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Quality Management
in
Plastics Processing
This page intentionally left blank
Quality Management
in
Plastics Processing
Strategies, targets, techniques
and tools

Robin Kent
Tangram Technology Ltd
  
 
 
 
Elsevier
Radarweg 29, PO Box 211, 1000 AE Amsterdam, Netherlands
The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford OX5 1GB, United Kingdom
50 Hampshire Street, 5th Floor, Cambridge, MA 02139, United States

© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
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This book and the individual contributions contained in it are protected under copyright by the Publisher (other than as may
be noted herein).

Notices
Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience broaden our
understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical treatment may become necessary.
Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any
information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods they should be
mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility.

To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any liability for any
injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or
operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-0-0-8102-082- 1

For Information on all Elsevier publications visit our website at https://www.elsevier.com

 Contents
Preface ...................................................................................... 1

1 Introduction to quality management ............................................ 3

1.1 Where we are going........................................................................................................... 4
1.2 The drivers for quality management ................................................................................... 6
1.3 What is quality? ................................................................................................................. 8
1.4 A short history of quality management.............................................................................. 10
1.5 Quality management and not simply quality control .......................................................... 12
1.6 The importance of quality costs........................................................................................ 14
1.7 Performance indicators .................................................................................................... 16
1.8 Quality management - where are you now?...................................................................... 18
1.9 Financial management - where are you now? .................................................................. 20
1.10 Technical management - where are you now?.................................................................. 22
1.11 Awareness and information - where are you now?............................................................ 24
Key tips ........................................................................................................................................ 26

2 Organising for quality management ............................................ 27

2.1 Getting started ................................................................................................................. 28
2.2 Who is responsible?......................................................................................................... 30
2.3 Organising for quality assurance and control .................................................................... 32
2.4 Quality assurance and control organisation - where are you now?.................................... 34
2.5 Organising for quality improvement .................................................................................. 36
2.6 Quality circles .................................................................................................................. 38
2.7 Quality improvement teams - 1......................................................................................... 40
2.8 Quality improvement teams - 2......................................................................................... 42
2.9 Quality improvement organisation - where are you now?.................................................. 44
2.10 Quality improvement projects .......................................................................................... 46
2.11 Quality improvement projects - where are you now?........................................................ 48
Key tips ........................................................................................................................................ 50

3 Targeting and controlling the cost of poor quality .......................... 51

3.1 Quality costs - overview ................................................................................................... 52
3.2 Quality costs - the models ................................................................................................ 54
3.3 Quality costs - PAF model................................................................................................ 56
3.4 Quality costs - process cost model ................................................................................... 58
3.5 Quality costs - ABC model ............................................................................................... 60
3.6 Quality costs in plastics processing .................................................................................. 62
3.7 Starting out ...................................................................................................................... 64
3.8 Integrating quality costs into the accounts ........................................................................ 66
3.9 Setting targets.................................................................................................................. 68
3.10 Reporting quality costs..................................................................................................... 70
3.11 Capital expenditure .......................................................................................................... 72
3.12 Quality costs - where are you now?.................................................................................. 74
3.13 Targeting and controlling - where are you now? ............................................................... 76
Key tips ........................................................................................................................................ 78

4 Quality management systems and standards ................................. 79

4.1 What do you want your QMS to deliver?........................................................................... 80
4.2 Does a QMS deliver quality?............................................................................................ 82
4.3 The 7 quality management principles and Plan-Do-Check-Act.......................................... 84
4.4 The process approach - an overview................................................................................ 86
4.5 Manufacturing processes - a global view .......................................................................... 88
4.6 Manufacturing processes - a detailed view ....................................................................... 90
4.7 An overview of ISO 9001.................................................................................................. 92
4.8 Organisation context requirements of ISO 9001 ............................................................... 94
4.9 Leadership requirements of ISO 9001 .............................................................................. 96
4.10 Planning requirements of ISO 9001.................................................................................. 98
4.11 Support requirements of ISO 9001-1 .............................................................................. 100
 4.12 Support requirements of ISO 9001-2 .............................................................................. 102
4.13 Operation requirements of ISO 9001-1 ........................................................................... 104
4.14 Operation requirements of ISO 9001-2 ........................................................................... 106
4.15 Performance evaluation requirements of ISO 9001......................................................... 108
4.16 Improvement requirements of ISO 9001 ......................................................................... 110
4.17 Documented information ................................................................................................ 112
4.18 Quality planning ............................................................................................................. 114
4.19 Risk-based thinking........................................................................................................ 116
4.20 Internal auditing ............................................................................................................. 118
4.21 External auditing ............................................................................................................ 120
4.22 Quality management standards - where are you now? ................................................... 122
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 124

5 Statistical process control (SPC)............................................... 125

5.1 What is SPC? ................................................................................................................ 126
5.2 Variable and attribute data, special and random variation ............................................... 128
5.3 Sampling and the normal distribution.............................................................................. 130
5.4 Can we make it OK? - capability and the normal distribution........................................... 132
5.5 Capability - spread ......................................................................................................... 134
5.6 Capability - location........................................................................................................ 136
5.7 Are we making it OK? - variables and attributes control charts........................................ 138
5.8 Variables control charts - range and average.................................................................. 140
5.9 Using a simple variables control chart ............................................................................ 142
5.10 Range chart alarms - normal variation and points outside the control limits..................... 144
5.11 Range chart alarms - runs (above/below) and runs (up/down) ........................................ 146
5.12 Range chart alarms - 2/3 of points in middle and 1/3 of points in the outer...................... 148
5.13 Range chart alarms - other alarms ................................................................................. 150
5.14 Average chart alarms - range control and points outside control limits ............................ 152
5.15 Average chart alarms - runs (above/below) and runs (up/down)...................................... 154
5.16 Average chart alarms - 2/3 of points in middle and 1/3 of points in the outer ................... 156
5.17 Other control charts for variables.................................................................................... 158
5.18 Variables control charts for individual measurements ..................................................... 160
5.19 Attributes control charts.................................................................................................. 162
5.20 Using attributes control charts ........................................................................................ 164
5.21 Control charts - where are you now? ............................................................................. 166
5.22 The process capability study .......................................................................................... 168
5.23 Improving process capability .......................................................................................... 170
5.24 Capability studies - where are you now? ........................................................................ 172
5.25 Implementing SPC in plastics processing - the process .................................................. 174
5.26 Implementing SPC in plastics processing - a simple approach........................................ 176
5.27 Evaluating the effectiveness of SPC............................................................................... 178
5.28 Implementation - where are you now? ............................................................................ 180
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 182

6 Acceptance sampling ............................................................ 183

6.1 Sampling systems approaches to quality........................................................................ 184
6.2 Sampling systems - general ........................................................................................... 186
6.3 Sampling systems - the choices ..................................................................................... 188
6.4 Using sampling systems................................................................................................. 190
6.5 Sampling plans - the details ........................................................................................... 192
6.6 Sampling systems - where are you now?........................................................................ 194
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 196

7 Tools for quality management and improvement.......................... 197

7.1 Quality management and improvement tools.................................................................. 198
7.2 Flow charts .................................................................................................................... 200
7.3 Check sheets ................................................................................................................. 202
7.4 Cause and effect charts (root cause analysis) ................................................................ 204
7.5 Pareto analysis .............................................................................................................. 206
7.6 Histograms .................................................................................................................... 208
7.7 Scatter diagrams............................................................................................................ 210
7.8 Relations diagrams ....................................................................................................... 212
7.9 Tree diagrams................................................................................................................ 214
 7.10 Affinity diagrams ........................................................................................................... 216
7.11 Matrix diagrams ............................................................................................................. 218
7.12 Arrow diagrams.............................................................................................................. 220
7.13 Process decision program charts ................................................................................... 222
7.14 Quality tools - where are you now? ................................................................................ 224
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 226

8 Design quality management.................................................... 227

8.1 What makes a quality design?........................................................................................ 228
8.2 The product design specification .................................................................................... 230
8.3 Material and process selection ....................................................................................... 232
8.4 Basic design rules for plastics products.......................................................................... 234
8.5 Design for manufacture.................................................................................................. 236
8.6 Design for assembly....................................................................................................... 238
8.7 Design for recycling and sustainability............................................................................ 240
8.8 Design fundamentals - where are you now? ................................................................... 242
8.9 The APQP design process ............................................................................................. 244
8.10 Quality function deployment (QFD) - the house of quality ............................................... 246
8.11 Design FMEA - 1............................................................................................................ 248
8.12 Design FMEA - 2............................................................................................................ 250
8.13 Design and other drawings for plastics parts .................................................................. 252
8.14 Plastics parts and tolerances.......................................................................................... 254
8.15 Designing quality into the product - ‘off-line’ quality control (DOE) .................................. 256
8.16 Design tools - where are you now?................................................................................. 258
8.17 Design teams and processes - where are you now? ....................................................... 260
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 262

9 Raw materials quality management .......................................... 263

9.1 The basics ..................................................................................................................... 264
9.2 The materials team and raw material quality................................................................... 266
9.3 The supplier management process................................................................................. 268
9.4 Supplier assessment - the basics ................................................................................... 270
9.5 Supplier assessment - the extras ................................................................................... 272
9.6 Quality improvement with suppliers ................................................................................ 274
9.7 Purchasing specifications............................................................................................... 276
9.8 Price and cost at suppliers ............................................................................................. 278
9.9 Purchasing quality - where are you now? ....................................................................... 280
9.10 Assessing inwards goods............................................................................................... 282
9.11 AQL/SPC at inwards goods............................................................................................ 284
9.12 Resin control - as delivered............................................................................................ 286
9.13 Resin control - test pieces and products ......................................................................... 288
9.14 Raw materials control - where are you now? .................................................................. 290
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 292

10 Processing quality management............................................... 293

10.1 Process design and development................................................................................... 294
10.2 Process and machinery FMEA ....................................................................................... 296
10.3 Control planning and control plans ................................................................................. 298
10.4 Process setting .............................................................................................................. 300
10.5 Product and process validation ...................................................................................... 302
10.6 Pre-control (zone charts)................................................................................................ 304
10.7 Inspection, pre-control or control charts?........................................................................ 306
10.8 Engineering process control (EPC)................................................................................. 308
10.9 Integrating SPC and EPC............................................................................................... 310
10.10 Injection moulding - scientific moulding........................................................................... 312
10.11 Injection moulding - multivariate analysis........................................................................ 314
10.12 Injection moulding - managing variables......................................................................... 316
10.13 Injection moulding - managing attributes ........................................................................ 318
10.14 Extrusion - managing variables ...................................................................................... 320
10.15 Extrusion - using variables data...................................................................................... 322
10.16 Extrusion - managing attributes...................................................................................... 324
10.17 Blow moulding ............................................................................................................... 326
10.18 Thermoforming .............................................................................................................. 328
 10.19 Rotational moulding ....................................................................................................... 330
10.20 Processing systems - where are you now?..................................................................... 332
10.21 Processing - where are you now?................................................................................... 334
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 336

11 Operations quality management .............................................. 337

11.1 Measuring sales quality.................................................................................................. 338
11.2 Improving sales quality................................................................................................... 340
11.3 Accounting quality.......................................................................................................... 342
11.4 General office quality ..................................................................................................... 344
11.5 Operations - where are you now?................................................................................... 346
Key tips ...................................................................................................................................... 348

Appendices .............................................................................. 349

Appendix 1 - Standard SPC formulae for variables and attributes charts ...................................... 350
Appendix 2 - Standard SPC constants for variables charts........................................................... 352
Appendix 3 - Sample standard SPC chart for variables (mean and range).................................... 353
Appendix 4 - Pz table for % nonconforming .................................................................................. 354
Appendix 5 - Precision and accuracy ........................................................................................... 355
Appendix 6 - Measurement systems analysis............................................................................... 356
Appendix 7 - Evaluating measurement systems........................................................................... 358

Postscript ................................................................................ 360

Abbreviations and acronyms ......................................................... 361

