Page 199 - DMGT501_OPERATIONS_MANAGEMENT

Unit 6: Quality Assurance and Control

2. Total systems are more important than each of the parts: Look for optimum vs sub- Notes
optimum-a paisa saved in one department has no merit if it adds a rupee of cost in another
department.
3. Be non-blaming and non-judgmental: Determine what is wrong not who is wrong. Find
the cause of the problem and correct it but do not kill the messenger.

The Japanese make a distinction between Kaizen and innovation. Kaizen is gradual while
innovation is viewed as being more radical. Radical changes to an organization's product line,
business model or other operational area – dubbed kaikaku by the Japanese – provide the
breakthrough in performance and growth while Kaizen can help the company to maintain its
momentum and to perfect its new products, processes and business model.
Kaizen is a group activity and it employs small groups for initiating improvements usually in
small increments over a longer period of time. A prerequisite to forming the team is to state
some rules or guidelines for the operation and for the behaviour of the team. An ideal team
consists of approximately four operators; a supervisor, a manager and two support personnel,
thus bonding takes place over across traditional lines of authority. Typically an operator may
emerge as the leader of the team although the plant manager may also be on the team. As the
operators know the process better than anyone in the room they become the experts and direct
the efforts of the supervisors, managers, and engineers. Team dynamics are quite interesting at
times. The higher-level people on the team must be open to this type of power shift.

Figure 6.3: The Kaizen Concept

1. Design Flow Process
Link Operations
Balance workstation capacities

Redesign layout for flow
Emphasize preventive
maintenance
Reduce lot sizes
7. Improve Product Design 2. Total Quality Control
Standard product Worker responsibility

configuration Measure SOC
Standarize and reduce Enforce compliance
number of parts Fall-safe methods
Process design with Automatic inspection
product design Concurrently Solve Problems
Root Cause
Solve permanently
6. Reduce Inventory Team Approach 3. Stabilize Schedule
More Line and specialist Level schedule
Look for other areas responsibility Underutilize capacity
Stores Continual education Establish freeze windows

Transit Measure Performance
Carousels Emphasize improvement
Coveyors Track trends

4. Kanban Pull
5. Work with Vendors Demand pull
Reduce lead times
Backflush
Frequent deliveries
Project usage Reduce lot sizes
requirements
Quality expectations

Source: This has been adapted from ‘Operations Management for Competitive Advantage, Chase, Jacobs and
Aquilano, 10th Edition, Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi, 2003.

The management encourages suggestion or Kaizens from employees regarding possible
improvements in their respective work areas. The success depends on the participation and
response to the program. In different organizations there are different measures of the

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