Quality improvement of smart senior care service platform in China based on grey relational analysis and Fuzzy-QFD

Abstract

Purpose

Smart senior care industry in China currently faces a series of practical difficulties such as an imbalance in the demand and supply structure, service products unable to cater to the actual needs of the elderly and a low degree of marketization. This study therefore proposes using grey relational analysis and the Fuzzy-quality function development (QFD) quality improvement method to help solve these problems.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed method converts the fuzzy requirements of the elderly into the technical characteristics of technologically augmented senior care service products. It then, uses the QFD relationship matrix, combined with grey relational analysis, to analyze the relationship between the needs of elderly and the converted technical characteristics, and subsequently identifies key technical characteristics.

Findings

Results show that an improvement in the smart senior care service platform according to the differences of the elderly's preferences can significantly improve users' satisfaction with the service in addition to enhancing market competitiveness of the technologically assisted senior care service products.

Originality/value

A novel method to improve the need of smart senior care is proposed by considering age difference. The proposed grey relational analysis and Fuzzy-QFD quality improvement method can help improve the service quality of the smart senior care service platform.

Citation

Xu, L. and Zhang, Y. (2021), "Quality improvement of smart senior care service platform in China based on grey relational analysis and Fuzzy-QFD", Grey Systems: Theory and Application, Vol. 11 No. 4, pp. 723-740. https://doi.org/10.1108/GS-05-2020-0068