Definition Quality
The term " Quality" is now used with great frequency: quality of life, environmental quality, quality of work, quality of relationships and Quality Total nevertheless lends itself to definitions, uses and interpretations far from unique.
However, the meaning of quality that we want to address, in technical terms, is explained by the international standards UNI EN ISO 9000:2000, "Quality Management Systems - Fundamentals and vocabulary", which defines quality as "the 'set of properties, performance and characteristics of a product or service that confer the ability to satisfy stated or implied .
In simple terms, understandable to the layman, the quality can be interpreted, in part, erroneously, come garanzia di buon prodotto. Infatti nel caso della certificazione di prodotto si certifica la conformità del prodotto con le caratteristiche organolettiche dichiarate dall’azienda e questa interpretazione può essere ammissibile mentre nel caso di certificazione di sistema si certifica la conformità del sistema di gestione dell’azienda e in questo caso non si garantisce la qualità intrinseca del prodotto bensì il sistema con cui viene realizzato/erogato.
L’Associazione Americana per il Controllo della Qualità (American Society for Quality Control – ASQC) considera la qualità come globalità dei profili e delle caratteristiche di un prodotto o servizio da cui dipende la capacità di soddisfare fully a specific need: physical characteristics, appearance, durability, usability, reliability, validity of logistic support, repairability, convenience, etc..
The historical evolution of Quality
In this section we trace the historical evolution of quality management, we can see how the concept has always taken a broader meaning. The evolution of the concept of quality management may be represented by a path divided into four basic steps.
Initially the focus is entirely focused on product
.
The objective aims is to separate the material conforms to the non-compliant in all stages of processing, from raw material up to the finished product. This phase uses a model reactive system of quality management, the intervention is, in fact, only later to "accident" occurred: the quality is therefore seen as a "problem solving" and not a principle of improvement. In
30s, has passed the quality control that led to a widening of the scope of quality management systems with the movement of focus attention on the quality of the product-process quality (process capability). The goal becomes to identify shortcomings in the process through the analysis of defects that occur repeatedly in the products. In the '50s
was introduced the concept of 'quality assurance attention has shifted to the quality of the organization and introduced the concept of product life cycle: companies that are efficiently organized, implementing sound strategies and implement procedures correctly, are able to provide customers with adequate confidence than of specifications or requirements relating to its products and services.
is introduced an approach that is based on the removal of non-quality, but on the prevention of "accidents" through the design and implementation of a formal quality system that reduces the possibility of a non-compliance.
In the following period, characterized by continuous changes in the economic scenario, increasing competition, globalization of markets, increased demand for diversification of stakeholders, has developed the concept of TQM (Total Quality Management). This new approach expands the object reference - which concerns the overall management of an organization's system and not merely sub-systems, processes or isolated departments.
It also raised the concept of continuous improvement aimed at meeting the needs of the customer, company and society as a whole.
The quality is no longer seen as a problem to solve, but as an 'opportunity of business.
Organizational models the most advanced, are based on diagrams that refer to Americans TQM and Japanese ones, summarized in CWQC . The
focal points of TQM are
- little management involved;
- which bind to the cost and productivity;
- acceptance of a number of defects, although to be minimized;
- functional vision and bureaucratic quality;
- purely contractual relationship with suppliers and conflict;
- quality training limited to specialists. The focal points of
- CWQC are
- highest priority on the quality of management;
- birth of JUSE (Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers);
- spread of Statical Quality Control;
- use of the seven statistical tools and managerial
- birth of quality circles and QFD;
- staff involvement;
- national promotion;
- spread across all sectors.
Both schools, extend the approach to complex business processes that contribute to the quality of the product and relate to
Customer Satisfaction (Customer Satisfaction).
With them you try to apply a scientific method for achieving a better quality characteristic of a real product taking into account that the technical specifications of a product or standard are only intermediate variables.
E 'only much later that TQM makes its appearance in Europe
, so that the first European conference on quality circles and management of quality dates back to 1987
. Was born in 1988 then the '
EFQM (European Foundation for Quality Management) by fourteen large European companies, including Fiat and Olivetti.
