International Journal for Quality Research

8

Authors: Radoica Luburic, Milan Perovic, Rajko Sekulovic

The authors of the paper analyze risk management processes contained in the model considering its longstanding application in many European organisations. The paper also analyses quality management system (QMS) standards and risk management (RM) standards. It particularly addresses the process approach to QMS which, when coupled with active involvement of employees and constant improvements, makes this approach interesting as the topic of this paper. The analyses herein resulted in integrating the process approach in the "Three Lines of Defence" model with the primary objective of the model strengthening. This is to be achieved by integrating "process owner" and "risk owner" in one person or one management team in any process with its own risk.

12

Authors: Eduardo G. Salgado, Elizabete Ribeiro Sanches da Silva, Carlos Eduardo Sanches da Silva, Carlos Henrique Pereira Mello

Effectiveness of quality management in the effort to satisfy customers' expectations has been questioned both by academicians and practitioners. In the course of the evolution of quality, very important theories have been developed in the field but failed to satisfy customers' expectation. The aim of this paper is to examine the challenge and develop a new method to address it. Following a literature review on the evolution of the concept of quality, confusions and limitations in the present paradigm are clarified. Then the future quality paradigm is proposed, and two practical cases are presented to substantiate the new approach. Quality management evolved from product inspection at the final stages of the production process. Basically, manufacturers take care of quality up to the point where a product is delivered to a customer. Product failure occurs due to various reasons after purchase. However, this happened or discovered during operational phase of the product which subsequently result in dissatisfaction for the users after purchase. To address this misalignment, all inclusive approach called Lifecycle Quality came into being as the future generation's paradigm. Misalignment between the manufacturer and the customer's desire in the operational phases of a product life-time leads to market loss to the former and dissatisfaction to the latter. Considering lifecycle quality of the product will definitely resolve the occurrence of such undesired outcomes affecting the two parties.

12

Authors: Osmo Kauppila, Janne Harkonen, Seppo Vayrynen

The integration of health and safety, environmental and quality (HSEQ) management systems has become a current topic in the 21st century, as the need for systems thinking has grown along with the number of management system standards. This study aims to map current developments and trends in integrated HSEQ management. Three viewpoints are taken: the current state of the main HSEQ management standards, research literature on integrated management systems (IMS), and a case study of an industry-led HSEQ cluster in Northern Finland. The results demonstrate that some of the most prominent current trends are the harmonization of the high level structure of management systems by ISO, the evaluation of IMS, accounting for the supply chain in HSEQ issues, and sustainability and risk management. The results of the study can be used by practitioners to get a view of the current state of HSEQ management systems and their integration, and by researchers to seek out potential directions for HSEQ and IMS related research.

14

Authors: Marta Kadlubek, Janusz Grabara

The article presents chosen aspects of logistic customer service quality. In the first part of the paper, the authors describe theoretical issues of logistics service quality and Servqual method. The reference of chosen theoretical aspects of logistic service quality in relation to Servqual method and their presentation and analysis afterwards on practical example is the main aim of the article. Customers' expectations and experiences towards the logistics customer service were examined as two fundamental areas which allow for recognizing the quality aspects of the customer service in commercial cargo motor transport enterprises. Evaluation of the level of customers' expectations and perception toward particular elements of logistic customer service offered to 294 customers by 147 Polish commercial cargo motor transport enterprises was realized.

16

Authors: Galina Mozhaeva, Nina Aniskina, Polina Mozhaeva Renha, Galina Serbina

In this article are presented the results of research of development of VET quality in Russia and possibilities of adaptation of the new European standard on VET quality Common Quality Assurance Framework (CQAF) in Russia. The results of two questioning of teachers and heads of establishments of the higher professional education and VET are analyzed. The comparative conclusions by results of questioning of VET-experts in Russia, Sweden, Netherlands, Austria, Italy and Turkey are presented. The results of questioning are confirmed by conclusions from the interview (focus groups) among leaders and teachers of the Russian educational institutions and a national seminar on discussion of the Guidelines developed by the European experts for leaders of educational institutions on the development of VET quality. The practical value of the Guidelines and model of quality CQAF for the Russian educational institutions are defined.

