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Questions and Answers
What is the objective of an operations manager in relation to quality management?
What is the objective of an operations manager in relation to quality management?
To build a total quality management system that identifies and satisfies customer needs.
What are the three quality strategies that managing quality supports?
What are the three quality strategies that managing quality supports?
Building a quality organization is a simple task.
Building a quality organization is a simple task.
False
How does improved quality increase profits?
How does improved quality increase profits?
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According to the American Society for Quality, what defines quality?
According to the American Society for Quality, what defines quality?
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Which of these views of quality focuses on making the product right the first time?
Which of these views of quality focuses on making the product right the first time?
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Which of the following is NOT one of the key dimensions of quality?
Which of the following is NOT one of the key dimensions of quality?
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Which cost of quality involves evaluating products, parts, and services?
Which cost of quality involves evaluating products, parts, and services?
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What type of cost of quality involves producing defective parts or service before delivery?
What type of cost of quality involves producing defective parts or service before delivery?
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External failure costs are incurred when defects are discovered after delivery.
External failure costs are incurred when defects are discovered after delivery.
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What is Total Quality Management (TQM)?
What is Total Quality Management (TQM)?
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Which of these is NOT one of the Seven Concepts of TQM?
Which of these is NOT one of the Seven Concepts of TQM?
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What does the PDCA cycle stand for?
What does the PDCA cycle stand for?
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Which of these is a key element of the Six Sigma methodology?
Which of these is a key element of the Six Sigma methodology?
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A Six Sigma program can be implemented successfully without commitment from top management.
A Six Sigma program can be implemented successfully without commitment from top management.
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What is the primary goal of employee empowerment in TQM?
What is the primary goal of employee empowerment in TQM?
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What are quality circles?
What are quality circles?
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What is benchmarking?
What is benchmarking?
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Benchmarking can only be conducted with external companies.
Benchmarking can only be conducted with external companies.
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What is the relationship between Just-in-Time (JIT) and quality?
What is the relationship between Just-in-Time (JIT) and quality?
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What are Taguchi concepts designed to do?
What are Taguchi concepts designed to do?
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What is the purpose of a Pareto Chart?
What is the purpose of a Pareto Chart?
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What is the purpose of a Histogram in TQM?
What is the purpose of a Histogram in TQM?
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What is the purpose of a Statistical Process Control Chart?
What is the purpose of a Statistical Process Control Chart?
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Service quality is generally easier to measure than the quality of goods.
Service quality is generally easier to measure than the quality of goods.
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Which of these is a factor that makes service quality difficult to measure?
Which of these is a factor that makes service quality difficult to measure?
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Study Notes
Quality Management Overview
- Quality management is a total system approach to identifying and meeting customer needs.
- A goal for operations managers is to develop a comprehensive total quality management (TQM) system.
- Managing quality supports strategies for differentiation, low cost, and response.
- Quality improvements increase sales and lower costs.
- Building a quality organization is challenging.
Two Ways Quality Improves Profitability
- Improved quality can lead to increased profitability through improved response, flexible pricing, and enhanced reputation (Sales Gains).
- Lowered rework/scrap costs, increased productivity, and reduced warranty costs decrease costs, leading to increased profits.
Defining Quality
- Quality is the totality of features and characteristics of a product or service related to its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs (American Society for Quality definition).
Different Views of Quality
- User-based: Quality is evaluated based on the performance and features of a product or service satisfying user's needs.
- Manufacturing-based: Quality is evaluated based on the standards and processes followed to ensure products are produced properly and correctly on the first attempt.
- Product-based: Quality is evaluated by the specific, measurable attributes of the product.
Key Dimensions of Quality
- Performance: The primary operating characteristics of a product or service.
- Features: Secondary characteristics that enhance a product or service.
- Reliability: Ability to consistently perform without failure.
- Conformance: Adherence to specifications or standards in product or service.
- Durability: The product's ability to withstand use and wear.
- Serviceability: Ease of repair, adjustment, or maintenance of the product.
- Visuals: Aesthetic aspects of a product or service.