In 1989, the EFQM, along with two other large similar associations in the United States and Japan, scheduled for November 9
the first World Day of Quality already preceded by promotional initiatives in individual states.
In Europe the approach to the concept of quality is if you have a recovery of the American model, structured as follows: on a high level bureaucracy, a repetition of actions and standardization of processes, with greater attention, however, the customer and the market.
The United Kingdom was the first Western country to launch a national campaign for quality in 1983, followed by France, which established a national award and developed many initiatives.
While in Italy, the first approaches date back to 1981 with the introduction of quality circles, with the subsequent action taken, in a desultory way, other initiatives, they gradually come closer to ISO 9000.
The main schools of thought
To understand how historically evolved the concepts of Quality, Total Quality, Total Quality Management etc.. we wanted to bring the contributions of the main schools of thought.
Armand V. Feigenbaum. Considered the father of TQC (Total Quality Control ), ie the " Total Quality Control", a name he coined in the '50s and which became the title of his book.
first, Feigenbaum and his team have introduced a General Electric in the cost structure of quality aims to assess the quality systems. According to the author, the quality is a way of governing the enterprise, he argues that the application of TQC involves attention to the quality equal to that devoted to the products (in management, design, production, sales etc. ..) The idea was to build quality respecting the early stage thus avoiding a subsequent quality control and reducing repair costs and control.
Joseph M. Juran. has always paid particular attention to practical experience and has collected the summary in his book manual. The work reflects her sense practical, so that we can speak of a pragmatic and progressive. Juran taught the Japanese quality management integrating the teaching of Deming in the field of statistics.
He also had always emphasized the role of top management by promoting quality development in every business sector. Achieving this goal first requires a change of attitude that must be initiated by management, so it is essential the ability to address and eliminate the defects and chronic costs associated with them, with whom, otherwise, companies are accustomed to living . The quality becomes a strategic factor for profit.
The author considers it vital for the following:
The training in quality, from top to bottom;
diagnosis of business problems;
projects for remedies (the improvement)
institutionalization improvement;
dissemination of results monetized;
quality planning.
Improving the quality throughout the company is sometimes called CWQI ( Company Wide Quality Improvement ), which was replaced after Control Improvement, just improvement, which emphasizes the idea of \u200b\u200bdynamic and continuous evolution.
WE Deming. known for his contribution to the dissemination of statistical literacy farms and the role played in triggering the change of quality in Japan. In fact the message of Deming also has a strong content management, application of statistical concepts to the industrial, building, however, senior management must understand and sponsor them, is, in fact, the basis on which the teaching Deming and represents the most distinctive.
Managers should set the standards and operational levels to provide the necessary tools to meet and create an environment conducive to peaceful co-operation, identifying and solving problems; by fourteen points, Deming lists the duties of management .
These points are summarized as follows:
- attitudes Individual: continuous improvement, the response to market challenges and choices based not only on costs;
- initiatives to be taken: improvement of the production process, education and training staff and the progressive abandonment of all forms of inspection;
- interventions aimed at improving the organizational climate: the elimination of personal barriers, reducing the emphasis on quantitative targets and encouragement of collaboration.
The statistics are the heart of Deming's methodology: the use of statistical tools for quality control in order to identify problems and their causes.
Deming stresses the importance of the presence of a statistical expert within the company to help identify problems and collect data to arrive at an optimal solution.
Philip B. Crosby. He gave importance to the motivational aspects for the quality in his book "Quality is easy," points out that quality is an investment that produces profit and is not a cost. He adds between others that the quality begins with people and not with things.
customer is any person who receives our work (those who are downstream in the production cycle) according to the concept originally promoted by Ishikawa, and quality affects everyone.
maturity of companies to quality is analyzed according to five categories:
- attitude of the management;
- position of quality in the organization;
- methodology to address the problems;
- quality costs;
- activities improvement;
- all of the above categories.
Crosby is also the proponent of the theory " zero defects", ie reduce the defects and the findings and act as a final target number of zero defects.