Preface
This Workbook is a companion to two
previous books entitled respectively ‘Cost
Management in Plastics Processing’ and
‘Energy Management in Plastics
Processing’. The first of these books dealt
briefly with quality management but only
as part of the general topic of cost
management. Quality management is,
however a vital topic, and deserves more
attention than was possible within the
constraints of a book on cost management.
Whilst the topic of quality management
has been dealt with in many other books, I
felt that the treatment in most of these fell
short of what was actually needed by the
industry. The books tend to fall into two
broad categories:
• How to achieve Quality Systems
Certification, i.e. ‘ISO 9001 in 3 easy
lessons’ or similar.
• Statistical handbooks which use high-
level statistics that leave most readers
stranded after the first paragraph.
Neither of these types of books is written
specifically for plastics processors and
many plastics processors were left
wondering where to start on the ‘never-
ending journey’ towards quality
management and improvement.
As with the previous books, this book
provides a structured approach to the
techniques of quality management and
covers the main topics of relevance to
plastics processors. It is a workbook for
practical use and not an academic
textbook. It does not cover all aspects of
the selected topics but focuses on the key
quality management and technical issues
Preface
for each topic. Each topic is dealt with in a
single 2-page spread and most can be read
independently of each other - this is not a
‘cover-to-cover’ book. It should be easily
understood and the actions recommended
should be easily undertaken by most
people in the plastics processing industry.
My own introduction to quality
management was short, swift and brutal.
In 1983, whilst listening to a presentation
by a major motor manufacturer on quality
the presenter stated that every supplier
was expected to have a statistically
trained quality professional on their staff.
I turned to my boss and said ‘Do we have
one of those?’ He looked at me and said
emphatically ‘Yes’. I was both naïve and
confused and said ‘Who?’, whereupon he
looked back at me and said ‘You’.
I would like to thank my friends and
colleagues Kevin Chandler and Iain Brown
for their comments on the draft of this
book. The errors are mine alone - Kevin
and Iain were probably right!
Finally, I would like to dedicate this book
to our children, Emma and Matthew, they
are our two greatest achievements in life
and we are intensely proud of them.
Robin Kent
Hitchin, 2016
rkent@tangram.co.uk
www.tangram.co.uk
Note: Additional resources are available
at www.tangram.co.uk/quality.html
1
This page intentionally left blank

2
Chapter 1
Introduction to quality
management

Quality management was one of the most substituted with lots of forms but little
discussed topics in manufacturing real management information or
industry in the late 20th century. Many involvement. In this book we will go back
plastics processors embarked to basics to provide the essentials for
enthusiastically on the pursuit of the ‘Holy plastics processors in an easily accessible
Grail’ of quality and many companies are format.
still trying to make sense of the confusion This chapter looks at quality management
surrounding quality. The results for many in a broad sense to put the problems in
companies have been disappointing and perspective and to allow actions to be
they are still confused about what quality effectively targeted. It is designed to
really means and how they achieve it. provide the essentials of the management
In a sense, this was because the discussion framework for quality management.
was diverted by the mechanics of Readers should not be tempted to rush
implementing formal quality systems such into the practical aspects of quality
as ISO 9001, either in the mistaken belief management without first understanding
that these would deliver quality or simply the management framework.
to conform to the requirements of
suppliers or specifications. The
implementation of statistical methods that
could actually deliver quality through
effective process control became secondary
to the filling out of forms to satisfy the
requirements of the systems.
Thirty years ago, quality management and
statistical process control were the ‘in
things’ and there was great interest and
activity in the subjects but today little has
really changed at the grass roots level.
At many of the plastics processors that I
visit, quality management still consists of
a few final inspectors and the mention of
statistical process control still draws blank
looks.
This really has to change if you are going
to be a successful plastics processor in the
future.
At many sites, the real basics of quality “Of course we believe in quality - look at
seem to have been missed and have been all the inspectors we employ.”

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 3

1.1 Where we are going
The destination
One problem at many sites is that they
know that they want to have quality but
they really have no idea of the steps that
they have to take to get there. They set
off on the journey to quality with no real
planning about where they want to go,
why they want to get there (if anywhere),
how they are going to go about it and
how they will measure the progress they
are making (if any).
Some sites set off by installing a ‘quality
system’ (of any flavour) in the faint hope
that this will somehow magically deliver
quality, some install complex SPC
systems, some increase the numbers of
inspectors and others simply subject the
quality manager to various arcane
management tortures.
All of these partial and disjointed
measures will inevitably fail. Some will
fail more miserably than others, but all
are eventually doomed (particularly
subjecting the quality manager to
management torture - as I am sure some
of the readers will know from direct
experience).
Even if a site has an operating and
relatively successful quality system,
there is always a need to improve quality
and every site needs a plan (a road-map)
to define where they are and where they
want to be. Quality is often poorly
defined (see Section 1.3) but still needs a
road-map for the actions to be taken. The
figure opposite shows some of the major
areas, the processes and tools used, the
benefits from using the processes and
tools and the overall results of a properly
functioning quality system.
This is about the whole
company
A major issue is that quality is still
sometimes seen as a ‘bolt-on’ to the other
operations of the company. It is seen as a
‘good thing’ for the good times but
optional in the bad times. The reality is
that ‘quality’ needs to permeate the
complete operation of the company. It is
not a ‘production’ issue, it is a
management issue for the whole
company.
4 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management
Collis Potter Huntington (see sidebar) “Alice: Would you
was determined that the Newport News tell me, please,
which way I ought
shipyard would be known the world over
to go from here?
for ‘good ships’ and this philosophy has
The Cheshire Cat:
been consistent since 1886. The company
That depends a
is still a major supplier of ships to the US
good deal on where
Navy even when other shipyards around you want to get to.
the world have failed - the focus on ‘good
Alice: I don't much
ships’ has been the ethos to drive the
care where.
company forward. How many other
companies could make such a statement The Cheshire Cat:
Then it doesn't
and live by it? How many other
companies have been around since 1886? much matter which
way you go.
Focusing on profit alone may make a
Alice: ...So long as I
company profitable in the short-term but,
get somewhere.
as too many companies have found out,
The Cheshire Cat:
does not guarantee that the company will
Oh, you're sure to
survive in the long-term. Focusing on
do that, if only you
quality will not only deliver ‘good ships’
walk long enough.”
but also sustainable long-term profits.
This means that companies need to see Lewis Carroll,
quality not as a cost but as a benefit and Alice in
Wonderland
to realise that improving quality can also
improve profits in both the short and the
long-term.
The road-map
The road-map identifies the wide range
of skills and activities that are necessary
to achieve quality and even this is
limited by space. The road-map shows
the type of things that you will have to do
to really achieve quality. It is not simply
about systems or SPC or any other single
thing. Specifically, it is not only about
production. It is about the whole
company and it is about a mind-set that
says ‘quality is our guiding principle’ and
that this principle can deliver both
sustainable profits and continued
employment.
The road-map covers all areas of a
company’s operations from people (and
their training) through product design,
sales/marketing and production. The
implementation of an effective quality
management system (see Chapter 4) “We shall build
impacts every aspect of a company’s good ships here; at
a profit if we can, at
operations. This is not for the faint-
a loss if we must,
hearted but the rewards are more than but always good
worth the effort. ships.”
• Tip - None of the actions in the road-
Collis Potter
map are ever completed. Get used to Huntington,
continual improvement. Newport News
Shipbuilding
The quality road-map
Improved quality can deliver many benefits but it needs a road-map of the available processes and tools to get
the best results.

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 5

1.2 The drivers for quality management

What do we want? buy are of good quality. They do not set “The race for quality
out to, or knowingly buy, poor-quality has no finish line -
In the last 30 years there has been a great so technically it is
products. Therefore, they will be
deal of discussion about the benefits of more like a death
dissatisfied if the product they buy is of
quality and why we should want it. march”.
poor quality (and they will tell their
Everybody agrees that we want quality;
friends). Customer satisfaction will Poster caption
however it is defined. from
improve if a product is of superior quality
The only issues are how we get there and to what the customer expected. www.despair.com.
what happens along the way. The road-
map (see Section 1.1) provides the Improved sales
directions and the tasks and should be Improved customer satisfaction inevitably
used to map the overall process. leads to increased sales as customers
No manager at any company wants to return, purchase more products and,
force or allow his employees to produce better still, tell their friends. The most
poor-quality goods and, equally, very few powerful and cheapest sales method of all
employees of any company deliberately is a recommendation from a satisfied
produce poor-quality goods. It is clearly in customer.
everybody’s interests to produce quality
Greater market share
products.
Satisfied customers will tell their friends
So what goes wrong along the way and
and customers, they will return (and bring
why does it seem so hard to produce
their friends) and will increase market
products that are of acceptable quality?
share.
What are the barriers and why does it “Price is
seem all so hard? Lower operating costs negotiable.
One of the problems that many companies Reducing the ‘cost of quality’ (see Chapter Quality is not.”
face is that they interpret quality as a 3) can dramatically reduce operational
Frank Price
single issue and attempt to improve
quality by fixing a single variable. In fact,
quality is affected by a range of variables
and processes. All of these variables and Better
processes must be aligned to produce a products
quality product or service. Even worse is
Improved Improved
the confusion about what quality employee customer
management really is (see Section 1.5). satisfaction satisfaction

What quality management

delivers
Good quality management can deliver Fewer Quality Improved
exceptional benefits to companies but even problems management sales
worse, poor quality management will
quickly destroy a company’s reputation
and a company. This is as much about
retaining what you have as about gaining
Improved Greater
something. Improved quality management profit market share
will deliver:
Lower
Better products operating
Better-quality products are an inevitable costs
result of good quality management. This is
what it is designed to do. However you
define ‘quality’, a better-quality product is
The benefits of quality management
a better product. The results of improved quality management produce benefits
across a wide range of areas. Quality is a ‘motherhood and apple
Improved customer satisfaction pie’ issue. Nobody wants bad quality at any time. You don’t and
Customers assume that the products they your customers don’t - so what are you doing about it?

6 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

costs by reducing scrap, reworked ‘why did you make it wrong in the first Is it really that
materials and external costs. place?’ important?
Improved profit If any one of these issues is not adequately
dealt with then it is impossible to deliver a Quality is what
Reduced operational costs will increase high-quality product. In this Workbook, determines whether
profits for any company even if sales you will be here
we will deal with these issues specifically next year or not.
remain the same. from the viewpoint of plastics processing.
Fewer problems
Most of the time we spend at work is
dealing with problems caused by poor-
quality products or services. Eliminating
or reducing quality problems leads to staff
who are more productive.
Quality products
Improved employee satisfaction and services deliver
Staff who have quality products to sell, benefits over a
who have fewer customer problems and range of levels and
who have the time to do productive work the race for quality
is truly never-
will be more motivated and more satisfied ending.
in their jobs.

What do you need to deliver

quality?
To deliver quality, plastics processors need
to focus on the issues of:
Organisation
Who cares and
Processors need to be organised correctly
what do they
to deliver quality. Without the correct
care about?
organisation, including top management
support, achieving quality will be • What are the
impossible. customer’s three
main concerns?
Systems • What are the
Systems (management and process) are an company’s three
essential part of achieving quality and main concerns?
systems must not only be effective in • What are the
quality terms but also cost-effective. employee’s three
main concerns?
Tools
The tools used to deliver quality are
fundamental and independent of the
industry sector. Many of the tools are
based on statistics but most are easily
understood and applied - do not be
frightened by the statistics.
• Tip - Using the wrong tools will not
deliver quality and will not be cost-
effective.
Culture
Culture is one of the hardest aspects of the
issues because it is one of the many ‘soft’
issues that companies must deal with in
operations. Cultural issues are one of the
main reasons that quality programmes What do we need to deliver quality?
fail - the management cannot make the Quality is not delivered by meeting only one requirement. The
change from blaming the quality only way to deliver quality is to meet all of the requirements. If
department for ‘letting this stuff out the any one of the requirements is missing then ‘good’ quality will not
door’ to asking the production department be delivered.