20

Authors: Cristiano Fragassa

Gres Porcelain stoneware is a ceramic with a compact, hard, coloured and non-porous body. It is largely used as building materials, for a quality architecture, offering high resistance to impact, stress, wear, scratching, frost, chemical attach and stains. It is produced in flat tiles, billions of tons per year. A very prominent technology, based on a pyroclastic deformation, permits to obtain bended porcelain tiles as innovative solutions for a modern architecture. This technology is grounded on a proper combination of heavy machining by cutting tools and secondary firing in a kiln. This new element, the bended tile, can be used in several innovative applications (as steps, shelves, benches, radiators...). But, new functions require a better and in-depth knowledge of these materials, especially referring to the mechanical proprieties. This paper investigates the limits of applicability of ISO standards for the quality classification of ceramics and experimental measures of their mechanical proprieties

10

Authors: André P. Dias, Manuel F. Silva, Nuno Lima, Ricardo Guedes

Tire inspection is presently done by workers who have as their main problems, besides identifying the defects, the time available for defect identification and the inherent costs. Companies can become more sustainable by adopting automated methods to perform such type of processes, such as artificial vision, with advantages both in the processing time and in the incurred costs. This paper addresses the development of an artificial vision system that aims to be an asset in the field of tyre inspection, having as main characteristics its execution speed and its reliability. The conjugation of these criteria is a prerequisite for this system to be able to be integrated in inspection machines. The paper focusses on the study of three image processing methods to be used in the identification of marks (red dots) on tires. In this work was used the free Open Computer Vision artificial vision library to process the images acquired by a Basler matrix camera. Two different techniques, namely Background Subtraction and Hough Transform, were tested to implement the solution. After developing the artificial vision inspection application, tests were made to measure the performance of both methods and the results were promising: processing time was low and, simultaneous, the achieved accuracy is high.

12

Authors: Raquel Morte, Teresa Pereira, Dalila B. M. M. Fontes

Performance appraisal increasingly assumes a more important role in any organizational environment. In the trucking industry, drivers are the company's image and for this reason it is important to develop and increase their performance and commitment to the company's goals. This paper aims to create a performance appraisal model for trucking drivers, based on a multi-criteria decision aid methodology. The PROMETHEE and MMASSI methodologies were adapted using the criteria used for performance appraisal by the trucking company studied. The appraisal involved all the truck drivers, their supervisors and the company's Managing Director. The final output is a ranking of the drivers, based on their performance, for each one of the scenarios used. The results are to be used as a decision-making tool to allocate drivers to the domestic haul service.

14

Authors: Sérgio D. Sousa, Isabel Lopes, Eusebio Nunes

In this work, the performance measurement process is studied to quantify the uncertainty induced in the resulting performance measure (PM). To that end, the causes of uncertainty are identified, analysing the activities undertaken in the three following stages of the performance measurement process: design and implementation, data collection and record, and determination and analysis. A quantitative methodology based on graph theory and on the sources of uncertainty of the performance measurement process is used to calculate an uncertainty index to evaluate the level of uncertainty of a given PM or (key) performance indicator. An application example is presented. The quantification of PM uncertainty could contribute to better represent the risk associated with a given decision and also to improve the PM to increase its precision and reliability.

14

Authors: Luís Miguel Fonseca

A revision of several paths for the Quality journey is presented: from Quality Gurus and Total Quality Management (TQM) models to the ISO 9000 International Standards Series. Since ISO 9001:2008 is now in the revision process to the expected ISO 9001:2015 version, an analysis is made of he proposed changes and the underlying reasons and the impacts foreseen on the more than 1.3 Million certified organizations. This revision should be a step towards TQM and reflect the changes of an increasingly complex, demanding and dynamic environment, while assuring that complying organizations are able to provide conformity products and services that satisfy their customers. Major benefits are expected such as less emphasis on documentation and new/reinforced approaches: consideration of Organizational Context and (relevant) Stakeholders, Risk Based thinking and Knowledge Management. Comments and recommendations are presented for organizations wishing to implement or update their Quality Systems accordingly to ISO 9001:2015.

