Helsinki University of Technology • Department of Industrial Engineering and Management

QUALITY MANAGEMENT - BASIC COURSE TU-22.1302

Paul Lillrank

2. QUALITY ENGINEERING / TECHNICAL QUALITY

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

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 KEY AREAS OF TECHNICAL QUALITY

Tolerances

Process capability

Statistical Process Control (SPC)

Acceptance sampling

Design of experiments (DOE)

Metrology, inspection and testing

Reliability engineering

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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

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 QUALITY IN A CLOSED SYSTEM

CUSTOMER QUALITY DESIGN PRODUCTION QUALITY

QUALITY
Idea Evaluation,
Production Process feedback,
Values Generalized 1 technology configuration learning
3 market 12
preferences 2 9 13
not articulated
articulated DESIGN PRODUCTION OUTPUT
4
Requirements 10
11
5
7 8 Statistical Inspection
Customer
expectations Technical Process
system Control
constraints
6
Needs
Regulatory
constraints

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:
If requirements and designs are clear and uncontested, quality management
can be seen as a (semi) closed system. Inputs are restricted to predetermined
input channels, and the process is controlled and stabilized.

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 THE WORLD OF TECHNICAL QUALITY

Design quality: Quality as conformance

•Robust, to specifications
•Reliable,…

REQUIREMENTS ARTIFACT
assumed Sufficiently
to be DESIGN PRODUCTION OUTPUT
described in
sufficiently specifications
known
Process quality:
•Statistical control
•Process capability /
minimized variation

Quality as conformance
to requirements

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:
Technical quality operates on the assumption that requirements are set,
consensual and non-controversial.
Design quality is the relation between the intentions of the designer and the
actual design. It can be described in various terms, such as
• performance
• manufacturability
• robustness (sensitivity to disturbances)
• reliability
• durability
• parsimony (simple, no unnecessary complexity)
• applicability (modularity)

Production quality is the relationship between specifications and actual

output. It can be described in terms of
• variation in relation to targets
• yield (first-pass-yield)
• disturbances, unscheduled stoppages

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 TECHNICAL QUALITY IS A CLOSED SYSTEM

Semi-closed system

REQUIREMENTS,
OUTPUT AS
SPECIFICATIONS, PRODUCTION
DESIGNS,PROMISES DELIVERED

Technical quality
• objective
• measurable

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:
Quality is essentially a concept describing relations:
• how things are and how they should be
• what was intended and what came out
• what was required and what was delivered
• what was planned and how it turned out

Quality can basically be divided into

• customer quality or negotiated quality, which aims at capturing customer /
market / system / regulatory requirements
• design quality, which translates requirements and/or ideas into designs,
• production quality, which aims at error-free execution.

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 TECHNICAL QUALITY SOLUTIONS

REQUIREMENTS,
OUTPUT AS
SPECIFICATIONS, PRODUCTION
DESIGNS,PROMISES DELIVERED

Define
requirements Inspect
Close systeme
from external Standardize
disturbances processes,

Quality assurance systems

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:
The improvement of technical quality uses four basic approaches:
• requirements should be defined with sufficient detail and accuracy
• production systems should be closed from unwarranted external influences
and disturbances
• processes should be standardized so that similar tasks are performed in a
similar way each time
• inspection to verify achieved quality. As processes stabilize, the amount of
inspection can be decreased.

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 THE ASSUMPTIONS OF TECHNICAL QUALITY

Applies to artifacts

Closed or semi-closed systems

Repetitive, routine production

Targets are known and consensual / a-political

• Once established, not subject to negotiation

Deviations from target caused by variation

Variation associated with loss function

Variation controllable / predictable

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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

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 CONFORMANCE QUALITY WAS THE KEY TO
MASS PRODUCTION
Productivity
improves
Craft Production
Each component Control of Interchangeable
little different, put Component
together by skilled variation parts manufacturing
fitters
& assembly

Scale economics
Specialization
Division of labor
High productivity
Low productivity High salaries
Low salaries Low prices Control &
High prices coordination
The Productivity
Revolution
Class struggle
The Middle Class and
Violent Affluent Society Repetitive
revolution
jobs

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

Mass production is based on the concept of interchangeable parts.

In craft production, products were built one by one from parts with large variation
in their dimensions. They needed to be fitted together by skilled craftsmen.
Obviously productivity was low and only the very rich could afford sophisticated
products.

Interchangeability requires that the variation in key dimensions of mating parts stays
within reasonable tolerance limits. If parts stay within tolerances, they will fit
together without extra effort; assembly can be standardized and performed by low-
skilled (and cheap) labor.

Parts production can drive specialization further and benefit from economies
of scale. Specialization is taken further to the smallest units of operation.

Centralized control is required to coordinate all the specialized tasks.

As a consequence, productivity improves greatly and allows higher incomes.

Simultaneously, work becomes monotonous and workers loose control of their
jobs. These hardships are compensated for by higher standards of living and
various social services.