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 7

1.3 What is quality?
Defining quality
Quality means many different things to
different people and the apparently simple
question ‘What is quality?’ is not always
easy to answer.
When most people are asked to name a
‘quality car’ they will initially nominate an
expensive car. This is due to the common
confusion between ‘expensive’ and ‘quality’
and the linking of the two. When asked
how they would rate an expensive car that
always broke down then they will
reconsider the question.
The reality is that an expensive car is not
always a quality car. Price is a vital factor
in assessing quality because we do not
expect the same features or performance
from a low-cost car. Our perception of
quality is inevitably linked to the cost of
the product and we always link quality
and cost.
There are, in fact, a multitude of
definitions of ‘quality’ (see top right) and a
company can choose the one that best
suits their needs. It is also important to
realise that the definition of quality is not
static, it is always transitory - the highest
quality product of today can be an ‘also-
ran’ product of tomorrow because of
changes in competing products and prices.
As the product and process environment
changes so does the apparent quality of
the product and process.
What was considered a ‘quality’ product in
1995 is definitely no longer a quality
product in 2015.
• Tip - The customer’s view of quality will
change with time. Companies must be
prepared to change too.
Changing definitions
The initial definitions of quality were
generally framed in terms of ‘meeting
specifications’, ‘meeting expectations’ and
‘customer satisfaction’. This was a
challenge in itself for many companies at
the beginning of the quality revolution.
Improvements in quality levels and
changes in society’s expectations have led
to additions to the concept and definition
of process and product quality. Current
definitions look at ‘exceeding’ expectations
and additional areas such as
sustainability and other ‘green’ issues.
8 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management
The definition of quality varies:
What gives complete customer satisfaction.
Fitness for purpose and value for money.
Conformance to requirements.
Conformance to specification.
Value for money = Quality for price.
‘On target with minimum variation’ (Genichi Taguchi).
‘Right First Time’ (Frank Price).
When the customer returns, not the product.
When the product is what the customer wants it to be.
The degree of excellence of something (Oxford Dictionary).
When a product or service meets or exceeds its design
specification.
The whole package, not just what is in the box.
Quality Management
Coordinated activities to direct and control an organisation with
regard to quality (ISO 9000:2005).
Quality Assurance:
Part of quality management focused on providing confidence
that quality requirements will be fulfilled (ISO 9000:2005).
All activities and functions concerned with the attainment of
quality (BS 4778:1991).
The activity of providing, to all concerned, the evidence needed
to establish confidence that the quality function is being
performed adequately (Juran).
Quality Control:
Part of quality management focused on fulfilling quality
requirements (ISO 9000:2005).
The operational techniques and activities that sustain the
product or service quality to specified requirements. It is also
the use of such techniques and activities (BS 4778:1991).
The process through which we measure actual quality
performance, compare it with standards, and act on the
difference (Juran).
Quality Improvement:
Part of quality management focused on increasing the ability to
fulfil quality requirements (ISO 9000:2005).
Quality System:
The organisation and structure, responsibilities, activities,
resources and events that together provide organised
procedures and methods of implementation to ensure the
capability of the organisation to meet quality requirements (BS
4778:1991).
Quality is no longer simply about what is
in the box but considers the whole package
that surrounds the product (and the box).
Our concept of quality is constantly
changing.
The definition of quality is now multi-
dimensional and is based as much on
perception as on reality. It varies with the
person and with the ‘brand’ awareness
(expectations), i.e. you may not be able to
define it but you will know it when you
feel it.
• Tip - For this Workbook we will focus on
the ‘hard’ aspects of product and process
quality and ignore the more
metaphysical aspects of quality.
However we define quality internally, the
only really important definition is that one
used by the customer. They can define
quality however they want and as the
customer this is their right and they
possess the ultimate sanction if the
definitions vary.
• Tip - Be wary about trying to impose
your definition of quality on the
customer. They get to decide.
Who is the customer?
Customers can be either external or
internal. In terms of needing to provide
quality goods and services, it doesn’t
matter much whether they are external or
internal but external customers generally
have a greater freedom of choice in their
supplier.
Internal customers also need quality to
carry out their functions effectively and
one definition of the customer is ‘the next
person or process to use my output’ - this
can obviously be internal or external
depending on where your operation is
located in the supply chain. As an
example, the output of the wages
department is accurate wages and their
customers are all internal, i.e. the staff.
• Tip - Think of your wages as calculated
by the wages department. Is near
enough good enough in your wages? Is
±10% OK? Is ±1% OK? Do you expect a
quality output from the wages
department to their internal customers?
If we expect quality from our internal
suppliers then why shouldn't our
internal customers expect it?
Using this concept of the customer means
that a supplier can also be a customer, e.g.
the performance of the production area
depends on accurate outputs from the
purchasing department in terms of
Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management
specifications, volume and order clarity. My first car was a
• Tip - The fact that somebody is 1966 Ford Anglia
105E which cost
supplying you with goods or services
AUD$400. It ran
does not mean that you can treat them perfectly for 5
badly or provide them with poor years with the only
information and services. expenses being
‘consumables’ as
The customer’s viewpoint such as tyres,
brakes and new
Despite the difficulty in defining ‘quality’, exhaust.
customers always look for quality in their
A truly quality car
suppliers. Many surveys have shown that
for a young driver.
quality is often more important than price
in choosing between external suppliers. It
is interesting to note that a 2013 survey What is the
showed the preferences to be: difference between
internal and
• Quality external
• Price customers?
External customers
• Communication
have more choice.
There is a message there.
Complaints are a
chance to learn
from our mistakes -
do not dismiss
them
‘Our complaints are low so our quality must be good’
In terms of user complaints for washers and television sets only 1
out of 3 dissatisfied buyers complained to the manufacturer
(although all complained to their friends)
Each appliance that fails soon after purchase results in adverse
publicity that turns up to 10 potential customers against the
product.
H.E. Klein. Dun’s Review and Modern industry, 1963.
Technical Assistance Research Programs Inc. (TARP) published
the results of a survey into consumer complaints. This found:
1. A manufacturer hears nothing from 96% of its dissatisfied
customers. However, for every complaint received, there are, on
average, another 26 customers who have a problem with the
company's product or service but who do not voice their
dissatisfaction. Of the 26 potential complaints, no less than 6
would be considered to be complaints of a 'serious' nature.
2. Once a consumer has complained, there is a higher probability
that he will buy again from the company with which he has
experienced problems than there is for a customer who has not
complained and is not satisfied. This applies even when the
complaint has not been resolved to the customer's satisfaction.
3. Of the consumers who complain, 70% will buy again from the
supplier provided that the fault has been rectified. This figure
increases to 95% for those consumers who feel that their
complaint has been settled speedily.
4. On average, consumers who experience a problem tell no less
than 9-10 other people. Every eighth person tells more than 20
other people about the problem which has caused, them
annoyance or distress.
TARP 1991
9
1.4 A short history of quality management

Since the stone age Based on one person making the

Quality has been a manufacturing issue
since the stone age when the manufacture
of tools by ‘flint knapping’ resulted not
only in large amounts of waste but also in
sub-standard products that were rejected
because the manufacturing process was
not ‘in-control’ - not a lot has changed
since then in many cases.
The craft approach
The first attempts at quality were based
on a craft approach where a single worker
manufactured the whole object and objects
were always unique. Production tooling
was simple and flexible. In an attempt to
control the quality of production,
producers banded into guilds or
companies. The guilds set ‘standards’,
devised training schemes for apprentices
and introduced certification schemes for
the production quality. These ‘hallmarks’
for gold, silver and platinum are still used
to certify material purity.
For the plastics industry, the first guild or
company was the Worshipful Company of
Horners which was first mentioned in
1284 - horn is a natural plastic and the
Horners became associated with the
plastics industry in 1943.
The industrial revolution
complete product, e.g. Worshipful
Company of Horners in 1284
< 1780 The craft approach
(predecessor of plastics),
Craftsmen's Guilds and ‘proof marks’
as sign of quality.
The rise and rise of the ‘factory’
system, the division of work into
The industrial
1780 - 1900 small specialised tasks, the use of
revolution
machines and inspection of the final
product for quality.
The introduction of ‘science’ to
production: Taylor for production
management, Shewhart for SPC,
Scientific
1900 - 1960 Dodge and Romig for AQL and
management
Fisher for DoE. Introduced/
developed in World War II and then
largely ignored.
Use of ‘industrial relations’ to
production: McGregor, Herzberg and
1930 - 1970 Industrial relations Maslow for needs and self-fulfillment.
Attempts to motivate/manipulate
employees via psychology.
The rise of ‘quality’ as a defining
product feature. Initially in Japan and
The quality later in the West as a response to the
1960 - 1980
‘revolution’ rising quality of Japanese products
(particularly in automotive industry).
Rise of the ‘quality gurus’.
Roll out of quality tools
to many manufacturing
Quality management

Manufacturing industries.
1980 - 2000
The industrial revolution changed all industries The rise of the ‘quality
management systems’
systems

manufacturing and led to the rise of the

factory system where no single person was approach.
responsible for the complete process.
Production was divided into small Introduction of ‘quality’
specialised tasks using dedicated and to service industries.
1990 - 2010 Service industries The internationalisation
complex tooling and each specialised task
of quality management
Other management

was completed by an individual. The systems.

craftsmen became workers and became
systems

divorced from the final product. Quality Quality improvement via

6-Sigma approach
was maintained by final inspection and (derived from standard
scrapping or re-working of defective quality tools).
2000 - 2015 6-Sigma
products. Quality management
systems migrate to
Scientific management other areas, e.g.
environment, energy.
The early 1900’s saw the introduction of
‘scientific management’, pioneered by
Frederick Taylor. Taylor introduced The history of quality management
‘scientific management’ and the feared
Quality management has changed throughout history as new
‘time and motion’ studies to further reduce ideas, concepts and processes were developed. Quality has
worker involvement in the product. The always been important but the methods of achieving it have
result was an increase in productivity but changed dramatically.

10 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

often this was accompanied by a decrease manufacturing. The Japanese did not only Our concept of
in quality and the need for inspectors and rely on Deming and Juran, Japanese quality has changed
quality departments. workers such as Ishikawa, Kano, Taguchi with time.
The need to control processes to control and Shingo all contributed to developing The methods and
product quality was first recognised by not simply statistical techniques but many techniques are
Shewhart at Bell Laboratories in the of the tools and techniques that are now important but it is
considered essential to quality our perception that
1920’s. Shewhart used process statistics to makes the
control the product and created the management.
difference.
‘control chart’ and much of the basis for Manufacturing industries
Statistical Process Control (see Chapter
5). At the same time, Fisher was The rapid rise in quality of Japanese
investigating the design of experiments products took the West by surprise and
and how to reduce the number of decimated whole sectors of Western
experiments to analyse crop experiments industry, particularly the automotive and
(see Section 8.15). electronics industries.
In the early 1930’s Dodge and Romig (also The Western response was swift and the
at Bell Laboratories) developed the basic 1980’s saw a rapid adoption of Japanese The development
concepts of Acceptance Quality Levels techniques (with variable results) in an and transition of
(AQLs) such as acceptance sampling, effort to save the Western industrial base. quality
including ideas such as consumer's risk, The Total Quality Management (TQM) management into
movement began in the USA and was the service
producer's risk, double sampling, lot industries seems to
tolerance percent defective and average championed by leaders such as Crosby
have taken
outgoing quality limit (see Chapter 6). who pioneered ‘Right First Time’ through
manufacturing
his book ‘Quality Is Free’. This movement industry by
During World War II, the need for spread throughout the world and the surprise.
consistency of production (millions of result was the ‘quality revolution’ of the
bullets must all fit millions of guns) led to Manufacturing has
1980’s and 1990’s. always regarded
efforts to improve production consistency
Service industries quality as
across the world. Shewhart’s SPC
something that was
techniques and Dodge and Romig’s AQL The TQM movement started in relevant only to the
techniques were used to dramatically manufacturing but the techniques were physical product.
improve consistency (Mil-Std-105) but, at just as applicable to service industries (see Perhaps the
the end of the war, these were abandoned Chapter 11) and they were used to great service industries
as companies went back to their ‘superior’ effect in the late 1990’s. have something to
engineering approach. teach us about
Unfortunately, TQM became seen as
quality in the
another management ‘fad’ (largely because
Industrial relations services that are
management never really implemented it an essential part of
In parallel with the scientific management properly) and it has largely been replaced what we do?
movement, there were also significant by the ‘6-Sigma’ movement. This was
developments in the field of industrial developed at Motorola and famously
relations as psychologists tried to repair implemented at General Electric. It uses
the damage done by the dehumanising many of the standard statistical tools
effects of scientific management. (rebranded for a new generation) with a
McGregor, Herzberg and Maslow all high reliance on reducing variation in the
worked to identify what motivated process.
workers and what could be done to
improve worker satisfaction and hence Quality management systems Your competitors
quality of output. can buy the same
Alongside the TQM development of tools
and techniques there was a movement to equipment, buy the
The quality ‘revolution’ same materials at
institutionalise quality via the use of
The quality revolution in the West was the same prices
management systems. Initially developed and even employ
driven by the earlier quality revolution in in the UK in the 1970’s (as BS 5750), the the same type of
Japan. After the devastation of World War systems approach rapidly went people that you
II, efforts to reconstruct Japanese international via the ISO 9000 suite of can.
industry included technical assistance and standards (see Chapter 4). Not content The only way to
part of the assistance was with with institutionalising quality, the really differentiate
management. Deming and Juran both standards creators have migrated the yourself is to be
worked with Japanese industry to improve same approach to other areas such as better in quality
quality and developed a unique blend of environment and energy. and people by
technology and management techniques investing in both of
that revolutionised Japanese them.