16

Authors: Goran D. Putnik, Leonilde R. Varela, Carlos Carvalho, Cátia Alves, Vaibhah Shah, Hélio Castro, Paulo Ávila

In this paper, smart objects embedded production and quality management functions are proposed, to promote accurately support decision-making processes, from the shop floor level up to higher decision-making levels. The proposed functions contribute for different kind of problems solving in production and quality management, such as production planning and control, scheduling, factory supervision, real-time data acquisition and processing, and real-time decision making. The web access at different middleware devices and tools, at different decision levels, along with the use of integrated algorithms and tools, embedded in smart objects, promotes conditions for better decision-making for optimized use of knowledge and resources in production systems. The relevance of the proposed smart objects embedded production and quality management functions has been validated positively in a manufacturing company.

18

Authors: Susana Nicola, Eduarda Pinto Ferreira, J. J. Pinto Ferreira

In this paper we describe de application of a modeling framework, the so-called Conceptual Model Decomposing Value for the Customer (CMDVC), in a Footwear Industry case study, to ascertain the usefulness of this approach. The value networks were used to identify the participants, both tangible and intangible deliverables/endogenous and exogenous assets, and the analysis of their interactions as the indication for an adequate value proposition. The quantitative model of benefits and sacrifices, using the Fuzzy AHP method, enables the discussion of how the CMDVC can be applied and used in the enterprise environment and provided new relevant relations between perceived benefits (PBs).

10

Authors: Anwer Khurshid, Ashit B. Chakraborty

Measurement error effect on the power of control charts for zero truncated Poisson distribution and ratio of two Poisson distributions are recently studied by Chakraborty and Khurshid (2013a) and Chakraborty and Khurshid (2013b) respectively. In this paper, in addition to the expression for the power of control chart for ZTBD based on standardized normal variate is obtained, numerical calculations are presented to see the effect of errors on the power curve. To study the sensitivity of the monitoring procedure, average run length (ARL) is also considered.

11

Authors: Goran Markovic, Snezana Nestic, Pavle Popovic, Dejan Raonic

A telecommunication services have trend of fast growing in sence of market share, innovations, offer business support etc. One of its crucial aspects is quality of services because rising global competitivity. It is reason why is necessary to modify "classic" way of strategy development to quality strategy development using different offer approaches. In the paper we presented basic elements of approach designed to override difficulties of business strategy alignment to quality strategy in propose to make effective process of quality strategy development process.

12

Authors: Amare Matebu, Birhanu Dagnew

Designing of lifting, pushing and pulling activities based on the physical and physiological capabilities of the operators is essential. The purpose of this study is to analyze manual material handling (MMH) working posture of the operators using 3D Static Strength Prediction Program (3DSSPP) software and to identify major areas causing long last injury of operators. The research has investigated the fit between the demands of tasks and the capabilities of operators. At the existing situations, the actual capabilities of operators have been computed with the help of 3DSSPP software and compared with NIOSH standards. Accordingly, operators' working posture is at an unacceptable position that exposes them for musculoskeletal disorders. Then, after the improvement of the design of MMH device (cart's roller), the result showed that the forces required by the operators to push and pull the sliver cans have been reduced from 931.77 Newton to 194.23 Newton. Furthermore, improvement of MMH cart's roller has reduced the awkward posture of operators and the risk of musculoskeletal disorders. The improved manual material handling design also saves about 1828.40 ETB per month for the company.

14

Authors: Igor Klopotan, Kresimir Buntak, Ivana Drozdjek

In this paper the important parameters of customer loyalty and impact of education, gender and age of the respondents will be tested. The study was conducted in the Republic of Croatia, as part of research relevant parameters of customer loyalty, loyal consumer behavior and the role of social networks in building and maintaining a loyal behavior. The concept of loyalty has a strong foothold in marketing theories and in theories of intellectual capital companies. Loyalty has been related to the management of intellectual capital, especially relational capital, as a component of intellectual capital. In terms of loyalty, series of key parameters that describe it or have an effect on it, and thus impacting the company's business appear.

