PQ Systems Knowledge Base

When you select a default chart icon in SQCpack, the chart that appears represents default values; that is, it reflects common charting patterns that have been selected by the program’s developers.

That chart can be edited, of course, but an even better way to assure that the chart displays your own preferences is to create your own chart defaults. Then, every new chart you create will appear in the format that you want, rather than one that someone else designed for you.

If, for example, you want to display a specific set of statistics with histograms (perhaps mean, estimated sigma, calculated sigma, Cpk, Ppk,Cpm, Dpm, and theoretical percent out-of-spec), you should create your own histogram defaults.

To set defaults, start SQCpack and select Setup, Default histogram, Descriptive stats, or Capability stats. Then select the statistics that you want to display with every histogram.

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Through the Setup menu’s Preferences option, you can also set default headers. For example, you might set the default headers to include:

Location = Butte, Montana

Process = Painting

Product = Radiators

Once you have saved these default settings, they will be applied every time you create a new group. This feature will not only save data entry time, but also help to maintain consistency among the groups that you create.  

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Other ways of customizing SQCpack include selecting out-of-control testing options to label such conditions when they occur; editing multiple characteristics and charting options to enhance comparison of two or more charts; choice lists for assignable causes and identifiers, and custom import functions to edit and chart data from other applications.

Every time you create a group, SQCpack creates a table to store the data associated with that group. SQCpack for Windows uses a Microsoft Access database to store these tables. If you have already created a table in another database (e.g., Paradox, FoxPro, dBase, or even another MS Access database), you can create charts in SQCpack to analyze that data.

When you select ‘Link/ODBC’ in SQCpack, you are telling the program that you want to create a new group, but that a new table is not necessary as you have a data table in another location. You then select the columns from your existing data table that you want to use for charting and analysis, and the program will “map” the data table into SQCpack. Once you have completed the mapping, you may use this Link/ODBC group for charting and analysis in SQCpack.

With this option, data is not imported into SQCpack, it remains in its native program and is accessed by SQCpack. When you make changes or additions to the data in its native program, these changes will appear in SQCpack charts.

For information on other ways to customize SQCpack or about using databases, please call our technical support analysts at 800 777-5060.