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 11

1.5 Quality management and not simply
quality control
QA or QC? improve quality. The early releases of BS “Cutting costs
5750/ISO 9000 made no reference to without
‘Quality management’ is an umbrella term improvement in
improving the ‘quality’ of the product but
that covers all the areas of quality. quality is futile.”
this has now changed and a major part of
Most companies will be familiar with the ISO 9001 is now concerned with the Dr. W. E. Deming
terms quality assurance (QA) and quality continual improvement process via the
control (QC) and carry out most of their Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle.
activities in these areas. The third area of
All of these components are important and
quality, i.e. quality improvement, is less
it is important to realise that they are not
often discussed or implemented with any
the same thing. Having one does not imply
enthusiasm.
that you have the other.
The boundaries between these areas are
• Tip - How much money/time do you
shown on the right and more fully defined
spend on QA, QC and QI? Is this a good
below.
balance? Should you be doing more QI?
Quality assurance (QA)
This deals with the systems and processes Quality management (QM)
that set the scene for quality. It is
normally represented by a quality system
to ISO 9001 and all of the support services Quality
that are necessary for this system to work. Quality system assurance
Quality assurance does not guarantee a (QA)
high quality product. It simply controls
the management processes.
The early releases of BS 5750/ISO 9000
Inspection process
standards were written around ‘quality’ as
a product property. As ISO 9001 expanded
into service industries, e.g. solicitors,
travel agents and government, the concept Quality
Destructive Non-destructive control
of quality also expanded. This new concept (QC)
testing testing
of quality goes beyond simple product
properties and ISO 9001 is now written
with a strong focus on total quality as
100%
perceived by the customer. Sampling Sampling
inspection
This aspect of quality management will
largely be dealt with in Chapter 4 of this
Workbook.
Improvement
Quality control (QC) process

This deals with the methods of assessing

the product (however defined) of the Quality
business. It is typically represented by improvement
Design Process (QI)
control schedules for measurements, tests
and sampling methods that assess the
properties of the product or service to
specifications (either internal or external). Raw
Operations
materials
This aspect of quality management will
largely be dealt with in Chapters 8 to 11 of
this Workbook.
The components of quality management
Quality improvement (QI)
Quality management has 3 components and these are all
Quality improvement is an essential part essential for real quality management. Many companies have
of quality management but many good systems for Quality Assurance and Quality Control but real
companies actually do little to really Quality Improvement is often neglected or missing.

12 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

The quality building blocks do not use the tools effectively for either Does your
QC or QI and there is often much work to quality system
Quality is not simply a production concern
be done here in implementing and work?
but is the responsibility of everybody in
integrating the use of the tools into the
the company. The first contact that the The lack of
complete company. understanding of
customer has is likely to be with the
receptionist answering the phone. This Quality improvement the essential
quality building
initial contact can have a large effect on This is the discipline of never accepting blocks is the
the quality relationship that you have that things are good enough, it is the reason that some
with your customer. The difference search for never-ending quality companies
between a welcoming and enthusiastic improvement. It involves problem complain about the
‘Good morning, how can I help?’ and the lack of
identification, problem solution, effectiveness of
gruff disinterested ‘What do you want?’ identifying causes and not symptoms and
can alter the whole relationship. Quality their QA system.
a continuous effort to reduce quality costs.
is not only the responsibility of the The presence of a
production area or any one group or Quality systems quality system to
person. ISO 9000 or any
These are the systems that make it all other standard will
Manufacturing the physical product work and provide control, communication, not automatically
faster, more efficiently and more continuity and confidence. reduce costs or
effectively counts for nothing if the ‘total All of these building blocks must be improve quality.
product’ produced is not of acceptable present to succeed in the search for If the other building
quality. This covers the total product and quality. As with the components of quality blocks are absent
is not simply the physical product. The management, if any of the quality building the quality system
total product includes the whole range of is seriously
blocks are not present then attempts to
services and contacts with the customer. weakened from the
reduce costs through quality management start.
The physical product itself is of great will fail.
importance but it is not the complete
• Tip - How much money/time do you
product.
spend on the building blocks of quality?
The drive for improved product quality, Are they all in place? Are they all
reduced variability, improved reliability effective?
and reduced cost really has little to do
with public relations and marketing
(although these are valuable spin-offs). It
is about the simple issue of survival in a
world where excellence is normal and not
a guarantee of winning.
The building blocks for achieving true Quality is no longer
quality are: a ‘winner’ it is only
a ticket to the
Management commitment game.
The management of the company must be
committed to the concept of quality. This
involves both leading the way and being
the facilitators for quality improvement.
The management must provide:
• The quality policy.
• The resources to get the job done.
• The organisation and framework for
success.
• The training in the necessary skills.
• The delegated authority to allow the
people to get the job done.
Quality tools
These are the tools used for both QC and The quality building blocks
QI, e.g. Pareto analysis, Cause and Effect
It is not enough to have some components present, all must be
diagrams, flow charts and statistical
present for a quality programme to succeed. If any of the building
process control (SPC). These tools are not blocks is missing then it will be impossible to deliver ‘Total
only used for quality improvement but for Quality’ to the customer.
all process improvement. Many companies

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 13

1.6 The importance of quality costs

The terminology has never really considered before. Nobody wants to do

• Tip - Look in the regrind areas, skips it wrong and have
In most books the terminology used is ‘the to do it again but at
cost of quality’ or ‘quality costs’ and we and scrap bins for a real education.
many sites this is
will continue to use this for the sake of what happens day
conformance with the existing literature. The magnitude of the savings after day after day.
The problem with these terms is that they The possible savings from good quality
immediately imply that quality is a management are in the region of 50% of
discretionary cost and that if you stop the current quality costs for most plastics
spending money on quality that your costs processing sites. Savings of this
will decrease and profits increase. This magnitude represent up to 10% of sales
also creates the impression that quality is and this is significantly higher than the
a ‘burden’ on the company. profit margin for most plastics processors.
Nothing could be further from the truth - These savings can be delivered virtually
Quality costs are
if you stop spending money on quality irrespective of the industry sector or
generally 5-25% of
then profits will decrease and eventually process used. The process used makes turnover.
the company will cease to exist.
At this stage we will look only at the size
of the costs and the opportunities for Actual Ideal
improving the overall financial
performance of a company. The cost of Prevention 5% Prevention 25%
quality will be dealt with at greater length Appraisal 25% Appraisal 35%
in Chapter 3.
Failure 70% Failure 40%
The magnitude of the costs Total cost of quality ≈ 20% of Total cost of quality ≈ 10% of
For the majority of plastics processing sales. sales.
sites, the cost of poor quality is in the
region of 20% of sales. This cost comes
Failure
mainly from failure costs, i.e. where the
product does not meet the requirements. Appraisal
This failure cost can be either an internal
Prevention
cost (if the product does not reach the
external customer) or an external cost (if
the product is dispatched to the external
customer). Failure costs generally dwarf
the other quality costs such as appraisal
costs, i.e. inspection costs, and prevention
costs, i.e. what we do to stop failure
Decrease in failure costs
happening in the first place.
The typical ‘real’ costs are shown on the
right and these costs will usually be
significantly higher than the profit margin
for a plastics processing company. Despite Decrease in appraisal costs
this, few sites are able to accurately (or
even inaccurately) quantify and allocate
their real quality costs. A basic
understanding of the quality costs at any Increase in prevention costs
site will provide a real driving force for
quality improvement. The exact costs for Transformation through allocation of resources
each site will depend on the operations but
the ‘real’ costs will be approximately An approximate division of the cost of poor quality
correct for the majority of sites. In most cases, the total cost of quality is between 5-25% of sales.
• Tip - A simple walk around to look for This easily exceeds the profits of most plastics processing
reworked and scrapped material will companies and can be up to 5 times the profits. This can be
often identify quality costs that the site transformed by re-allocating the resources.