14

Authors: Rathish Raghupathy, K.S. Amirthagadeswaran

Sound and accurate castings reveal the quality of a foundry unit. In this case study, an attempt has been made to optimize the production of grey cast pump adapter castings using Box - Behnken design of experiments (DOE) approach in a foundry producing grey cast iron components. Process parameters like Clay percentage, Moisture percentage and Mold hardness were found to be dominant factors to control during the production process. Three different levels of each factor were considered for experimentation using BBD. Experimental trials were conducted using the design matrix and response in each experiment was measured and the results were tabulated. Design Expert software was used to analyse and optimize process parameters for confirmatory experiments. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) test was conducted to identify significant parameters. The parametrical settings of the confirmatory experiments produced defect free pump adapter castings. The effects of variation of the process parameters and their influence on the quality of the castings were discussed. The research concluded that careful adjustment of process parameters is necessary since bonding strength is directly related to these parameters; in turn have an effect on the quality of castings produced.

16

Authors: Jelena Jovanovic, Heena Shah, Aleksandar Vujovic, Zdravko Krivokapic

The paper is focused on evaluation of environmental impacts in the Pilot organization using multiple MCDM methods. The aim of this study was to determine the objectivity and reliability of the MCDM methods for the purpose of evaluation of the significance of environmental impacts, which is considered as a key step in the implementation of ISO 14001 standard (Environmental Management System). For this purpose, multiple methods AHP, AHP Entropy, TOPSIS, VIKOR and Entropy VIKOR have been used in the paper. The results of this comparative analysis were carried out on concrete data.

10

Authors: Yurij Vasilkov, Ludmila Gushina

In this paper we consider the problem of analyzing the effectiveness and efficiency of management systems that are relevant, especially in the implementation at the enterprise requirements of ISO 9001, 14001 and others. Research management system based on a systematic approach focused on the disclosure of its integrative qualities (i.e. systemic), on identifying the variety of relationships and mechanisms for these qualities. It allows to identify the causes of the real state of affairs, to explain the successes and failures. An important aspect of a systematic approach to the analysis of the effectiveness and efficiency of production control management is the multiplicity of "stakeholders" interests involved in the production process in the formation of operational goals and ways to achieve them.

12

Authors: Ilija Djekic, Nada Smigic, Nikola Tomic Andreja Rajkovic

This paper gives an overview of the food packaging process in seven food companies in the dairy and confectionery sector. A total of 23 production runs have been analyzed regarding the three packers' rules outlined in the Serbian legislation and process capability tests related to statistical process control. None of the companies had any type of statistical process control in place. Results confirmed that more companies show overweight packaging compared to underfilling. Production runs are more accurate than precise, although in some cases the productions are both inaccurate and imprecise. Education / training of the new generation of food industry workers (both on operational and managerial level) with courses in the food area covering elements of quality assurance and statistical process control can help in implementing effective food packaging.

13

Authors: Eduardo Gomes Salgado, Carlos Eduardo Sanches da Silva, Carlos Henrique Pereira Mello, Elizabete Ribeiro Sanches da Silva

Quality Management Systems (QMS) are designed to continuously improve the performance of organizations aiming to constantly improve their services seeking to overcome their results. Thus, for the services and/or products offered to transmit confidence and credibility, they should be designed within appropriate norms and standards. This research aims to assess the difficulties encountered by the incubated companies participating in the PRIME-FINEP project and developing projects for certification of their QMS in accordance with ISO 9001:2008. An exploratory survey was performed in nine incubated technology-based companies (TBC), through a questionnaire with 21 questions totaling the opinion of 20 respondents. After analyzing the data it is concluded, with statistical meaning, that the TBC's with little incubation time present difficulties in implementing the quality policy (5.3), difficulty not identified in other studies conducted in large companies. However difficulties similar to those of the large companies are present in the incubated TBC, and are the following: documentation requirements (4.2) present in all incubated companies (regardless of incubation time), and design and development (7.3) present in companies with little incubation time. The difficulty in implementing the quality policy (5.3) is reflected in the achievement of the QMS certification project in accordance with ISO 9001:2008.

