Operations Management: An Integrated Approach, 5th Edition

TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT

Quality is a difficult term to define because it means different things to different people. A narrow viewpoint, typically used by traditional manufacturers, is to define quality as meeting specified target quality standards. This would mean producing a product within specified tolerances set by engineers and not exceeding the specified acceptable defect rate. However, today's definition of quality takes a much broader view: quality is defined as meeting or exceeding customer expectations.

As customer needs and standards drive the production system, the company must define quality as it is seen by users of the product. The customer's definition of quality then must be interpreted by engineers and production managers. This process is not always easy; customers are not always sure what they want or may not be able to articulate their needs effectively. However, once quality has been defined in measurable terms, it needs to be monitored on an ongoing basis. Targets for improvement need to be set and systematic methods for improvement developed. These methods include continual training of workers so they can identify and correct quality problems. Together, this process outlines a strategy for quality improvement in JIT, as shown in Table 7-2. Note that the steps in Table 7-2 show an ongoing, dynamic process. Customers’ quality definitions must be monitored continuously as customers’ expectations and needs change over time.

TABLE 7-2 Strategy for Quality Improvement ...