14 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

little difference in the potential savings - it
is management that makes the difference.
These savings are possible by changing
resource allocation from dealing with the
product after it has failed to preventing
the product failing in the first place.
Increasing resources in prevention may
cost more money initially but greatly
reduces later failure costs.
The payback
The majority of the savings can be
delivered through a balanced combination
of no-cost, low-cost and investment
(maintenance or capital) actions. The
average payback for most investments in
quality management is less than 12
months. This is true even when the
payback is calculated using the costs for
internal management efforts.
This type of payback makes investment in
quality management extremely attractive
from a purely financial point of view. Not
many capital investment projects achieve
a payback of less than 1 year and continue
to deliver the benefits virtually
indefinitely. Yet many sites fail to carry
out attractive quality improvement
projects because they have a faulty
understanding of how quality can be
improved. They continue to spend money
on appraisal costs and accept the failure
costs because these are regarded as
inevitable. Capital investment proposals
are still primarily presented based on
direct labour reductions and rarely put
forward based on reducing quality costs.
Straight to the bottom line
In many cases, a site’s quality costs are
almost a discretionary cost, i.e. the site
chooses to pay the cost of quality because
it chooses not to do anything about it.
Reducing the discretionary cost of quality
at any site is directly geared to the profit
of the site.
Any cost savings due to quality
management translate directly to the
bottom line and are shown as a direct
increase in profit. Work in quality
management is as valuable as work to
reduce direct labour and in many cases
the savings are more easily achieved
because previous work to reduce direct
labour has already removed the easy wins.
Better than increased sales
When the cost of quality is reduced, it
adds directly to the bottom line -
Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management
something that increasing sales does not Quality costs are
do. If the quality costs are 20% of the the costs of not
turnover and the profit margin is 5% then getting it right first
reducing quality costs by 25% (equivalent time.
to 5% of the turnover) is the same as
adding 100% to the profit. To achieve the
same result through increased sales would
require doubling the sales - not an easy
task. What would your site do to gain new
business that increased turnover and
profit by 100% if you knew that:
• Your competitors couldn’t stop you
getting the business.
• The business was effectively guaranteed.
• The business required only internal
effort.
• The business was low-risk and had a
payback of less than 12 months.
• The business would continue into the
future and probably increase in value.
Most sites are enthusiastic about gaining
new business through increased sales. Yet
when shown the opportunity to reduce
quality costs and achieve the same results
at the profit line, the same sites react with
huge indifference. The saying is that
‘turnover is vanity, profit is sanity’ but
unfortunately many sites still prefer the
vanity of increased turnover to the sanity
of increased profit.
Sales value of £/$/€1 saved by quality management
100
80
Sales value (£/$/€)
60
40
20
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
Net margin (%)
Reducing quality costs is the equivalent of new sales
If the net margin is 10% then every £1 saved by quality
management produces the same profit as £10 of new sales. If
the net margin is 5% then every £1 saved is the equivalent of £20
of new sales. Savings due to quality management are easier to
get than new sales and provide easy opportunities for increased
profits.
15
1.7 Performance indicators
How are you doing?
Performance indicators are a vital part of
quality management and are essential for
implementing and driving effective quality
management. If performance indicators
are not being prominently displayed,
widely circulated, continually updated and
widely discussed (at both the shop floor
and board level) then attempts at real
quality management will inevitably fail.
Performance indicators are needed to
check that processes and systems are
actually delivering improved quality and
quantifying or measuring these results.
The performance indicators chosen should
not only provide information on the
current status (relative to historical
performance) but should also provide
information on areas for potential
improvement actions.
Indicators can be either internal or
external, i.e. they can either reflect
internal progress or external progress.
Both types of indicators are valuable and
necessary for a full understanding of
quality management performance.
Internal indicators
Internal indicators use measures which
are only relevant internally, i.e. they are
not valued by the customer. Internal
indicators are typically:
• Provided by the accounting or production
function.
• Real and quantifiable numbers, e.g. cost,
material or time based.
• Focused on internal improvement, e.g.
quality savings are quantifiable but only
relevant internally.
• Can (and should) be integrated easily
into the regular company reporting
process.
• Can be updated monthly or weekly.
Cost of quality (see Section 1.6 and
Chapter 3) is a typical internal
performance indicator and is one of the
best measures for driving improvement,
provided the costs being reported can
actually be influenced by the people who
are given responsibility for them (see
below). Other internal performance
indicators include reject rate, scrap rate,
machine downtime, etc.
16
External indicators 1 complaint in 100
orders does not
External indicators use measures which mean 99 satisfied
are relevant from the customer's point of customers!
view. They are the 'voice of the customer'.
It is deeper than
This does not mean that they are less
that.
valid or that they should not be valued, in
fact they can be the most valuable of all
performance indicators. They provide
essential feedback on performance as seen
from outside the company. External
indicators are typically:
• Provided by external customer surveys
or other feedback, e.g. complaints data.
• Perception based rather than real and
quantifiable numbers.
• Tip - If external customer feedback is
numbers based then it usually comes as
a surprise and is usually bad news.
(Otherwise they wouldn’t be recording
it.)
• Focused on improvement of external
relations with customers and suppliers.
• Are more difficult to integrate into the
regular company reporting process. This
does not mean that they should not be
integrated, simply that it is more
difficult.
• Are difficult to update monthly or weekly
unless a sample of external customers is
taken each month.
External indicators rely heavily on
customer feedback and every company
needs to establish some type of customer
satisfaction scorecard for regular Try the ‘phone-in’
reporting. test.
• Tip - External indicators do not quantify Call your company
savings and the results are often difficult and see how it feels
to be a customer.
to quantify.
This would be a
Customer scorecards good idea for those
Setting up a customer scorecard involves: companies who use
• Defining the customer. telephone menu
systems. These
• Defining the main customer experience/ always seem to be
features. There should be no more than 7 designed so that
features. Be lateral in thinking about you cannot ever get
what the customer wants. to where you want
to go or speak to a
• Setting a scale of 1-10, good to bad or real person.
other relevant measure.
They may sound a
• Trialing the initial scorecard with good idea and save
customers. money but have
you ever asked
• Rolling the scorecard out to all
your customers
customers. about them?
Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management
• Regularly convincing external customers improve the indicator but not affect real
to complete a scorecard. performance.
• Feeding this information back into the Performance indicators and some of the
performance indicator report. issues with these are dealt with in greater
Customer scorecards provide the essential length in Section 3.9.
external performance indicator and need • Tip - Choose performance indicators
regular refreshment as performance with great care. Getting them wrong can
changes. be very costly.
• Tip - At this stage we are only concerned • Tip - Beware of meeting targets for
with external customers although the performance but still failing to meet
same technique can be used for internal internal or external expectations. Set the
customers, i.e. the next person in the bar high!
process who receives the output of your
work.
• Tip - Web-based surveys can be used to Customer requirements and achieved performance across
reduce costs but getting customers to a range of ‘quality’ measures
complete surveys can be difficult.
Delivery
Matching external indicators lead-time
with internal perceptions
Short Long
It is often revealing to match the external
indicators with the internal perceptions of
the same indicators. A quick way to do Delivery
reliability
this is to use a ‘snake chart’ (see example
on the right). This visually compares the Variable Good
internal view of performance with the
external view of performance and can
highlight areas where the company Features
assessment of the achieved performance is
very different to that of the customer. In Many
Few features
the example on the right, the internal features
view of delivery reliability is greatly
different to that of the customer - is there Product
something to be learnt here? quality

• Tip - Assume the role of a customer and Acceptable High

assess your own company giving a score
and relevant comments.
Design
flexibility
Problems with indicators
Standard Customer
The basic reason for using performance range specification
indicators is to drive improvement but
performance indicators need to be chosen
with care. Focusing on the wrong Volume
performance indicator can actually drive Low volume High volume
performance in the wrong direction. Some variations variations
of the problems with performance
indicators are:
Price
• Choosing performance indicators that
people cannot influence. Unless it is
Low High
possible to improve the indicator by
action, then the indicator will be seen as Customer/external
Internal score:
irrelevant and the system will lose score:
credibility. It is essential that the people
responsible for the indicator can actually A ‘snake chart’ to assess internal and external views
influence the result.
A ‘snake’ can be used to compare the internal (company) and
• Setting performance indicators that are external (customer) views across a range of ‘quality’ measures.
statistically unstable and uncontrollable. These measures do not always relate to the company vision of
• Setting indicators that can be ‘gamed’ to ‘quality’ but it is not the company vision that counts.

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 17

1.8 Quality management - where are you now?

Where are you starting from? Read the descriptions in the column cells If you don’t know
and select the cell that is closest to the where you are
Throughout this Workbook there are self- starting out from
current situation in your company.
assessment charts designed to help assess then it is unlikely
the current position in a variety of areas. It is unlikely that the description in the that you will end up
cell will fully describe a specific situation where you want to
The charts are easy to complete but we
but choose the cell that has the most get to!
suggest copying the relevant pages before
appropriate description. If in doubt score
completing the forms.
lower rather than higher. This will give a
Understanding the current situation score ranging from 0 to 4, mark this at the
provides the basis for an improvement base of the column. This is a team
strategy and many of the basic actions effort!
After all the columns have been scored,
necessary for successful implementation.
transfer the scores to the radar chart for Completing the
the relevant columns/axes. This gives a chart on your own
Completing the chart is not
rapid visual assessment of the current
Each chart has several columns covering recommended. It is
situation for the specific topic. much better to
various aspects of the main topic.
either complete the
chart as a group -
you will be amazed
Quality management at the divergence
of opinions - or to
get several people
Management in the company to
complete the chart
commitment separately and
4 then to compare
the results.

Quality Quality Assessing the

2 results
tools improvement
Ideally, a site
would have
1 balanced score
with all columns/
axes in the same
broad area. This is
0 rare and in most
cases, sites will
show strengths in
certain areas and
weaknesses in
others. The axes
Cost with low scores are
SPC of the areas that the
quality site needs to work
on to improve the
overall score.

Quality Download the

software
systems
This and similar
charts are available
Use the scoring chart to assess where you are in quality management as a downloadable
spreadsheet at
The numbers from the scoring chart can be transferred to the radar chart for a quick visual www.tangram.co.
assessment of where you are in terms of overall quality management. uk/quality.

18 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

 Quality management
Cost
Management Quality Quality Quality
Level of SPC
commitment improvement systems tools
quality
Management is Quality Full cost of quality Formal quality SPC used in all Full range of
totally committed. improvement is a known widely. management processes quality tools used
Quality is an fundamental goal Upper system in place whether required to identify
integral part of for market management see with full external by customer or concerns, to
business, all success. quality as a verification of not. determine root
4 resources Improvement positive cash system. SPC used for causes & to
provided, staff techniques used benefit. No major non- tooling & process assess
trained & have whether concerns conformances equipment rectification
delegated present or not. found in last 2 acceptance. actions.
authority. years.

Management has Quality Full cost of quality Formal quality SPC used on Good knowledge
moderate improvement is an known but management many processes & use of quality
commitment. important knowledge is system in place but only if tools in analysis &
Majority of business goal. restricted. with full external customer problem solving.
requirements are Improvement Upper verification of requirement.
3 in place but techniques only management not system. SPC sometimes
enforcement is used when aware of benefits No major non- used for tooling &
sporadic. concerns are of quality conformances process
present & visible. management. found in last year. equipment
acceptance.

Management has Quality Cost of prevention Formal quality SPC used on Some knowledge
low commitment & improvement is a & appraisal known management some processes of quality tools &
only really minor goal. from accounts. system in place but only if often used for
involved when Improvement Failure costs with full external customer analysis.
problems occur. techniques known vaguely verification of requirement. Problems often
2 Basic sometimes used but with no system. SPC not used for solved but key
requirements are when concerns accuracy. Significant major tooling & process concerns remain
in place but not are present & non- equipment unsolved &
enforced. visible. conformances acceptance. reappear.
found in last year.

Management not Quality Appraisal costs Formal quality SPC known but Little knowledge
committed. improvement is known from management not considered for of quality tools &
Some aspects of not seen as a accounts but system in place use. rarely used.
quality are in goal. concept of but no external When used they
place due to Improvement prevention & verification of are not fully
1 middle techniques not failure costs system. followed through
management used even when unknown & no to completion.
dedication but few concerns are data available. Same concerns
resources present & visible. return time &
available. again.

Management not Quality Cost of quality No formal quality SPC not No knowledge or
committed. improvement is unknown & all management considered or use of quality
No quality policy, not seen as a quality operations system in place. used. tools.
no resources, no goal. are seen as
training & no Getting the overhead for the
0 delegated product out the business.
authority. door is the only
goal.

Score

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 19

1.9 Financial management - where are you
now?
Without money it won’t happen preferential funding. Most quality Financial aspects
management projects can easily meet the of quality are also
Quality management is the same as any covered in Chapter
standard investment hurdles and analysis
other project or process - starve the 3.
that are in place at most sites provided the
process of the appropriate investment and
relevant financial information is available
it will fail. The only difference is that poor
to the site (see Chapter 3). The main
quality may well bring the whole company
concern is that quality management
down with it. All projects, even nominally
receives the appropriate level of funding
no-cost and low-cost projects need
for the benefits that it can deliver.
investment in staff time and much
progress can be made in these areas.
Completing the chart
Eventually, the process will require
This chart is completed and assessed as
financial investment of some magnitude
for the previous chart.
and this must be justified before progress
can be made.
Quality management does not require

Financial management

Identifying
4

Project
2 Exploiting
funding

Management
Human
information
resources
systems
Areas of
disagreement may
show that there is
something
happening at the
site that is not well
Appraisal known, i.e. the
methods Finance function is
actually keeping
records but is not
Use the scoring chart to assess where you are in financial management telling the
Production function
The numbers from the scoring chart can be transferred to the radar chart for a quick visual that they are doing
assessment of where you are in the basics of financial management. so.

20 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

 Financial management
Management
Appraisal Human Project
Level Identifying Exploiting information
methods resources funding
systems
Detailed cost of Formal Full MIS enabling Full discounting Board take a Projects compete
quality information requirement to identification of methods using proactive equally with other
regularly updated. identify the most past savings & internal rate of approach to long- areas.
List of quality cost-effective further return & ranking term investment Full account taken
improvement projects. opportunities for priority projects as as part of a of indirect benefits,
4 opportunities Decisions made investment part of an ongoing detailed quality e.g. marketing
already costed & on the basis of meeting investment policy in full opportunities.
ready to proceed. total cost of organisation's strategy. support of the
quality. financial quality team.
parameters.

