards both the statistician - who may see him or herself as working in a consultative capacity - and the client. Let's put the two together and see what can be achieved.

The tabs above show the general areas. Some of these are completely open access - you do not need to register - but to make the best use of this site, please take the time to log in. We will not pass your details on.

Some people might call this a Mission Statement - we prefer to call them our Aims.