Emerald | The TQM Journal | Table of Contents

Planning for competitive customer value

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Tito Conti) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose – Good quality planning methodologies were developed in the last decades of the twentieth century that are still widely used. But competition is getting harsher and harsher and the search for more effective approaches to planning for competitive customer value can never stop. The purpose of this paper is to offer an alternative method for planning for customer value that is the result of his long experience with large organizations, both in manufacturing and service. Design/methodology/approach – The paper summarizes the approaches followed and the results reached. It also rationalizes such experience with the support of figures. Such process may require mental efforts to overcome conventional thinking in managing for quality, which should be accepted. A preliminary condition is understanding the author's quality vision, which quite often is at odds with traditional visions. For that reason the first part of the paper is dedicated to the illustration of the quality-related concepts that are at the basis of the following discussions. Such concepts are based on the systems view of the organization, on a definition of quality as both doing the right things and doing things right, on accepting that the word quality is neutral and acquires a positive or negative meaning only when associated with the concept of value. The above concepts are not accepted by all quality experts today. Findings – The following are the most significant conclusions: the “customer-perceived value vs, performance” curves look rather different from those that are mostly used today; consequently, the “quality life-cycle” presents some significant differences if compared with the Kano Model; extensive use should be made of time-related curves, which happen to be the most significant in relation to planning; proximity to users (not just own customers) is more important than questionnaires in relation to critical planning decision; both satisfiers and dissatisfiers are important to understand customer/stakeholder perception; the proposed combination algorithm for the two may look conceptually difficult to those who look for simple solutions; but sometimes difficulties look unavoidable. Originality/value – The paper is original inasmuch as it challenges conventional wisdom in this area. But, if the experience of the author finds confirmation in a wider context, it can be of significant value for those companies that operate in high competitive sectors. It can also stimulate organizational innovation in the fundamental area of value creation.

Application of Six Sigma to improve the quality of the road for wind turbine installation

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (E.V. Gijo, Ashok Sarkar) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to apply Six Sigma methodology, a systematic and structured approach for quality improvement in wind energy sector. This paper discusses the development of sustainable wind farm roads for an organization engaged in manufacturing, installation and servicing of windmills in India. Design/methodology/approach – This paper illustrates the Six Sigma DMAIC approach and its application for development of sustainable wind farm roads. Findings – The systematic and data driven approach of Six Sigma methodology identified many root causes for road damages and solutions were implemented to ensure sustainable wind farm roads. Originality/value – Six Sigma has been successfully implemented world over in different business processes ranging from manufacturing to service and health care. However its application is very uncommon in areas like road construction. This article demonstrates the applicability of Six Sigma methodology in uncommon areas.

Assessing continual improvement of South African meat safety systems

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Reuben Govender) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose – Continual improvement within management systems is essential to ensure the continued relevance of implemented systems and to mitigate stagnant and ineffective systems. South African abattoir managers utilise a regulated food safety system called the hygiene management system (HMS) to manage the safe processing of meat. The extent to which the HMS supports continual improvement is not clear as there is no specific requirement to demonstrate continual improvement within implemented systems. The aim of this paper is to provide this clarification by developing a framework of compliance criteria for continual improvement (CI) benchmarking the ISO 9000 series. Design/methodology/approach – This study attempted to provide this clarification by developing a framework of compliance criteria for continual improvement (CI) benchmarking the ISO 9000 series. Thereafter the HMS requirements were assessed against these criteria to determine whether or not any gaps existed within the HMS requirements in support of continual improvement. This study adopted a qualitative approach where a review of standards formed the basis of the study. Findings – This study demonstrates that the HMS is designed to support process stability. Further, the HMS requirements are sufficient to facilitate management of meat safety at abattoirs. However there are important gaps within the HMS in support of prevention as a means of continual improvement. The author postulates likely consequences of such gaps during implementation and management of the HMS. Originality/value – This study emphasises the importance of fundamental principles in quality management underpinning basic improvement mechanisms of corrective and preventative action towards improvement. It also provides a basis for further empirical research into the extent to which improvement is made within implemented HMSs at abattoirs.

