Page 268 - Industrial Power Engineering and Applications Handbook

Philosophy of quality systems and testing of electrical machines 111247
SECTION 1 Improving a company’s image and goodwill.
Enhancing competitiveness and acceptability in national
and international markets, where many other brands
11 .I Philosophy of quality systems may already be available.
(a reference to IS0 9000) Reducing wastage and rework.
Improving productivity. etc.
The quality of a product is the main consideration when For a nation to produce a good quality product and
making a purchase. It may be a consumer durable, an meet the stringent quality expectations of the market, it
industrial product or a professional service. The quality is mandatory to meet such requirements. Quality has
of a product also means a reasonable cost-efficient after- assumed greater significance in the changed world
sales service and a consumer-friendly attitude on the scenario, with the emergence of the WTO (World Trade
part of the producer. Farsighted societies and organiza- Organization) formerly GATT (General Agreement on
tions. that conceived such a philosophy long ago evolved Tariffs and Trade), which means greater competition at
methods to practice this meticulously and con-sistently. the international level. Through quality, one can build
This has helped them to upgrade their own methods and international markets for products. in addition to local
technologies to excel in their fields, and today they are markets, not only to improve an image but also to serve
ahead of their competitors. They recognized the the economy of the nation by earning foreign exchange.
disadvantages of poor quality as long ago as in 191 I, as The Quality Systems may be applied to all activities, as
mentioned in F.W. Taylor’s book Principles of Scientific noted later, that together produce a product or service.
MCln<lpWfeflf. Taylor laid great emphasis on inspection
methods and quality control and his philosophy gained
wide acceptance at the time. Making of the Quality Systems
It must be emphasized that a method leading to final
inspection or testing of a product only when it has been To put these philosophies into practice. many countries
manufactured is a shortsighted approach and cannot have framed guidelines and standards. The earliest
guarantee total quality requirements. This method fails standard was issued in 1959 by the US Department of
Defense for large contracts (MIL-Q 9858. ‘Quality program
to guard against improper use of inputs, inadequate product
design or lack of process control etc., that may appear requirements’ ).
The long interval between Taylor‘s description of
only after the product is put to use. An inadequate size or Quality Management in 1911 until 1959. when the US
quality of a bolt, incorrect tightening, or any other Defense Department laid down its quality requiremenla for
inconsistency in quality. for instance. may not be detected the first time, was perhaps due to an increase in global
during brief inspections, but may appear during use.
Moreover, inspection alone cannot identify problems that interest that developed only in the late 1950s. Since then,
there has been a continuous application of these standards
may occur as a result of defective packing (the packer to contractors and manufacturerh worldwide.
tnight damage the product while nailing the packing),
For civilian use in the United States. ANWASQC.
poor storage (inconsistent storage facility, water seepage, Standard C and ZI , I5 were published in 1968. Since
rodents or any substances that may damage, rust or corrode then, many countries and large organizations have been
the product), and damage during transportation. publishing their own quality control systerna. For civilian
Products for critical duties such as for defence, aviation,
space or transport will need much more than a mere final reference, ‘A Guide to Quality Assurance’ was first
published in 1972 (BS 4891). This was soon replaced by
inspection. Such applications can ill afford to be left to BS 5 179, ‘Guide to Operation and Evaluation of Quality
chance and this is true even with products for household
and daily use. To ensure proper quality of product at Assurance Systems’. This was upgraded by BS 5750 in
six parts. To ensure consistency in all standards and to
every stage. therefore. it is imperative to introduce quality make them universal a technical committee, TC/I 76, of
systems from planning to various manufacturing activities, the International Standards Organization (ISO), Switzer-
to guarantee the required quality of product. A good quality land, was entrusted with the task of drawing up such a
system would identify areas such as packaging, storage
and transportation methods and set norms to guarantee set of standards. They have by now introduced the
following standards:
safe delivery of the product to its destination.
Quality is thus a part of an organization’s policy and
objectives. and is applicable to those who wish to achieve IS0 8402 - Quality Vocabulary.
product excellence, through self-discipline and quality IS0 9000 - Quality Management and Quality Assurance
assurance activities. It aims at Standard. Guidelines for selection of
Standards in the series and use of the same
Better product reliability for the management of quality systems.
More customer confidence by relieving them from con- IS0 9001 - Model for Quality Assurance in Design or
stant checks to ensure the required quality and timely Development, Production. Installation and
delivery. particularly for custom-built and engineering Servicing.
products. In a third party order, the quality systems Applicable to those who design, produce,
would also help to fulfil the customer’s own contractual install and service their products or carry
obligations to ii client. out such activities.