Page 128 - Design for Six Sigma for Service (Six SIGMA Operational Methods)

Quality Function Deployment 103

that will have the greatest impact on the ability to design and satisfy the
needs of the customers, both internal and external. Quality function
deployment is a zooming tool that identifies the significant design elements
on which to focus design and improvement efforts and other resources. In
the context of QFD, planning is key and is enhanced by reliable information
in benchmarking and testing.
The objectives of this chapter are to

1. Provide Black Belts, Green Belts, and other readers with the knowledge
and skills they need to define quality function deployment
2. Identify the four key elements of any QFD chart
3. Provide a basic understanding of the overall four phases of QFD
methodology
4. Define the three quality features of the Kano model

6.2 History of QFD

Quality function development was created by Mitsubishi Heavy Industry at
Kobe Shipyards in the early 1970s. Stringent government regulations for
military vessels coupled with the large capital outlay per ship forced Kobe
Shipyard’s management to commit to upstream quality assurance. The Kobe
engineers drafted a matrix, which related all the government regulations,
critical design requirements, and customer requirements to company
technical controlled characteristics of how the company would achieve
them. In addition, the matrix also depicted the relative importance of each
entry, making it possible for important items to be identified and prioritized
to receive a greater share of the available company resources.

Winning is contagious. Other companies adopted QFD in the mid-1970s.
For example, the automotive industry applied the first QFD to the rust
problem. Since then, QFD usage has grown as a well-rooted methodology
into many American businesses. It has become so familiar because of its
adopted commandment: Design it right the first time.

6.3 QFD Benefits, Assumptions, and Realities

The major benefit of QFD is customer satisfaction. QFD gives customers what
they want, such as a shorter development cycle. Failures and redesign peaks
(Fig. 6.1) are avoided during prelaunch, and know-how knowledge as it relates
to customer demand is preserved and transferred to the next design team.