Quality Management

Quality management has moved from detecting defects to preventing them, and from the shop floor to the whole organisation. The main stages are:

1. Inspection (before 1920s)

Craftsmen checked their own work. With mass production (Taylor, Ford), separate inspectors sorted good from bad products after production. Defects were found, not prevented.

2. Statistical quality control (1920s-1950s)

W. A. Shewhart (Bell Labs, 1924) introduced control charts. Dodge and Romig developed acceptance sampling. Quality was checked by sampling and statistics, which cut inspection cost. This was widely used in World War II.

3. Quality assurance (1950s-1970s)

Quality was built into the whole system by planning and documentation. Deming and Juran taught Japanese industry; Feigenbaum introduced Total Quality Control (1951); Crosby promoted zero defects. Quality cost, reliability engineering and standards (military standards) developed.

4. Total quality control and quality circles (1960s-80s)

Ishikawa and Japanese firms used quality circles, cause-and-effect diagrams and the seven QC tools. Taguchi added robust design.

5. Total quality management (1980s onward)

Quality is the responsibility of everyone, focuses on the customer, and is based on continuous improvement (Kaizen), leadership, employee involvement, process management and fact-based decisions. ISO 9000 series (1987) set quality system standards; the Malcolm Baldrige Award (1987) and the EFQM model followed. Six Sigma (Motorola, 1980s) added a data-driven approach.

Quality has no single definition; it is seen differently by customer, designer and producer. Some commonly quoted definitions:

• Juran: "fitness for use" - the product satisfies the user's needs.
• Crosby: "conformance to requirements" - quality is free, and the standard is zero defects.
• Deming: "a predictable degree of uniformity and dependability at low cost, suited to the market."
• Feigenbaum: the total composite of product and service characteristics of marketing, engineering, manufacture and maintenance that meet the customer's expectations.
• ISO 9000: the degree to which a set of inherent characteristics fulfils requirements.
• Taguchi: the loss imparted to society after the product is shipped.

Dimensions of product quality (Garvin)

1. Performance: primary operating characteristics (e.g. top speed, power).
2. Features: secondary characteristics that add to basic function.
3. Reliability: probability of failure-free operation over time.
4. Conformance: match with design specification and standards.
5. Durability: useful life before replacement.
6. Serviceability: ease, speed and cost of repair.
7. Aesthetics: look, feel, sound, taste.
8. Perceived quality: reputation and image of the brand.

For a motorcycle: performance = pick-up and mileage, reliability = no breakdown in the first year, serviceability = easy availability of spare parts and service centres.

TQM is a management philosophy in which every member of the organisation takes part in continuously improving the quality of products, services and processes to meet or exceed customer expectations. Total means all people and all functions; quality means meeting customer requirements; management means leadership and systems.

Principles

1. Customer focus: the customer (internal and external) defines quality.
2. Leadership and commitment of top management to set direction and provide resources.
3. Employee involvement and empowerment: teamwork, training, quality circles.
4. Process approach: manage activities as processes; prevent defects.
5. Continuous improvement (Kaizen).
6. Decisions based on facts and data: statistical tools.
7. Supplier partnership: quality starts with purchased material.

Elements (tools)

Seven QC tools (check sheet, Pareto chart, histogram, cause-and-effect diagram, scatter diagram, control chart, flow chart), benchmarking, quality function deployment, Just-in-Time, 5S, FMEA, ISO 9000 and Six Sigma.

PDCA cycle (Deming wheel)

        PLAN ----> DO
         ^          |
         |          v
        ACT <---- CHECK

• Plan: identify the problem and set targets and methods.
• Do: implement on a small scale.
• Check: measure results against the plan.
• Act: standardise if successful, otherwise revise; repeat the cycle.

Benefits

Higher customer satisfaction, fewer defects and rework, lower cost, better morale, improved productivity and market share.

Difficulties

Lack of top-management commitment, resistance to change, need for time and training, short-term thinking, and weak data collection.