The Department of Statistics at the University of Manitoba for many years received widespread recognition for its activities in the area of quality improvement. Acting on a request from a company in Winnipeg for help with meeting a “required quality standard” a workshop on the use of statistical tools for quality improvement was developed and delivered. Over the following almost twenty years more than 60 workshops were given to local businesses, organizations, and government agencies. Through these workshops and other actions, the Department gained an enviable reputation and generated significant funds to support graduate students and other activities in the use of statistical techniques for quality improvement. We will describe the nature of these workshops and the resulting benefits to the Department. Examples will be provided of resulting research applications that directly flowed from these activities.