What is Quality?

Though not often publicized, many disagree regarding what quality really means.

You may hear a follower of Juran, for example, demand that all production aim to hit the center of tolerance range. But another person may point out that such an interpretation removes the usefulness of different dimensioning schemes. For example, where a shaft is dimensioned .998" plus zero, minus .005" and the mating bushing is dimensioned 1.000" minus zero plus .005", production would strive for a shaft diameter of .9955" and a hole diameter of 1.0025". This would result in a much sloppier fit than what the designer intended, which is an optimal .002" running fit.

For consistency and the promise of a usable product when operators have little skill, the first interpretation does work. In fact, it was this very concept that helped the Japanese manufacturing industry rise from last place to become a global leader.

It could be argued that there exist various levels of quality.

In our opinion, quality is product specific and can be personal as well. One customer may most value beautiful finishes where another would find material selection for lack of wear to be what defines quality. Another may just demand it meets a milspec, a fourth stress that the quality procedures must be strict.

In the final analysis, quality can be defined as meeting or exceeding customer expectations. It is therefore important that those expectations are explored up front.  

In addition to obvious considerations such as meeting specs and delivering on time, other often neglected parameters, such as designs that can be easily manufactured/assembled and manufactured products that can be easily inspected, also come into play.

An important part of the quality process is working with our customers to determine what is important to them.

Quality is a way of thinking. We understand that inspection equipment and control charts, though important tools, do not ensure quality. Only a quality-based organizational culture ensures quality.