Part Two TQM – The Role of the Quality System

Part TwoTQM – The Role of the Quality System Chapter # 6 Quality system audit/review and self-assessment

Chapter Outline • 6.1 Securing prevention by audit and review of the system • 6.2 Error or defect investigations and follow-up • 6.3 Internal and external quality-system audits and reviews • 6.4 Towards a TQM standard for self-assessment • 6.5 Adding the systems to the TQM model

6.1 Securing prevention by audit and review of the system • Error or defect prevention is the process of removing or controlling error/defect causes in the system. There are two major elements of this: • Checking the system. • Error/defect investigation and follow-up • These have the same objectives-to find, record and report possible causes of error, and to recommend future corrective action.

6.1 Securing prevention by audit and review of the system Checking the system • There are six methods in general use: • Quality audits and reviews, which subject each area of an organization’s activity to a systematic critical examination. • Quality survey, a detailed, in-depth examination of a narrower field of activity. • Quality inspection, which takes the form of a routine scheduled inspection of a unit or department.

6.1 Securing prevention by audit and review of the system • Quality tour, which is an unscheduled examination of a work area to ensure that, for example, the standards of operation are acceptable. • Quality sampling, which measures by random sampling, similar to activity sampling, the error potential. • Quality scrutinies.

6.2 Error or defect investigations and follow-up • The investigation of errors and defects can provide valuable error prevention information. The method is based on: • Collecting data and information relating to the error or defect. • Checking the validity of the evidence. • Selecting the evidence without making assumptions or jumping to conclusions.

6.2 Error or defect investigations and follow-up • The results of the analysis are then used to: • Decide the most likely cause(s) of the errors or defects. • Notify immediately the person(s) able to take corrective action. • Record the findings and outcomes. • Report them to everyone concerned, to prevent a recurrence. • The investigation should not become an inquisition to apportion blame, but focus on the positive preventive aspects.

6.2 Error or defect investigations and follow-up • It is hoped that errors or defects are not normally investigated so frequently that the required skills are developed by experience, nor are these skills easily learned in a classroom. • One suggested way to overcome this problem is the development of a programmed sequence of questions to form the skeleton of an error or defect investigation questionnaire. This can be set out with the following structure: • Plant equipment -description, condition, controls, maintenance, suitability, etc.

6.2 Error or defect investigations and follow-up • Environment-climatic, space, humidity, noise, etc. • People-duties, information, supervision, instruction, training, attitudes, etc. • Systems-procedures, instructions, monitoring, control methods, etc.

6.3 Internal and external quality-system audits and reviews • Audit and review. • A quality-system review should be instituted, perhaps every 12 months, with the aims of: • Ensuring that the system is achieving the desired results. • Revealing defects or irregularities in the system. • Indicating any necessary improvements and/or corrective actions to eliminate waste or loss. • Checking on all levels of management. • Uncovering potential danger areas. • Verifying that improvements or corrective action procedures are effective.

6.3 Internal and external quality-system audits and reviews • Clearly the procedures for carrying out the audits and reviews and the results from them should be documented, and themselves be subject to review. • First-party, second-party, and third-party assessment scheme. • One advantage of the third-party schemes is that they obviate the need for customers to make their own detailed checks, saving both suppliers and customers time and money, and avoiding issues of commercial confidentiality.

6.3 Internal and external quality-system audits and reviews • Many organizationshave found that the effort of designing and implementing a written quality system good enough to stand up to external independent third-party assessment has been extremely rewarding in: • Encouraging staff and improving morale. • Better process control. • Reduced wastage. • Reduced customer service costs.

6.3 Internal and external quality-system audits and reviews • Internal system audits and reviews must be positive, and conducted as part of the preventive strategy and not as a matter of expediency resulting from quality problems. • Management anxious must be fully committed to operating an effective quality system for all personnel within the organization, not just the staff in the quality department. • Having established and documented the procedures, an organization must ensure that they are working and that everyone is operating in accordance with them.

6.3 Internal and external quality-system audits and reviews Quality auditing standard • There is an International Standard Guide to quality-systems auditing (ISO 10011:1991). • This points out that audits are required to verify whether the individual elements making up quality systems are effective in achieving the stated objectives. • The guidance provided in the standard can be applied equally to any one of the three specific and yet different auditing activities: first-part, second-part, and third-party audits.

6.3 Internal and external quality-system audits and reviews • ISO 10011 covers audit objectives and responsibilities, including the roles of the auditors and their independence, and those of the ‘client’ or auditee. It provides the following detailed guidance on audit: • Initiation • Preparation • Execution • Report • completion

6.4 Towards a TQM standard for self-assessment • ‘Total quality’ is the goal of many organizations, but it is difficult to find a universally accepted definition of what this actually means. • The philosophy of TQM recognizes that customer satisfaction, business objectives, safety, and environment considerations are mutually dependent, and applicable in any organization. • There have been many recent developments and there will continue to be many more, in the search for a TQM standard or framework against which organizations may be assessed or measure themselves, and carry out the so-called ‘gap analysis’.

6.4 Towards a TQM standard for self-assessment Quality award criteria • The recognition that TQM is a broad culture vehicle with internal and external focus embracing behavioral and service issues, as well as quality assurance and process control, prompted the US to develop a widely used framework for TQM- MBNQA. • The award is presented annually to recognize companies in the USA that have ‘excelled in quality management and quality ‘achievement’.

6.4 Towards a TQM standard for self-assessment • MBNQA introduces an excellent framework for achieving TQ. • MBNQA, Deming prize, the British Standard BS 7850……etc. • Many US companies have realized the necessity to assess themselves against the Baldrige criteria, if not to enter for the Baldrige Award then certainly as an excellent basis for self-audit and review, to highlight areas for priority attention and provide internal and external benchmarking.

6.4 Towards a TQM standard for self-assessment • The award criteria. • The seven criteria categories are further subdivided into examination items and areas to address. • Many managers feel the need for a rational basis on which to measure TQM in their organization. • It is necessary for any organization to rationalize all the criteria used by the various awards. There is great overlap between them, and the main components must be the organization’s processes, QMS, human-resource management, results and customer focus.

6.4 Towards a TQM standard for self-assessment • Self-assessments provide an organization with vital information in monitoring its progress towards its goals and total quality. • The external assessments used in the processes of making awards must be based on those self assessments that are performed as prerequisites for improvement. • Self-assessment allows an organization clearly to discern its strengths and areas for improvement by focusing on the relationship between the people, processes, and performance.

6.5 Adding the systems to the TQM model Systems Based on any good international standard. Culture Process Customer Supplier Communication Commitment

Part Two TQM – The Role of the Quality System