14

Authors: Gezahegn Tesfaye, Daniel Kitaw, Amare Matebu

The Government of Ethiopia is promoting the manufacturing sector to join the global market in a large scale. Due to its comparative advantages, the Ethiopian leather and leather products industry have been given due attention. To fully utilize such advantages, the country shifted its export items from hides/skins to footwear products. Nevertheless, the performance of the leather sector in general and footwear sub-sector in particular is far below the desired standards. The improvement strategies applied hitherto were mainly to tackle a small portion of their total problems. If the Ethiopian footwear companies have to become globally competitive, their entire business spectrum has to be assessed and appropriate improvement strategies must be selected. In this research, we used a Total manufacturing solutions (TMS) technique to identify areas of improvement and improvement strategy of one of Ethiopian footwear companies. For this purpose, we conducted two surveys using structured questionnaire. The first survey was to test the TMS technique against the context of footwear industry. The result proved that the original TMS model can be used to measure the performance of footwear companies. The second survey was done to identify company's total problems, map its current position and select appropriate improvement strategy. The result revealed that the company has company-wide problems and its current position is a plodder. For plodders which have company-wide problems, the improvement strategy must include aggressive application of BPR; and the implementation of best practices to develop workers skills that encourages networking and promotion, a market-led manufacturing strategy, employee involvement and team work cultures. According to the findings of this research, we suggested that a BPR technique followed by a continuous improvement programme could be an appropriate improvement strategy for this company. The company requires long-term improvement programme to achieve the category of world leaders.

14

Authors: Slavomir Bednar, Vladimir Modrak

It is well known that high level of customer requirements and rapidly changing environment both induce complexity. The main reason for the failure of majority mass customized applications and projects is an increasing overall complexity of the system while relevant solutions for the overall production complexity reduction are still missing. The paper presents an overview of variety induced complexities in assembly operations capable and assessing the impact of assembly variety on performance, and reveals problems arising between quality and complexity. This paper aims to describe the current views to complexity, its measurement and management within assembly processes in mass customized productions and presents proposals for future development in the area.

16

Authors: Jagadeesh Rajashekharaiah

Different governments and professional agencies have set up a number of awards to recognize and reward quality initiatives. Deming Prize is one such award and ever since it was open for companies from outside Japan, maximum number of winning companies are from India, with 20 companies winning the Deming Prize and four among them also winning the Deming Grand Prize. This paper traces the path taken by these companies to know how these companies embarked a journey of Total Quality Management (TQM) and reached their goal of winning the prestigious Deming Prize. The common working principles of these companies and the various tools and techniques used by them are described in a concise manner in this paper. Further, the paper highlights the lessons from these companies to inspire others. The data taken from the respective websites of the companies has been used to list out the objectives, methodologies, and the benefits accrued by the companies.

10

Authors: Magdalena Niewczas

In this paper the results of survey conducted among 712 consumers in south-east Poland are presented. Respondents were asked to evaluate their level of knowledge about food. As a result it was shown that consumers usually assessed their knowledge as average or good. Women assessed their knowledge of food as better than men did. The most popular sources of knowledge about food among consumers are: the Internet (66.6% of ndications) and television (58.8% of indications). Respondents were also asked about their knowledge about HACCP/ISO 22000. Most of them do not have know ledge about these systems. Most respondents declared that they don't know what HACCP or/and ISO 22000 is (28.5% and 20.5% of indications). Men more often that women declared the lack of knowledge about HACCP and ISO 22000.