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 REQUIREMENTS ARE EXPRESSED AS
TARGETS AND TOLERANCES
Target

Exact values Tolerances Taguchi’s

loss function

A lot
of loss
Amount
of loss
No loss

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

Pre-industrial quality was based on the idea of exact target values, supported
by the notions of exact, Newtonian science.
As variation was present, a lot of products had to be rejected or retrofitted.
Therefore the idea of tolerances was introduces, based on the idea of “good
enough”. If actual values fit within tolerances, they are accepted.
Tolerance design depends of the requirements, and the constraints of
technology and materials. An economic trade-off is involved: very tight
tolerances reduce variation in accepted components and final output and
thereby quality, but causes economic losses as the amount of rejects increase.
The classical text “The Economic Control of the Quality of Manufactured
Product”, by Walter Shewhart, dealt with this problem.
Taguchi’s loss function does not accept the economic trade-off, but claims
that all deviations cause losses in proportion to the square of the distance
from target. Therefore quality engineering should always aim at tighter
tolerances.

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 PRODUCTS HAVE QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS

A four-color ball-point pen has A four-color ball-point pen has

several technical characteristics. several functional charachteristics:
• ink flow
spring • balance
4 x container • mechanical reliability
4 x ball
4 x ink • durability
4 x tip
2 x body
èCritical to Quality (CTQ)
2 x clip characteristics must be specified
release 4 x button

4 x spring
grip Technical
Parts: 31, of which moving 18 * * * * * *
Dynamic interfaces: 21 •
Static interfaces: 6
Colours: 8
Functional ••
Materials: 7 •
•

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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

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 TYPES OF QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS

R SPECIFICATION
E • targets & tolerances
Q • detailed description
U
I CHARACTERISTICS
• structural NONCONFORMITY
R
E • mechanical
• chemical MEASUREMENT NONCONFORMING
M UNITS
E • sensory •variables
N • time •attributes
T • ethical,…
S

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:
Quality characteristics are the exact, measurable requirements of a product or
service.

Measurements can be by variables showing continuous values (size), or

attributes, that are counted (number of scratches on a surface).

Nonconformity means a situation where one characteristics does not fulfill

requirements.
A nonconforming unit means a product with several characteristics and
components, where the number or amount of defects is large enough to cause
rejection of the product.

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 THE QUALITY MANAGEMENT QUESTIONS
Accept

Have we done the job correctly ? Output Criteria

• detection of errors Reject
• reactive control

Can we do the job correctly ? Process

• is the process within acceptable limits ? capability
• do we have the capability / resources
to do what is required ?
UCL

Are we doing the job correctly ? Control

• is the process staying within chart: identify
acceptable limits specific causes
LCL

Could we do the job better ? Improvement

• improve process capability of system: work
and the loss function on common
causes
Are we doing the correct job ? Process
• any unnecessary steps in the reengineering
process ?

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

Quality management starts with defining quality: characteristics and their

targets and tolerances (=acceptance criteria).

Process capability = A measure of the capability of a process achieved by

assessing the statistical state of control of the process. The amount of
random variation is compared with the tolerances allowed by the
specification. (See Oakland’s textbook for details.)

Control chart = A graphical method of recording results in order to readily

distinguish between random and assignable causes of variation.

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 INSPECTION IS A PROCESS GATEKEEPER
CTQ characteristics, Acceptance sampling,
tolerances metrology, testing,

Inspection AQL,
Required Specification
methods LTPD, Accept
Quality zero-defect, ...

Process Output Criteria

Reject

Repair Criteria

Scrap
QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

Required quality is specified into Critical to Quality (CTQ) characteristics

with target values and tolerances.

Various inspection methods can be used. Acceptance sampling is done in

cases where 100% inspection would be technically or economically not
feasible, for example because testing would destroy the product or it would
be cost and time consuming. Sampling frequency and criteria may also
depend on the past performance of the process.

Inspection can be performed at the end of a process and / or at various

stages in the process.

Acceptance / rejection criteria must be determined:

Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) = the highest proportion defective that is
considered acceptable as a long-run average. AQL focuses on producer
risk.
Lot Tolerance Percent Defective (LTPD) = the highest proportion defective
that is considered acceptable for a given lot. Focus on consumer risk.

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 A PRODUCTION PROCESS HAS MANY SOURCES
OF VARIATION

Operators Methods
Materials Measurement
instruments

Input Process Output

Inspector
Tools performance
Machines Environment

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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

Variation exists in systems and, if stable, it can be predicted. Predictable

variation can be used to assess risk levels and allocate resources to handle
inevitable quality problems, for example by establishing repair and maintenance
facilities, and flexible crisis management capacity. Predictable variation thus
affects pricing.

Most of the variation comes from the system itself.

Management is responsible for the system.