Regular quality Quality staff are Promising Discounting Quality manager Projects compete
audits by required to proposals are methods using working well with for capital along
experienced staff comment on all presented to organisation's accounts/finance with other
to identify quality projects. decision-makers specified discount department to business
improvement Quality but insufficient rates. present well- opportunities, but
3 opportunities likely improvement information (e.g. argued cases to have to meet more
to yield largest projects are sensitivity or risk decision makers. stringent
savings. sometimes analysis) results in requirements for
considered in delays or return on
terms of total cost rejections. investment.
of quality.
Sporadic quality Quality staff Adequate Undiscounted Occasional Quality projects
audits used to notified of all management appraisal proposals to not formally
identify quality proposals that information methods, e.g. decision makers considered for
improvement affect quality. available, but not gross return on by quality funding from
opportunities & Proposals for in the correct capital. managers with capital budget,
2 potential savings quality format or easily limited success & except when very
but few records improvements are accessed in only marginal short-term returns
kept. at risk when support of quality interest from are evident.
capital is scarce. improvement decision makers.
proposals.

Informal quality Quality staff use Insufficient Simple payback Responsibility Funding only
surveys conducted informal contacts information to criteria are unclear & those available from
by staff with to identify projects demonstrate applied. involved lack time, revenue on low-
checklists to where quality can whether previous No account taken expertise & risk projects with
identify quality be improved at investment in of lifetime of the resources to paybacks of less
1 improvement marginal cost. quality investment. identify projects & than one year.
opportunities. improvement has prepare proposals.
been worthwhile.

No mechanism or Quality Little or no No method used No-one in No funding

resources to improvement information irrespective of the organisation available for
identify quality projects are rarely available to attractiveness of a promoting quality projects.
improvement considered as develop a case for project. investment in No funding in the
opportunities. being financially funding. quality past.
0 worthwhile. improvement.

Score x x x x x x

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 21

1.10 Technical management - where are you
now?
So where is the knowledge?
Quality management is often seen as ‘the
low man on the totem pole’ and coming a
very poor second to production volume.
Technical understanding of quality is
often poor and it is considered to be an
afterthought to the production process.
Quality improvement requires a good
technical knowledge of both quality issues
and the processes used.
This is often absent both in the quality
area and in the production area. The
resulting contest between the Production
Manager and the Quality Manager does
not deliver quality - they need to be
cooperating and not competing. Agreement by
This chart provides an overview of the various people
across the site
technical aspects of quality management
shows consistency
from both the quality and the production - a starting point for
aspects. improvement.
Even when the majority of the plant was
not sourced with quality in mind there
should be quality improvement plans in
place to improve the process or to at least
make the sales efforts align with the
capability.
Completing the chart
This chart is completed and assessed as
for those presented previously.

Technical management

Process capability
4

Operational Plant
targets 2 replacement

Records Maintenance
Operators often
know how to
improve quality by
changing
operational
methods. Despite
this, their
Operational knowledge is
routinely ignored in
knowledge favour of the less
relevant knowledge
of someone in an
Use the scoring chart to assess where you are in technical management office.
The numbers from the scoring chart can be transferred to the radar chart for a quick visual An opportunity lost
assessment of where you are in the basics of technical management. and a huge pity.

22 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

 Technical management

Process Plant Operational Operational

Level Maintenance Records
capability replacement knowledge targets

Capability of all Plant chosen is Maintenance is Staff know how Detailed capability Targets set using
existing processes the most based on needs, their actions affect studies & control historical
known & appropriate for with condition quality & take charts (or performance with
improvement application. appraisal used for positive steps to equivalent) improvement
plans in place. Capability & all equipment improve quality. available for all plans in place for
4 Process capability consistency are affecting quality. Staff have processes & all products.
used as part of major factors in Results acted targeted training in products. Monitored for
sales process. selection. upon. quality issues. Detailed actual cost of
schedules of quality.
quality processes
& controls.
Capability of major Plant chosen is Regular condition Staff are aware of Some capability Targets set using
processes known appropriate for surveys carried how they affect studies & control historical
but no application with out on equipment quality & take charts (or performance with
improvement capability affecting quality. good equivalent) for no improvement
plans in place. considered. Action undertaken housekeeping some processes & plans in place.
3 Process capability Capability is not a for most defects measures to products. Monitored for
not used as part of major factor in identified. maintain quality. Some schedules actual cost of
sales process. purchase decision. Training on a of quality quality.
regular basis. processes &
controls.

Capability of very Plant selected to Condition surveys Most good Few capability Some targets set
few processes is be fit for purpose. carried out housekeeping studies & control but against
known. Little consideration regularly on all practices are charts (or unrealistic
No plans in place of capability & equipment adhered to in an equivalent) budgets.
to determine assumed to be affecting quality. attempt to available. Little control via
2 capability & no provided by Remedial work maintain quality. Few schedules of financial
improvement supplier. constrained by Occasional quality quality processes procedures to
plans in place. budgets. training received & controls. monitor the cost of
but primarily as quality.
part of operational
training.
Process capability Process capability Condition surveys Quality techniques No capability Few targets set.
not known for any & machine data on carried out are only adopted studies & control Those that are set
processes. plant rarely occasionally, where they can be charts (or are by default
Process capability obtained as part of prompted by plant easily equivalent) for any through budget-
sometimes less selection process. failure or safety accommodated processes or setting procedures
1 than required for Initial price is the considerations. within traditional products. that nobody
existing products. major factor in Remedial work working practices. Minimal or poor- understands.
decision. only carried out on quality control
major defects. records.

Process capability No consideration No regular surveys No consideration No records No targets set.

not known for any of process or maintenance is given to quality available. 'We will make
processes. capability in carried out. during working quality products.'
Process capability equipment operations.
often less than selection.
0 required for
existing products
(with subsequent
rejections &
failures).

Score x x x x x x

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 23

1.11 Awareness and information - where are
you now?
What is happening with money by reducing defects and reducing Low scores are not
quality? variability then it is a good investment in bad but simply
both the staff and the company. show areas with
As with any activity there is a need to improvement
both specify what people are going to do Quality management has developed potential.
and to ensure that they are aware of their considerably in the last 30 years and if the
responsibilities. only training carried out is for an
inspector on ‘how to use a micrometer’
One of the keys to any management task then this is simply not enough. There is
is to ‘show results to get resources’ and more at stake here.
there is a need for clear reporting of
successes in quality management to both Keeping staff well trained and up-to-date
get resources and to motivate the team. with the latest market developments will
pay rewards in the short and long term.
Equally there is a need to provide staff
with training and development Completing the chart
opportunities. A training course on SPC
This chart is completed and assessed as
may appear a luxury but if it saves real
for those presented previously.
If you don’t know
that you are doing
Awareness and information it wrong then how
can you hope to
improve?
Quality
responsibilities
4

Market Quality
awareness 2 awareness

1
What's worse:
Training someone
0 and risking they
might leave, or
NOT training
someone and
having them stay?

Training Reporting

Performance
review

Use the scoring chart to assess where you are in awareness & information If you think training
is expensive then
The numbers from the scoring chart can be transferred to the radar chart for a quick visual consider the cost of
assessment of where you are in the basics of awareness and information. ignorance.

24 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

 Awareness and information

Quality Quality Performance Market

Level Reporting Training
responsibilities awareness review awareness

Lists of Quality Wide reporting of Progress regularly Training properly Company keeps
responsibilities & performance current status reviewed. resourced for all up to date with all
their assignment regularly given to compared with Performance staff. technical
exist & are all staff. best practice, on compared against Active quality developments by
comprehensive & Full use made of regular basis & internal & external library. monitoring of trade
4 regularly reviewed. publicity. geared at a range benchmarks. All staff have journals, literature
All staff have All methods used of audiences. Ideas actively access to & other sources on
responsibilities. to promote new Full support to sought. information on issues affecting
measures for public statements. quality techniques quality.
improving quality. & tools.

Lists of Quality status Current status Frequent quality Continuous Regular studies
responsibilities & presented to all reports issued reviews using training & carried out on
their assignment staff at least annually to performance & development for trade journals,
exist for key annually. shareholders & cost data. all staff. literature & other
quality staff & all Occasional but staff. Analysis is regular, All staff are aware sources to assess
3 departments. widespread Impartial reporting wide-ranging but of & have access current
publicity to of performance to ritualistic. to a quality library. developments
promote quality staff & impacting on
improvements. departments on a quality.
regular basis.

Some staff & Quality Occasional issue Occasional Staff development Trade journals,
departments have performance of quality status technical quality & training is a literature & other
written presented to staff reports. reviews. personal sources
responsibilities. on a regular basis. Concentrates on Regular cost responsibility. occasionally
Occasional use of bad news. checks with Occasional scanned for
2 publicity to exception initiatives to train information on the
promote quality reporting. staff in quality. latest
improvements. Analysis of limited developments in
scope. techniques &
tools.

Unwritten set of Quality Reports only Quality review Few staff have Trade journals,
responsibility performance issued if prompted activity based knowledge of literature & other
assignments. occasionally by a quality failure. simply on quality techniques sources rarely
reported & known Most reports will requirements of & tools. studied for quality
to very few staff. contain only bad quality systems Little training in implications of
1 Quality news. standards. quality for staff. production.
improvement
measures are
rarely promoted.

No evidence of No staff have No reporting. No monitoring Staff have little Quality is not a
assignment of explicit activity to underpin knowledge of consideration
quality tasks & responsibilities or review processes. quality techniques when keeping up
duties. duties. & tools. to date on
No attempt to products or
0 inform staff of technology.
techniques &
benefits of quality
improvements.

Score x x x x x x

Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management 25

Key tips

• Quality is broader than simply ‘product’ geared and the savings go straight to the
quality. It is about the totality of the bottom line.
service that the company provides • The payback time for projects to improve
(including the product). quality and reduce the cost of quality is
• The journey to ‘quality’ is not static - very short.
Quality is not a destination, it is a state of • Reducing the cost of quality is better
mind. than increasing sales.
• Quality management needs a ‘road map’ • Reducing the cost of quality can
to keep control of all the areas that need to dramatically improve profits.
be addressed.
• Reducing the cost of quality is low-risk.
• Quality management can deliver a
• Performance indicators can be either for
multitude of benefits both inside and
internal or external. They are very
outside a company.
different.
• Quality is not delivered simply by
• Internal indicators are mainly data
installing a quality system. It needs
based and are only relevant for internal
organisation, systems, tools and the right
use.
culture.
• External indicators are mainly
• Quality can be defined in many ways but
perception based and can be relevant for
the real definition is in the mind of the
internal or external use.
customer.
• Understanding and matching external
• Customers are always concerned with
indicators to internal performance is
the quality of a product or service.
critical.
• The methods of achieving quality have
• Performance indicators need to be
changed with time and will continue to
chosen with care.
change. The one constant is the benefit it
brings to a company. • Performance indicators need to be
capable of being improved by the people
• Quality management is not simply about
responsible, statistically stable and
quality control, it is about quality
relevant to the improvements needed.
assurance, quality control and quality
improvement.
• Without quality improvement the full
benefits of quality management will not be
achieved.
• Quality is not simply a production
issues, it is an issue for the complete
company.
• The building blocks for quality
(management commitment, quality tools,
quality systems and quality improvement)
all need to be in place to achieve quality
management.
• Quality costs are really the ‘cost of poor
quality’.
• The actual ‘cost of quality’ for most
plastics processors is approximately 20%
of sales. This is far higher than the profit
margin for most processors.
• It is possible to reduce the actual ‘cost of
quality’ to approximately 10% of sales and
considerably increase profits for most
plastics processors.
• Reducing the cost of quality is highly