Developing a scale to measure students’ perception of service quality in the Indian context

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Rajani Jain, Sangeeta Sahney, Gautam Sinha) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose – The changes in social and cultural framework, and even more in the economic order, have pushed the education system and higher education in particular, into a new environment in which quality plays an important role. Thus, the purpose of the current study is to develop a multidimensional scale to measure service quality in higher education in the Indian context. Design/methodology/approach – The study, descriptive, diagnostic, and causal in nature, has been conducted on students of higher education, particularly technical education in India. A questionnaire consisting of 26 items was developed to measure the service quality construct and its dimensions. Construct validation using exploratory factor analysis showed an interpretable latent structure consisting of seven dimensions. Findings – It was observed that service quality in higher education setting comprises seven dimensions viz., input quality, curriculum, academic facilities, industry interaction, interaction quality, support facilities and non academic processes. Research limitations/implications – The study holds implications for institutes of technical education in India that seek to improve the quality of service that they provide. The scale developed can be used by practitioners as a diagnostic tool for identifying poor and/or excellent service performance. Originality/value – While studies in quality management for education have been conducted, this study lays emphasis on the student as a customer of education, and proposes to develop a scale to measure their perception of service quality. The study is an attempt towards developing and empirically validating a measurement scale for service quality in higher education in the Indian context.

ISO 9000 impact on product quality in a defense procurement environment

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into the relationship between ISO 9001 conformance of suppliers and the quality of products they provide, within a procurement system of a manufacturer operating under contracts with the US Department of Defense. Design/methodology/approach – Chi-square tests of independence were performed to compare the receipt acceptance rate of material provided by ISO 9001-conforming suppliers to that of non-ISO 9001-conforming suppliers, for more than 46,000 receipts representing 21 material commodity groups provided by almost 800 suppliers. Acceptance of receipts required conformance to both hardware and paperwork requirements. Tests were also performed on data subsets, to determine the impact of ISO 9001 conformance on product quality for each of the 21 material commodity groups, for manufacturers versus distributors, and for two material control levels. Findings – For the overall data set, and for the majority of data subsets analyzed, the product quality of non-ISO 9001-conforming suppliers was significantly better than that of ISO 9001-conforming suppliers. When only hardware non-conformances were considered to cause rejections, the results were similar, but effect sizes were generally smaller. Research limitations/implications – The quantities of receipts and suppliers included in this investigation were very large; however, care should be exercised in generalizing the results, because of the potential influence of the defense industry-related requirements imposed upon the material and the suppliers. Originality/value – This is believed to be the first paper to investigate the impact of ISO 9001 conformance on product quality using a large quantity of actual product data, for both ISO 9001-conforming and non-ISO 9001-conforming suppliers, in contrast to numerous assessments of quality impact performed using interview and survey data.

Performance of CUSUM and EWMA charts for serial correlation

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Sukhraj Singh, D.R. Prajapati) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of correlation on the performance of CUSUM and EWMA charts. The performance of the CUSUM and EWMA charts is measured in terms of average run lengths (ARLs) for the positively correlated data. The ARLs at various set of parameters of the CUSUM and EWMA charts are computed, using MATLAB. The behavior of the CUSUM and EWMA chart at the various shifts in the process mean is studied, analyzed and compared at different levels of correlation (F). The optimum schemes for both the charts are suggested for various levels of correlation (F). Design/methodology/approach – Positively correlated observations having normal distribution are generated with the help of the MATLAB. Performance of both the charts in terms of ARLs is measured and compared at various levels of correlation (F). The optimal schemes of charts which give the desired in-control ARLs are suggested for various levels of correlation (F). Findings – For each level of correlation (F) various schemes of both the charts are suggested. Moreover those suggested schemes which give quick response to the shifts in the process mean is termed as optimal scheme. It is concluded that CUSUM schemes are preferred as compared to the EWMA schemes for quicker response. The optimal schemes of CUSUM and EWMA chart are also compared with the EWMAST chart suggested by Winkel and Zhang (2004). Research limitations/implications – Both the schemes are optimized by assuming the autocorrelated numbers to be normally distributed. But this assumption may also be relaxed to design these schemes for autocorrelated data. Moreover sample size of four is taken while developing these schemes; various other schemes can also be developed for different sample sizes. Control charts for attribute type of data can also be developed for different level of correlation (F). Practical implications – For a specific control chart, if the in-control ARL of the process outputs of any industry is in accordance with the simulated in-control ARL. It means the process outputs must have same level of correlation (F) corresponding to the simulated in-control ARL and the suggested optimal schemes, corresponding to that level of correlation (F), must be adopted to avoid the false alarm rate. The correlation among the process outputs of any industry can be find out and corresponding to that level of correlation the suggested control chart parameters can be applied. Thus false alarms generated, will be minimum for the suggested schemes at different level of correlation (F). Social implications – If the optimal CUSUM schemes are employed in process/service industry, there will be a considerable amount of saving in time and money expended in search of causes behind frequent false alarms. The rejection level of products in the industries can be reduced by designing the better control chart schemes which will also reduce the loss to the society, as suggested by Taguchi. Originality/value – The research findings could be applied to various manufacturing industries as well as service industries where the data is positively correlated and normally distributed.