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 PROCESS CAPABILITY (1): ACCURACY AND PRECISION
First shot

Tom Dick
Four more shots Adjustment of gun sight

Tom Dick Tom Dick

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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

Accuracy = ability to hit target

Precision = the degree of spread

Distinction (accuracy or precision problem) may be assessed only by groups of values,

not individual ones. In a repetitive process, no conclusions can be drawn from one
datapoint.

Adjustment based on one result may worsen the performance (=tampering)

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 PROCESS CAPABILITY (2): PROCESS VARIABILITY
(2) (4)

Good
AA
CC
CC
UU
RR
AA
CC (1) (3)
YY

Bad

Bad Good
PRECISION
PRECISION
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

1) Both precision and accuracy bad. The average is off target, but within
tolerances, however, variance is broad and part of it is beyond tolerances.

2) Accuracy has improved: the mean is on target but the variance is large.

3) Precision is good, variance is small but the average is off target.

4) Both precision and accuracy OK.

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 THE CONTROL CHART
Upper action
line
Upper warning
line

= Process
X mean
Lower warning
line
Lower action
line

UAL
UWL
_
R Mean
range
LWL
LAL
Sample no. (time)

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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

The control chart is the basic tool for working with variation.

The process mean (x bar) should be equal to the target value.

Warning and action lines are calculated as 2, and 3 standard deviations,
respectively. Averages from a sample are plotted on the chart.

In order to control for possible increases in spread within samples,

the range is also calculated and plotted.

Control charts can also be calculated for attribute data.

There are several rules for analyzing and interpreting control charts. See the
textbook (Oakland & Hollowell: Statistical Process Control) for details.

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 VARIATION HAS COMMON AND SPECIFIC CAUSES

Rejects are caused by variation that strays beyond acceptable limits.

The germ theory: variation is everywhere, but not all of it is harmful.

Common causes: random variation than comes from “the system”

explains about 85 to 95% of problems
• All process parameters have some variation
• A process is under statistical control (=predictable) when only
common cause variation is present
à System changes required for improvement

Specific causes: non-random, assignable causes

• Unpredictable events originating from outside the system
• Not part of the process as designed
à Specific, local corrective action.

SPC should help identify common and specific causes.

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

The discovery of specific and common causes of variation had a significant

impact on management thinking.

“Germ theory”: the discovery of bacteria as causes of illness; but bacteria

can be found everywhere, but not all of it is harmful.

Workers can be held responsible only for a small portion of problems,

chiefly those coming from specific causes.
Most problems come from “the system” and system design is management’s
job. Therefore managers are chiefly responsible for quality.

As a rule-of-the-thumb, in manufacturing at least 85% or problems are system -

related, the rest have other, specific causes.

The system’s capability include hardware, but also organizational issues, such
as training and standardization.

See Deming’s example of the Willing Workers.

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 STRATEGIES FOR REDUCING VARIATION

UNSTABLE PROCESS STABLE PROCESS

SPECIAL CAUSES COMMON CAUSES

• Get timely data so that special • Stratify: sort data into categories,
causes are recognized quickly look for patterns
• Put in place an immediate remedy • Experiment - Make planned changes
and learn from the effects (DOE)
• Search for the cause - what
was different when the error happened, • Disaggregate: divide the process
ask 5 times WHY into component pieces and manage
the pieces.
• Develop a longer-term remedy,
look into higher-level systems

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:

The control chart makes it possible to distinguish between common and special
causes, even though the visible errors look similar to the naked eye in both
cases.

The distinction is important, since special and common cases require different
approaches to data collection, analysis and action.

A common cause can turn into a specific, if its mechanisms are discovered.

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 THE IMPACT OF QUALITY ENGINEERING
ON MANAGEMENT
Control chart
UCL
95% of quality Who built Managers!
problems are by the system ?
common causes Don’t blame
workers !
Eliminate assignable Who knows
causes of variation best?
LCL (the trivial many)

System
Quality assurance
upstreams ! Decentralized
quality
responsibility
Everybody’s
participation in
continuous
improvement

QM-BC 2 Q Eng Department of Industrial Engineering and Management ¤ Helsinki University of Technology
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© Paul Lillrank 2005

Notes:
Microeconomics and several variants of the Theory of the Firm assume, that
workers, when feeling that they haven’t succeeded in bargaining for
sufficiently high wages, reduce the quality and quantity of their labor. This is
called shirking.
Various methods, such as monitoring, piece-rate pay, moralistic exhortion,
profit-sharing shemes and poster campaigns have been used to reduce
shirking.

Deming concluded from the theory of variation, that shirking, at least if

measured by quality defects, can’t be primarily caused by workers’ actions. If
up to 90 percent of quality errors arise from common causes, the way the
production system is designed and operates under normal conditions,
blaming workers is neither correct nor justified.
There observations aligned qulity management with various management
lines of thinking, such as the Human relations, Socio technical systems theory
and participative management –schools.

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