26 Chapter 1 - Introduction to quality management

Chapter 2
Organising for quality
management

Quality management is the same as any products. If this happens then clearly the
other type of management and requires organisational structure and concepts are
appropriate organisation to carry out wrong, the allocation of responsibilities is
effectively. This chapter reviews how a wrong and the company needs to revisit
company can be organised to improve both. We look at how companies can get
quality management and to manage the started in effective quality management
essential improvement process. This is not and some of the organisational
the same as discussing ‘quality arrangements that are necessary and
management systems’, these are specified available for improving quality.
in ISO 9001 which sets out the In the words of Juran, “Quality is
international requirements for quality improved project by project” and therefore
management systems and ISO 9001 is we also look at the essentials of quality
covered in depth in Chapter 4. improvement projects, how these can be
Instead, this chapter deals with the found, the organisation necessary to carry
organisational aspects of quality and tries them out and how to deliver improved
to answer the questions: quality.
• How do you organise your company for
effective quality management?
• How can the essential process of quality
improvement be organised and
stimulated?
• How do you find, stimulate and complete
quality improvement projects?
Quality can only be monitored and
improved within the organisational
structure of a company and many
companies get this fundamentally wrong.
If this is in any doubt then ask yourself
‘Who gets yelled at when quality falls or
when we have a quality problem?’. If it is
the Quality Manager then management
fundamentally misunderstands whose job
it is to produce quality products, i.e. the
Production Manager - the Quality
Manager is there to try to improve quality “The bitterness of poor quality lingers long
and keep the score, he cannot be held after the sweetness of cheap price is
responsible for the actions of the forgotten.”
Production Department if it makes faulty
Anon

Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management 27

2.1 Getting started

Management commitment
The key element to making quality
management work is top management
commitment. Without this, then nothing
else will work. Employee engagement and
assistance is vital but without top
management commitment then nothing
else will work. If the top management is
not committed then you might as well use
this book to prop up a desk or hold a door
open. Do not even try to start work until
top management has made a firm and
irrevocable commitment to quality
management.
The role of management
What does management need to provide to
show commitment and how can they do it
effectively? Some of the elements are:
• Quality policy - the management sets the
tone of the process by producing the
company quality policy. This is not an
exercise in ‘copying and pasting’ a
standard policy. It should be self-
generated and really be the policy of the
company. The policy should be generated
by the top management and not by the
quality department - let them think
about it and express it in their own
words.
• Allocation of resources - any process that
is starved of resources will inevitably fail
and quality management is no exception.
Quality management, particularly the
improvement process, needs resources.
In time, these can be internally
have any structure at all for quality Managers are there
improvement (see Section 2.5). This is to manage
improvement.
simply poor planning for the future of
the company and indicates a The one question
management weakness. Management you have to answer
needs to understand that quality to at the end of
each year is - what
improvement is a financial benefit to the
have you
company and an essential part of quality
improved?
management.
• Motivation, awareness and teamwork -
the top management sets the scene for
quality management and the culture of
the company. They need to encourage
quality improvement, raise awareness of
the real affects of poor quality and
encourage teamwork both inside
departments (quality circles) and across
departmental boundaries (quality
improvement teams). This needs
motivation and awareness at all levels of
the company (particularly for the top
management).
• Creating the quality climate - above all,
top management needs to create a
quality climate where quality is seen as
the issue that will decide if the company
is in business next year or not. Poor
profits can stop expansion and growth,
poor quality will kill the company. Only You get what you
top management can create this climate. measure.
Quality control
Ho

generated (see Chapter 3) but initially

h

ldi
ug

there will be a need for additional

ng
ro
k th

resources. Top management should be

the
ea

prepared for initial additional costs.

ga
Br

ins

• Organisation and structure - many

Qu

i ng
al i t

companies are not well organised for

nn
yi

Pareto analysis
quality assurance and control (see
pl a
mp

Section 2.3). They fail to see the

ro

ty
ali
ve

essential difference between the two and

Qu
me

set the best organisation and structure

n t

in place.
• Tip - If the Quality Manager reports to
the Production Director then it is the
equivalent to expecting the fox to guard
the henhouse.
• Quality improvement - whilst most
companies have structures (good or bad)
for quality assurance and control, few
Project by project
Quality improvement is an essential part of quality
management
Quality control and planning are not enough. Quality
improvement is needed to stay in business. Without continuous
improvement a company is doomed to eventual failure.

28 Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management

Systems and tools are not
enough
Many managers think that because they
have got ISO 9001 (see Chapter 4) and are
making some use of SPC (see Chapter 5)
that their work in quality management is
complete. This completely ignores the
essential part that quality improvement
must take in quality management. Quality
management is not complete without
quality improvement.
• Tip - Many companies are more
interested in the ISO 9001 logo than in
real quality management. The ‘Logoland’
approach is not what quality
management is about.
The barriers to quality
improvement
The road to quality improvement is not
without barriers, the most common are:
• Non-acceptance of management
responsibility - top management needs to
realise that in most cases the causes of
poor quality are the systems that they
set up, not with the workers who operate
them (see sidebar on the right).
• Separation of responsibility and power -
if the Production Director has the power
but the Quality Manager has the
responsibility then all is lost.
• Lack of knowledge or awareness.
• Misunderstanding of quality costs - see
Chapter 3.
• Fear of statistics - see Chapter 5.
• Lack of knowledge of problem causes.
• Tip - A sign saying ‘Quality begins with
you’ often has the sub-text ‘not with
me’ (written by the top management).
Deming’s points and diseases
One of the seminal publications on how to
drive quality in a company was Deming’s
14 points for management and his 5
deadly diseases. These are shown on the
right and every company should review
their performance against these points
and diseases.
Note: For companies operating in the
USA there were an additional 2 diseases:
• Excessive medical costs.
• Excessive costs of warranty from lawyers
working on a contingency basis (no win -
no fee).
These 2 diseases are not relevant in all
parts of the world.
Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management
The acid test “85% of quality
problems are
• When did quality management and
caused by the
improvement last make it onto the Board system.
agenda as an important topic?
15% are caused by
Note 1: Do not include when the Sales the workers.
Director was complaining about how a
Workers work in the
quality issue affected customer relations system.
and why are we paying the Quality
Manager so much (whilst the Production Management
Director looked on smugly). should work on the
system.”
Note 2: Do not include when the Financial
Director was complaining about how much Dr. W. E. Deming
poor quality has impacted on the results
this year when he turned down 4 quality
improvement investments.
• Are quality costs and savings ever
discussed at the Board meetings?
• Is quality a standing item on the Board For every action,
agenda? there is an equal
and opposite
• Do they really care?
criticism.
The 14 points
1. Consistency of purpose.
2. The new philosophy.
3. Cease mass inspection.
4. End ‘lowest tender’ contracts.
5. Constantly improve systems.
6. Institute training.
7. Institute leadership.
8. Drive out fear.
9. Break down barriers.
10. Eliminate exhortations.
11. Eliminate targets.
12. Permit pride of workmanship.
13. Encourage education.
14. Top management's commitment.
The 5 deadly diseases
1. Lack of constancy of purpose.
2. Emphasis on short-term profits.
3. Evaluation by performance, merit rating or annual
performance.
4. Mobility of management.
5. Running a company on visible figures alone.
Deming’s 14 points and 5 deadly diseases
At least some of Deming’s ‘points’ and ‘diseases’ are present in
every company. We know they are ‘good’ (or ‘bad’) but
companies really cannot seem to stop themselves!
29
2.2 Who is responsible?
Quality assurance
Function:
Develop and maintain the quality system.
Quality management responsibilities:
Ensure that all aspects of the company meet the
quality system requirements.
Prepare quality manuals or other documents for
the quality system.
Maintain records and documents of the quality
system, e.g. procedures, works instructions.
Ensure regular auditing (internal and external) of
the quality system.
Ensure management review of the quality system.
Marketing/Sales
Function:
Create positive perception of company in the
market and take and process customer orders.
Quality management responsibilities:
Assess market needs and demands.
Present realistic product capabilities to the
customer.
Provide feedback from the customer on product
improvements and competitors’ products.
Process customer complaints and resolution.
30
Design/Research and Development
Function:
Produce Product Design Specification (PDS) to
document all product requirements.
Translate customer requirements (internal or
external) into final design and relevant drawings
for internal or external use.
Quality management responsibilities:
Chair Design Review meetings to produce PDS.
Obtain sign-off from other departments for PDS.
Produce production drawings, control drawings
and other product drawings.
Control drawing issue and release.
Ensure that final design meets customer
requirements (internal or external).
Ensure that final design meets all relevant
regulatory requirements.
Ensure that the final design is capable of
production (in conjunction with production
engineering).
Quality control
Function:
Provide inspection and test system for purchased
materials and manufactured products.
Quality management responsibilities:
Take part in Design Review meetings to produce
PDS and associated inspection and test system.
Provide an inspection and test system (facilities
and personnel) for:
• Incoming materials and goods.
• In-process materials.
• Final product.
Identify inspection and test requirements,
procedures and locations.
Recommend and validate preventive and
corrective action.
Provide information for cost of quality reporting.
Provide information for process improvement
actions.
Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management
Everybody is responsible
Every function in a company has a responsibility for quality. The quality assurance/quality control functions are
only part of the chain of quality throughout the company.
Production and process engineering
Function:
Translate drawings and specifications into robust
processes and procedures for production.
Quality management responsibilities:
Assist production in any quality issues with tooling,
machines or process.
Control corrective action for production quality
issues with tooling, machines or processes.
Take part in Design Review meetings to produce
PDS.
Ensure that Design/Research and Development is
provided with machine and process capability data
to allow realistic tolerance setting.
Identify materials requirements/specifications for
purchasing/materials control.
Lead process improvement actions for quality
improvement.
Production
Function:
Produce products from agreed materials with
agreed processes and procedures.
Quality management responsibilities:
Produce product to specification.
Maintain production schedule to meet customer
requirements.
Implement preventive and corrective action as
required.
Communicate with other functions on any problem
affecting production or the product.
Take part in Design Reviews to assess production
capability.
Manage production area quality improvement
actions.
Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management
Purchasing/Materials control
Function:
Control purchasing and movement of materials to
achieve schedule compliance.
Quality management responsibilities:
Translate customer orders into materials
requirements.
Identify and control suppliers.
Ensure that all suppliers are capable of delivering
material or product to specification.
Ensure that all materials and product specifications
sent to suppliers are complete and up-to-date.
Issue purchase specifications and orders.
Control production schedule to meet customer
orders.
Maintain inventories for schedule compliance.
Control delivery, storage and issuing of materials
to production and product to customer.
Accounting
Function:
Control all financial aspects of company to achieve
profitable operations.
Quality management responsibilities:
Manage company finances to ensure profitable
operation.
Produce reports, budgets and data for operational
control and annual accounts for financial
compliance.
Provide clear, accurate and timely invoices and
accounts for customers.
Pay supplier invoices in clear, accurate and timely
manner.
Provide accounting information for cost of quality
reporting.
Provide accounting information for process
improvement assessment.
31
2.3 Organising for quality assurance and
control
The quality manager
The quality responsibilities outlined in
Section 2.2 show that quality
responsibilities run across the whole
company but in this section we will only
cover the quality assurance and quality
control functions. A ‘Quality Manager’ is
normally in charge of both of these
functions although they are very different
in what they do.
At most plastics processing sites, quality
assurance generally has very few, if any,
full-time staff, whereas quality control
often has more staff (in the form of
inspectors and laboratory and analysis
staff ). This makes quality control more
visible but not necessarily more
important. The functions are equally
important - simply different.
• Tip - Quality management is not only
about inspection and inspectors
whatever the staff numbers look like.
One of the most important points about
organising for quality assurance and
control is the separation of the quality and
production functions. The quality function
should not report to the production
function because of the obvious conflict of
interest between the two and it is normal
for the quality function to report directly
to the Managing Director or CEO. This
has the advantage of giving quality a
direct line to top management but has the
disadvantage that the Quality Manager
may fail to get the direction and support if
the CEO is not committed to quality (see
Section 2.1). It is still probably the best
arrangement to ensure true and necessary
independence of the quality function.
• Tip - The quality function should ideally
be independent of the production
function.
The responsibility of the production
function is to produce products to the
agreed specification. The quality function
simply checks that this has been done.
The quality function is responsible for
providing the systems, expert knowledge
and tools to ensure this.
• Tip - If you show a returned product to a
manager and their first question is
‘Which inspector let this out the door?’
then you have already failed to get the
organisation right. Start again.
32
Quality assurance The control of
quality is a
This work is about management of the production function.
formal quality system, generally ISO
9001, and the duties are shown below. The quality control
department should
Most of these duties are specified as part
assist the other
of the system standard and after initial departments but
system development and approval there should never be
will only be maintenance involved in directly responsible
keeping the system up-to-date. The major for quality.
work involves: They are advisors,
• Regular internal auditing of the system, supporters and
procedures and specifications both for auditors.
effectiveness and efficiency.
• The conduct of regular management
reviews of the system for effectiveness
and efficiency.
• Approving corrective and preventive
action changes to the system. This does
not mean that quality assurance carries
out the corrective and preventive action.
However, they must approve system or
specification changes and document the
process. The corrective or preventive Traditionally
action is carried out by the relevant production has
department. made the product
• Quality improvement action. Again, this and quality control
has inspected it to
does not mean that quality assurance is remove products
solely responsible for quality that do not meet
improvement but that they must approve specification.
system or specification changes and
This is costly,
document the process as part of the inefficient and
quality management system (see Section doesn’t work
2.5). anyway.
Quality assurance work areas
Quality assurance is mainly concerned with the formal quality
management system and the documentation of this system. This
is very different from quality control but may not be a full-time job
after the system is set up.
Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management
Quality control failed product (but not doing). If your quality
• Data analysis: This is the role of the manager is titled
The quality control department is ‘Chief Inspector’
responsible for ensuring that all control quality engineer who:
then you have
procedures are carried out and the Carries out capability studies for probably missed the
products are to the standard set by the machines, tooling and processes (see point.
customer. The main areas are: Chapter 5) in conjunction with process
engineering.
Inspection and test
Controls and manages SPC data to
In ‘older’ systems this involves regularly
allow the setting of achievable
checking inwards goods and production
tolerances.
and recording the results of these checks.
It also involves controlling the status Trains all staff in SPC.
(HOLD, OK or REJECT) of inwards goods
and production and issuing complaint
reports on faulty products. At some sites
Inspection and test
the inspection area also recommends any
necessary corrective action and is
responsible for carrying it out, e.g. sorting.
In ‘new’ systems, the introduction of SPC
(see Chapter 5) and other process controls Inwards
In-process Component Assembly
and the devolution of responsibility for goods
quality to production operators means
that production has now accepted
responsibility for quality production. In
‘new’ systems, the role of inspectors is to: Final Shipping
• Provide assistance in developing the
necessary control systems and control
plans.
• Provide assistance in developing the Laboratory testing
documentation, e.g. SPC charts.
• Checking the results of the operators
(rather than checking the products).
This is a huge change in role for quality Structural Chemical Physical Biochemical
staff.
Laboratory testing
Laboratory testing for most plastics Measurement and
processors is more relevant for inwards standards
goods approval of plastics deliveries than
for finished product. Quality control is
responsible for carrying out, recording and
filing the results of any tests specified in Mechanical Electrical
Standards
control or laboratory specifications. calibration calibration

