QUALITY ASSURANCE UNIT 5.4

THE IMPORTANCE OF QUALITY Define quality. National/ international standards Increasing consumer awareness competition government legislation consumer incomes The costs of poor quality

QUALITY CONTROL AND ASSURANCE Define- Quality management Quality control Quality assurance Total quality culture (TQC)/Total quality management (TQM) Lean production

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF TQM +ves-ves

HL- KAIZEN & QUALITY CIRCLES ‘kai’= change; zen=better Small and continuous improvement Small employee groups (quality circles)- steady flow of small improvements instead of large, radical changes to overcome resistance Aims to eliminate waste Communication= circle network or all channel network Works? Think of a positive and negative

HL- BENCHMARKING Best practice benchmarking 8 steps 1. identify 2. measure internal performance 3. identify most appropriate competitors or standards 4. measure external performance of competitor 5. use comparative data 6. establish standards for quality improvements 7. implement changes 8. evaluate outcomes

HL- BENCHMARKING Historical benchmarking Inter-firm benchmarking AdvantagesDisadvantages

HL- NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL QUALITY STANDARDS Advantages? Types? ISO See p668 ‘six sigma approach’- summarise.