In an Industrial world, very often, quality is either neglected or perceived as a jet-rocket roaming around the world. Especially in underdeveloped countries, it is believe that ultimate concerned entity is a product, not qualitative entity. Reluctance to comprehend the benefits associated with developing a quality culture is costing a fortune to industrial sector in many aspects. Let us cast an eye over the subject from different angle.
Firstly, before getting started with a benefit of instilling a quality, let us understand notion by which the concept can be scrutinized.
Warren Buffet, worlds third richest person, endorsed the concept of past quality gurus in terms of value addition as Value is what you get and price is what you pay”. That’s it.This is an underlying philosophy of “Quality Management”. -So how does the value gets inducted in the processes?
By all means, I can say that “Every single ACTIVITY which is adding value to the end product is worth listening off the cost associated sheet.
Customer isn’t paying you to check the AQL limit against the designated standard for Raw material or to validate the health and safety measures in a company.
Cost Of Quality Example
Let me pass you through an industrial example to illustrate the, yet described, phenomenon.
- When you go to the mart to buy some suit for an upcoming function in your family, than what is the first thing which eloped your attention of any suit?
- The answer is aesthetics. Right?
- Surely you wont like to show up as an apple of bar party when the function is of formal gathering. So, the very first characteristic of quality “Aesthetics” would come into a play, leading its other aspects.
- Now, keep supposing, you bought blue navy suit which served your purpose in every aspect. You got home and showed up at the party wearing a spectacular suit, which got praised by other gang as well. End of a supposition story.
Now let me ask you a bunch of other questions ,
- While buying suit, did you ever bother to verify, whether the raw material of a suit met the mentioned specifications?
- Did you bother how many quality checkpoints were ensured by Armani personnel to produce the best suit?
- Did you bother about the training level of employees, who got it manufactured?
- Indeed, answer would be never. Because customer don’t give a heck about industrial procedures, through which output is produced because one is paying for a whole god damn suit but not for for the back stage matters. Thus, following the given example above, cost of quality may be stated as
- Every single penny or dollar, spent in any system, procedure, corrective action, proactive measures etc., which isn’t adding value to the end product must be listed on the expense or sheet of cost of quality.”
Here, the major need is for industrial sector is to differentiate between Cost of Conformance and Cost of Non-Conformance in every single metrics , against which the organizations strategical objectives are concerned.
P.S: Next article will be regarding formulating a strategy for designating COC & CONC as per business driving elements. .!!