- Perceived Quality: How well the customer perceives the quality of the product or service.
- Value: The perception of a fair exchange between a product's cost and quality.
Costs of Quality
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Appraisal costs: Costs associated with evaluating products, parts, and services.
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Prevention costs: Costs associated with reducing potential defects (designing quality in).
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Internal failure costs: Costs arising from defects found within the manufacturing process before delivery.
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External failure costs: Defects discovered after the product/service is delivered.
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Costs of quality decrease with reduced defects across the process cycle.
Total Quality Management (TQM)
- Encompasses the entire organization from supplier to customer.
- A company-wide commitment to drive towards excellence in products and services important to customers.
Seven Concepts of TQM
- Continuous improvement: Ongoing improvement of all aspects of an organization.
- Six Sigma: A data-driven approach to process improvement with a focus reducing defects to 3.4 per million opportunities.
- Employee empowerment: Involving employees in product and process improvement initiatives.
- Benchmarking: Selecting and using the best practices of other organizations as standards for performance.
- Just-in-time (JIT): A system for producing and delivering products when needed, minimizing inventory.
- Taguchi concepts: Statistical methods focused on product and process design robust against variation.
- Knowledge of TQM tools: Using various tools to generate ideas, organize data, and identify problems.
Continuous Improvement
- Represents ongoing improvement across all processes.
- Involves all operations, work centers, suppliers, and customers.
- Focuses on people, equipment, materials, and procedures.
- Uses the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) model as a process.
Shewhart's PDCA Model
- Uses a cyclical process (PDCA).
- Plan: Define a problem and develop a solution.
- Do: Test the solution in a controlled setting.
- Check: Assess effectiveness of solution.
- Act: Implement the solution or modify and iterate.
Six Sigma
- A process improvement approach;
- A statistical approach in which a process is analyzed;
- 3.4 defects per million opportunities;
- Designed for defect reduction, cost reduction, and improved customer satisfaction.
Six Sigma Program
- Developed by Motorola, adopted and enhanced by Honeywell and GE;
- Highly structured approach to process improvement;
- A strategy and discipline (DMAIC).
DMAIC Approach
- Define: Define the project's goals, outputs, and critical issues.
- Measure: Measure the current process and collect data.
- Analyze: Analyze the identified data.
- Improve: Implement improvements in the process.
- Control: Control the process to maintain improvements.
Six Sigma Implementation
- Emphasize defects per opportunity as a metric.
- Provide extensive training programs.
- Encourage corporate sponsor support.
- Establish process improvement experts (Champions, Black Belts, Green Belts).
- Establish stretch objectives.
Employee Empowerment
- Employee involvement in product and process improvements.
- 85% of quality problems originate from process and material issues;
- Techniques include communication networks, supportive supervisors, employee responsibility, high morale, and formal team structures.
Quality Circles
- Employee groups who meet regularly to address problems.
- Trained in planning, problem solving, and statistical methods.
- Facilitators are often involved in these groups.
- Effective if done correctly.
Benchmarking
- Selecting best practices to use as standards.
- Steps include determining what to benchmark, forming a benchmark team, identifying partners, collecting information, and implementing improvements.
Just-In-Time (JIT)
- JIT system is reliant on quality to minimize inventory.
- JIT cuts quality costs by improving quality and reducing inventory levels.
- Better quality means less inventory and a more effective JIT system.
Taguchi Concepts
- Engineering and experimental designs to enhance product design and process.
- Identifying key component and process variables impacting product variation.
- Quality robustness to make a product design insensitive to environmental factors.
- Quality loss function to assess the cost of defects.
- Target-oriented quality to strive for an ideal quality target.
TQM Tools
- Tools for Generating Ideas: Check Sheet, Scatter Diagram, and Cause-and-Effect Diagram.
- Tools for Organizing Data: Pareto Chart and Flowchart.
- Tools for Identifying Problems: Histogram and Statistical Process Control Chart.
TQM in Services
- Service quality is more complex to measure than product quality.
- Perceptual differences related to service vs. product and customer expectations of services.
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