18-07-2012, 12:05 PM
QUALITY CIRCLES
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Summary of History and Practices
Quality Circles were first seen in the United States in the 1950’s
Circles were developed by Dr, Kaoru Ishikawa in Japan in the 1960’s
Circles were re-exported to the US in the early 1970’s
Summary of History and Practices (continue)
1980’s brought Total Quality Management and a reduction in the use of Quality Circles
Quality Circles can be a useful tool if used properly
What is a Quality Circle?
Voluntary groups of employees who work on similar tasks or share an area of responsibility.
They agree to meet on a regular basis to discuss & solve problems related to work.
They operate on the principle that employee participation in decision-making and problem-solving improves the quality of work.The reduction, by their efforts, of the countless number of problems which impede the effectiveness of their work
Encourage circles to elect their own leaders towards the end of the training period.
What is a Quality Circle? (continue)
Frequency and duration of meetings is set by the group
Japanese experience indicated that 95% of the problems in the workshop can be solved through QC Tools
The Japanese description of the effectiveness of a quality circle is expressed as:
“It is better for one hundred people to take one step than for one person to take a hundred’
How Do Quality Circles Work?
All members of a Circle need to receive training
Members need to be empowered
Members need to have the support of Senior Management
Characteristics
Volunteers
Set Rules and Priorities
Decisions made by Consensus
Use of organized approaches to Problem-Solving
Formation of Quality Circles
Start on the Floor
Base Circle on Training
Allow the Circle to Form Itself
Do The Training Properly
Support with Information Required
Provide Skills and Experience
The Premise of Quality Circles
Much of the trouble originated between management and floor
Operators were frequently well aware of the cause of quality problems and, with modern standards of education, often knew how to cure them
The Benefits of Quality Circles
A Direct Pay-off (cost/benefits)
An Operator To Manager Dialogue (involvement, participation, communication)
A Manager To Manager Dialogue (awareness)
An Operator to Operator Dialogue (attitudes)
The Personal Development of the Participants
Reasons for failure of Quality Circles
Inadequate Training
Unsure of Purpose
Not truly Voluntary
Lack of Management Interest
Quality Circles are not really empowered to make decisions.
Reasons for failure of Quality Circles (continue)
They have not had enough training
They have not been given sufficient autonomy
The Quality Circles have been started in isolation and not part of a wider programme of Company-wide Continuous Improvement
QUALITY IMPROVEMENT TEAMS
Team formed where there is a specific problem whose solution is unlikely to reside in a single department and which is large enough to justify the establishment of a team to resolve the problem
For example (the combined actions of Production, Testing, Technical Departments as well as the Supplier for persistent equipment breakdown)
CHARACTERISTICS OF QITS
Set up by management
Inter-departmental
Group is usually formed to resolve a problem identified by others
Team is usually disbanded once the problem solved
BENEFITS OF QITS
Break Down Inter-Departmental Barriers
QIT process is part of team building and ownership of the problem
Solutions Are More Global In Concept
optimised for corporate rather than departmental goals
Improved Communications
solutions are sought for the corporate good rather than to shift blame
Improved Problem Solving
create a degree of mobile expertise in problem solving within the company
THE QIT PROCESS
Adequate training in appropriate skills must be provided before the QIT starts work
To deny the team the problem-solving tools it needs to carry out the task is inviting failure which will affect not only the issue under consideration but the credibility of the QIT process itself
THE QIT PROCESS
Identify the Project And Form The Team
Define The Problem Accurately
Identify And Verify Root Causes
Plan And Implement Corrective Action
Standardise And Seek Other Applications
Conduct A Review Of The Project