The process of improving the quality offered by Crosby relies on the processing and dissemination of quality culture within the company. Chief of this change is still the top management, whose task is to reset the style of leadership, provide for facilities that go cross superimposed on existing ones and create a task to the Board responsible for policy and program work. The definition of product specifications, process and cost of quality, from the top, must involve all business functions cascade down to operational levels, and to this end, specific schemes of incentives and rewards to encourage the dissemination throughout the organization of cultural change.
Crosby's goal is to give all staff training and effective means to achieve continuous quality improvement.
Kaoru Ishikawa. Japan did not invent nothing compared to what is already present in American literature, but made quality a cornerstone of the industrial revival, taking seriously those concepts and apply those principles which he knew like no other country, all levels of the organization. Japan integrate the concepts received innovating, especially in two directions:
- control of the production process;
- the quality circles;
linked the logistics and procurement policy through the method of Just in Time in real time that is compared to production requirements, resulting in substantial reductions in stock levels.
The biggest theoretical CWQC was Kaoru Ishikawa who upheld the pervasiveness of this conception of quality to be achieved through a variety of tools, such as QFD (Quality Function Deployment ), the Deming wheel and the seven statistical tools.
The main features of the Japanese are identified by Ishikawa in a series of slogans:
- quality comes before profit, because the emphasis on quality will also increase profits in the long term;
- quality control must be customer-oriented and non-production;
- attention should be paid to the processes since they determine the quality of products;
- management must respect the man;
statistical methods should be known and used by all.
The process approach
company generally take place in many activities that interact with each other and aim to achieve the objectives of the company: one of the problems that may arise, especially when such activities are conducted under the responsibility of different people, is given by the lack of coordination and alignment in the results to be achieved in different business areas.
standards ISO 9001 and 9004 promoting a " process approach", which should help solve that problem.
A " process," according to ISO 9000, is an activity or a set of activities, which interact with each other , which transforms the input (materials, services and information) in The outputs (products and services). According to Joseph M.
Juran, a process should meet the following criteria:
- be oriented to the achievement of goals (only if we know what we want to achieve we can schedule a trial);
- be systematic, ie, activities that constitute it should be connected together in a consistent manner;
- be "capable" of achieving the objectives set in normal operation (only a process "capable" is able to achieve the "benefits" requests with continuity and regularity);
- be allowed, that is, occur throughout authorized channels, ie, defining the responsibilities involved in the process.
The process model, referred to by the ISO standard, is based on the principle of Deming , known as PDCA ( Plan-Do-Check-Act ), and requires the organization to adopt the planning the development, management and measurement of individual processes in order to have objective data on which to reflect and initiate continuous improvement projects on a systematic basis.
Such measurements are no longer the only goal for compliance with specified requirements, as in the past when the prevailing logic of the contract between supplier and customer, but the assessment of internal performance, such as the management system, processes and products / services, financial aspects, resources, etc.. and services outside the organization, such as customer satisfaction , complaints, satisfaction of the parties and all that is related to them.
The model introduces " eight principles of quality management ", which are described in ISO 9000:2000, "Quality Management Systems - Fundamentals and vocabulary".
The "eight principles of quality management" can be used by senior management to lead the organization towards improved performance es'identificano as follows:
- customer focus: Organizations depend on customers and therefore should understand their needs today and future meet their requirements and strive to exceed customer expectations.
- the leadership: managers and department heads establish unity of purpose, addresses the organization's internal environment. They foster an environment for the full involvement of staff in the pursuit of organizational goals.
- the involvement staff: people at all levels are the essence of the organization and their full involvement enables their abilities to put the organization.
- 's process approach: a desired result is achieved more efficiently when activities and related resources are managed as a process.
- 's systems approach to management: Identifying, understanding and managing a system of interrelated processes to achieve certain objectives contributes to the effectiveness and efficiency of the organization.
- the continuous improvement: continuous improvement is a goal permanent organization.
- approach to real data in decision making: Effective decisions are based on a logical and intuitive, data and factual information.
- mutually beneficial relationships with suppliers : a mutually beneficial relationship between the organization and its suppliers enhances the ability of both to create value.
From their effective "metabolism" and shared by all staff, from senior management, depends on the proper development of a QMS (Quality Management System).
If they are not taken into account, we risk creating a system functional management certification only, with no appreciable benefits to the customer and, consequently, for the company.
