2. Quality perspectives

Judgmental/ Transcedent Perspective - Quality is synonymous with superiority or excellence; Product-Based Perspective - Quality is a set of measurable attributes of product; User-Based Perspective - Quality is defined as fitness for intended use, or how well the product performs its intended function; Value-Based Perspective - Quality is defined through the relationship of both usefulness or satisfaction to price; Manufacturing-Based Perspective - Quality is conformance to specifications.

A typical manufacturing system includes:

Marketing and sales

Product design and engineering

Purchasing and receiving

Production planning and scheduling

Manufacturing am assembly

Industrial engineering and process design

Finished goods inspection and testing

Packaging shipping, and warehousing

Installation and service

Finance and accounting

Legal services

Critics: Excellence is abstract and subjective, and standards of excellence may vary considerably among individuals; Quality is assumed to be related to price: the higher the price, the higher the quality; A product need not be cheap to be consider a quality product by consumers; The assessment of product attributes may vary considerable among individuals. The products may be fitted for use, but they have to serve different needs and different groups of customers, hence meet different quality standards; Even the products are fit for intended use, the tastes vary among individuals. Incentives are payments to customers to compensate for lower quality; Competition demands that businesses seek to satisfy consumers’ needs at lower prices. Specifications are meaningless, if they do not reflect attributes that are deemed important to the consumer.

1. Marketing and sales – responsibilities for quality: Determining the needs and expectations of consumers; Learning the products and product features that consumers want; Knowing the prices that consumers are willing to pay; Effective market research and active solicitation of customer feedback; Obtain feedback on product performance.

2. Product design and engineering – responsibilities for quality: Develop technical specifications for products and production processes to meet the requirements determined by the marketing function; Develop design tolerances that will assure successful product performance; Conduct measurements to determine process variations from existing specifications; Good design prevent manufacturing defects and service errors; Under-engineered vs. over-engineered products will not meet customer needs/ may not find a profitable market.

3a. Purchasing – responsibilities for quality: Select quality-conscious suppliers; Focus on low-cost procurement and timeliness of deliveries; Ensure the purchase orders clearly define the quality requirements specified by product design; Maintain a clear focus on the quality of purchased goods; Establish long-term supplier relationships based on trust; Provide quality-improvement training to suppliers; Inform suppliers on any problems encountered with their goods.

3b. Receiving – responsibilities for quality: Ensure that the delivered items are of the quality specified by the purchase contract; Use various inspection and testing policies.

4. Production planning and scheduling – responsibilities for quality: Specify long-term and short-term production requirements for filing customer orders and meeting anticipated demand; Assure correct materials, tools and equipment at the proper time and in the proper places in order to maintaining a smooth flow of production; Assure good process technology.

5. Manufacturing and assembly – responsibilities for quality: Ensure that the product is made correctly/ monitor the manufacturing process; Ensure in-line process control (use of statistics); At each production step collect and evaluate performance data; Detect deviations from the process immediately and make necessary adjustments; Make every effort is necessary to identify the causes of defects and eliminate them.

6. Industrial engineering and process design – responsibilities for quality: Develop realistic specifications for products; Select appropriate technologies, equipment, and work methods for producing quality products; Design facilities and arranging equipment to achieve a smooth production flow and reduce opportunities for product damage.

7. Finished goods inspection and testing – responsibilities for quality: Evaluate the overall quality of manufacturing; Discover and help to resolve production problems that may arise; Ensure that no defective items reach the consumer.

8. Packaging, shipping, and warehousing – responsibilities for quality: Ensure accurate labeling - coding and expiration dating of products; Assure that products are not damaged in transit.

9. Installation and service – responsibilities for quality: Ensure adequate instructions for proper installation and operation; Ensure after-the-sale service, specify standards for customer service similar to the dimensions and tolerances prescribed for manufactured goods.

10. Finance and accounting – responsibilities for quality: Obtain funds, control their use, analyze investment opportunities, and ensure that the firm operates cost-effectively and profitably; Authorize sufficient budgeting for equipment, training, other quality assurance activities; Determine costs of poor quality and opportunities to reducing them; Based on accounting data, identify areas for quality improvement: invoice accuracy, time needed to process invoices, time needed to pay bills, etc.

11. Legal services – responsibilities for quality: Guarantee that the firm complies with laws and regulations regarding product labeling, packaging, safety, and transportation; Design its warranties properly; Satisfy its contractual requirements; Have procedures and documentation in place in the event of liability claims.

Two key components of service system quality: Q of human contact: communication, courteousness, delivery time, information etc. /Information technology: computing, communication, data processing, other various means of converting data into useful information that leads to improved quality and productivity.

Quality problems in health care: Avoidable errors: injuries during the course of treatment / Underutilization of services: lack of necessary care or effective interventions / Overuse of services: services that are unnecessary, increase costs, endanger health /Variation of services: regional variations, small-area variations. // Quality in Education: Faculty and staff development and work-life enrichment / Assessment of student learning outcomes / Undergraduate education / Graduate education / Student services / Administrative processes / Technology / Understand students and stakeholder needs / Measuring effectiveness / Planning continuous improvement / Building collaborative relationships.