12

Authors: Birhanu Beshah, Eshetie Berhan

Effectiveness of quality management in the effort to satisfy customers' expectations has been questioned both by academicians and practitioners. In the course of the evolution of quality, very important theories have been developed in the field but failed to satisfy customers' expectation. The aim of this paper is to examine the challenge and develop a new method to address it. Following a literature review on the evolution of the concept of quality, confusions and limitations in the present paradigm are clarified. Then the future quality paradigm is proposed, and two practical cases are presented to substantiate the new approach. Quality management evolved from product inspection at the final stages of the production process. Basically, manufacturers take care of quality up to the point where a product is delivered to a customer. Product failure occurs due to various reasons after purchase. However, this happened or discovered during operational phase of the product which subsequently result in dissatisfaction for the users after purchase. To address this misalignment, all inclusive approach called Lifecycle Quality came into being as the future generation's paradigm. Misalignment between the manufacturer and the customer's desire in the operational phases of a product life - time leads to market loss to the former and dissatisfaction to the latter. Considering lifecycle quality of the product will definitely resolve the occurrence of such undesired outcomes affecting the two parties.

12

Authors: Zulnaidi Yaacob

It has been demonstrated within the literature that the practice of customer focus is significantly associated with customer satisfaction. However, the possibility that the construct of customer focus may affect other relevant measures remains underexplored. As such, this paper discusses the effect that customer focus has on organizational performance, operating upon the premise that customer satisfaction is an end result of other relevant performance measures such as employee satisfaction, innovation, and cost benefits. Data were collected from 205 managers within the public service sector, all of whom were directly involved with the process of customer focus. The results of this study revealed that customer focus is a significant predictor of employee satisfaction, innovation, and customer satisfaction. The structural model developed also indicated that there is an indirect relationship between customer focus and customer satisfaction, as determined by employee satisfaction. In addition, the effect of customer focus on innovation is mediated by employee satisfaction. Therefore, this model implies that the practice of customer focus may enable public firms to increase their levels of performance.

14

Authors: S. Arun Vijay

A lengthy and in-efficient process of discharging in-patients from the Hospital is an essential component that needs to be addressed in order to improve the quality of Health care facility. Even though, several quality methodologies are adopted to improve such services in Hospitals, the implementation of Six Sigma DMAIC methodology to improve the Hospital discharge process is much limited in the Literature. Thus, the objective of this research is to reduce the cycle time of the Patients discharge process using Six Sigma DMAIC Model in a multidisciplinary hospital setting in India. This study had been conducted through the five phases of the Six Sigma DMAIC Model using different Quality tools and techniques. This study suggested various improvement strategies to reduce the cycle time of Patients discharge process and after its implementation; there is a 61% reduction in the cycle time of the Patients discharge process. Also, a control pl an check sheet has been developed to sustain the Improvements obtained. This Study would be an eye opener for the Health Care Managers to reduce and optimize the cycle time of Patients discharge process in Hospitals using Six Sigma DMAIC Model.

16

Authors: Srdjan Nikezic, Radmila Mikovic, Dejana Prodanovic

In her lectures, Mary P. Follett pointed to key moments of leadership, management, group membership, coordination and participation as relevant elements for the exploration of human relations that are of interest today in the same way as they were eighty years ago. Model of thinking applied by Mary P. Follett is deeply linked to current strong needs for the creation of leadership and management professions that are linked to changes and long term strategic goals of big companies and world economy as a whole.

20

Authors: Maha Mohammed Yusr, Sany Sanuri Mohd Mokhtar, Abdul Rahim Othman

The relationship between TQM practices and innovation performance had drawn the attention of several scholars during last decade,however, this relationship still not clear and inconclusive. Therefore, this study is one of the attempts that aim to clarify the nature of this relationship. Reviewing the past studies reveals that there is somewhat ignoring in examining the indirect relationship between TQM and innovation performance. Thus, to determine and explore the effect of applying TQM practices within the organization on innovation performance, this study is aiming to investigate the relationship between TQM practices and technological innovation capabilities in Malaysian context. The obtained result of SmartPLS statistical analysis confirmed the positive effect of applying TQM practice on technological innovation capabilities. Moreover, the findings also provide an indication regarding the level of occurrence of technological innovation capabilities among Malaysian manufacturing companies. According to the output several recommendations have been highlighted to the managers of the companies.