Measurement and standards

Measurement and test, whether at the
Quality analysis
machine or in the laboratory, needs
accurate instruments and quality control
is responsible for controlling the test and
calibration of all measuring instruments
and ensuring that calibration certificates Corrective
Failure Data
action
are obtained and filed on the correct dates. analysis analysis
specification
Quality analysis
This is perhaps the most important area of Quality control work areas.
quality control but is also the least visible.
This area involves: Quality control is mainly concerned with the product. The role has
changed greatly in the past few years, previously this was mainly
• Failure analysis of products. ‘inspection’ but simple inspection does not work and the role is
• Recommending corrective action for any now based on supporting production to produce good products.

Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management 33

2.4 Quality assurance and control
organisation - where are you now?
Organisation counts the organisation. For the quality
• Quality control is seen as the ‘enemy’ of function to be
The organisation and management of the effective, it must
quality function and the wider rather than the partner of production.
always have a
implications of quality are the key to • Process improvement is not undertaken separate chain of
successful quality management. even when there is clear market and command to the
customer pressure. production function.
Warning signs for poor organisation and
management are: • There is a low statistical awareness Putting production
throughout the organisation. in charge of quality
• Quality is seen as being of low
is the same as
importance in the organisation. These are all signs that the organisation getting the fox to
• There is no clear chain of command. and management of quality is not effective look after the
and needs action. chickens.
• The quality function is regarded as
subordinate to the production function.
Completing the chart
• Quality systems are seen as solely the
This chart is completed and assessed as
responsibility of the Quality Department
for the previous charts.
with no wider responsibility throughout

Quality assurance and control organisation

Chain of command
4

3
Quality is not the
enemy of
Statistical Quality production; it is an
awareness 2 assurance essential support
function to check
that production is
1 performing to the
required standards.

Process
Quality
improvement
control
cycles

Staff
involvement Quality is all about
statistics and risk.
Every site needs a
Use the scoring chart to assess where you are in quality organisation good awareness of
statistics to operate
The numbers from the scoring chart can be transferred to the radar chart for a quick visual effective quality
assessment of where you are in terms of quality organisation. systems.

34 Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management

 Quality assurance and control organisation
Process
Chain of Quality Quality Staff Statistical
Level improvement
command assurance control involvement awareness
cycles
Clear & Quality systems Quality control is High level of staff Process High level of
unambiguous maintained by all seen as a partner involvement in improvement statistical
chain of command staff as part of on- of the production quality issues. cycles used to awareness in all
for quality. going process. function. All staff accept a continuously staff.
Quality manager Quality systems Production staff high level of improve products Specialist
4 in place & reports are clearly owned regularly seek responsibility for & processes statistical
to Chief Executive/ by all the staff. guidance from quality without customer knowledge
Managing Director. Quality inspectors on performance of or market available to site.
Department acts product quality. processes & pressure.
as recording products.
function only.
Clear chain of Quality systems Quality control is Moderate level of Process Moderate level of
command for maintained by seen as lower in staff involvement improvement statistical
quality. most staff as part importance than in quality issues. cycles used to awareness in
Quality manager of on-going the production Some staff accept improve products some staff.
in place & reports process. function. responsibility for & processes after No specialist
3 to Chief Executive/ Quality systems Production staff quality customer or statistical
Managing Director are clearly owned rarely seek performance of market pressure. knowledge
but often over- by most of the guidance from processes & available to site.
ruled by staff. inspectors on products.
Production product quality.
Manager.
Documented chain Quality systems Quality control is Low level of staff Process Low level of
of command for maintained by seen as a 'servant' involvement in improvement statistical
quality. some staff as part of the production quality issues. cycles sometimes awareness in most
Quality Manager of on-going function. Few staff accept used to improve staff.
in place but does process. Production staff any level products & No specialist
2 not report to the Most staff see never seek responsibility for processes after statistical
Chief Executive/ quality systems as guidance from quality customer or knowledge
Managing Director. being 'owned' by inspectors on performance of market pressure. available to site.
the Quality product quality. processes &
Department. products.

Documented chain Quality systems Quality control is Poor staff Process Poor level of
of command for maintained by seen as the involvement in improvement statistical
quality. very few staff as 'enemy' by quality. cycles rarely used awareness in most
Quality manager part of on-going production. Quality is the to improve staff.
in place but process. Production staff 'responsibility' of products & No specialist
1 reports to Other staff do not sometimes try to the Quality processes even statistical
Production feel that quality get faulty products Department & not after customer or knowledge
Manager. systems are part past inspectors & other staff. market pressure. available to site.
of their duties. out the door.

Poor chain of Quality systems Quality control is No staff No knowledge or No level of

command for only maintained by seen as the involvement in use of process statistical
quality. Quality 'enemy' by quality. improvement awareness in any
Quality Manager Department staff. production. Quality is the cycles even when staff.
often criticised for Other staff do not Production staff 'responsibility' of under customer or No specialist
0 poor quality of feel that quality consistently try to the Quality market pressure. statistical
products & seen systems are part get faulty products Department & not knowledge
as being the only of their duties. past inspectors & other staff. available to site.
person out the door.
responsible for
quality.

Score x x x x x x

Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management 35

2.5 Organising for quality improvement

This is where it gets serious series of supplier/customer relationships The ultimate

inside the company before the company responsibility for a
Quality improvement is an essential but quality product lies
sends the product to the final customer.
often neglected part of quality with each and every
These models are shown below and it is
management. Many companies focus one of the
obvious that there will be many customer/ employees. A
simply on the quality system when quality
supplier relationships in any company. perfect system may
improvement is the most important part of
Suppliers do not have to actually pass not produce quality
quality management. It is only through
physical products to the customer to be products because it
continuous improvement that any is ignored or poorly
considered a supplier, i.e. if the accounts
company can hope to stay competitive. The applied but a less
department is considered then the product
competition is getting better all the time than perfect system
could be considered to be high-quality
and neglecting quality improvement is may produce good-
accurate reports. quality products
bound to be fatal.
This is a radical change and the concept of because of the
• Tip - If you want to know if a company is enthusiasm of the
internal customer/supplier relationships is
serious about quality management then workforce.
quite strange to many companies.
ask about their quality improvement
• Tip - I was pleasantly surprised when I The people make
activities. If there are none or if they all the difference.
cannot point to them very quickly then asked an injection moulding operator
they are probably not all that serious. who his customer was and his immediate
Leave and don’t look back. unprompted reply was ‘The assembly
area’. Things are changing and the
• Tip - Quality improvement is not only
operators understand it too (maybe
necessary but must be faster than the
better in some cases).
competition. Heading in the right
direction is not enough - if you are not
Inside the department
going fast enough then you will still be
run over. The organisation of most companies is still
based on the departmental/work area You get to choose
Quality management, and quality your opinions, you
model and inside the department/work
improvement in particular, is too don’t get to choose
area is a natural place to look for quality
important to be left to the quality your facts.
improvements. The best mechanism for
department. The quality department
cannot be expected to run this process
alone. Everybody’s job depends on quality
so everybody must be involved.

Customers/suppliers
A key issue for quality management is
how we organise companies (see Section
2.7). The ‘departmental’ organisation
model does not reflect the real ‘process’
orientation of actual companies and does
not recognise that the ‘tribes’ of the
company can become more important than
the company itself, i.e. the people see
themselves as part of the production
department rather than as part of the
company. The process model of a company
accepts this and recognises the customers
can be internal as well as external.
The old model of a company saw a set of
suppliers sending raw materials to the
company, the company doing Suppliers and customers
‘work’ (adding value) and then sending the The ‘old’ model had a set of suppliers and a final customer. The
product to the customer. The new model ‘new’ model has ‘internal’ suppliers and ‘internal’ customers. The
sees external suppliers sending raw person you give the output of your process to is your customer
materials to the company and then a and you are their supplier - you need to work together.

36 Chapter 2 - Organising for quality management

Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
español, con certera crítica, hizo de Celestina un
nombre apelativo, no á modo de sustantivo, como de
otros famosos personajes, por manera que decimos:
Fulano es un Quijote, es un Sancho Panza, es un
Tenorio; sino que celestina llamamos á toda
trotaconventos, tercerona ó alcahueta, sin más
cortapisas y como adjetivo corriente. Y que no tiene
semejante. Porque no es la alcahueta común, sino la
de diabólico poder y satánica grandeza. "Porque
Celestina—dice Menéndez y Pelayo—es el genio del
mal encarnado en una criatura baja y plebeya, pero
inteligentísima y astuta, que muestra en una intriga
vulgar tan redomada y sutil filatería, tanto caudal de
experiencia moderna, tan perversa y ejecutiva y
dominante voluntad, que parece nacida para
corromper el mundo y arrastrarle encadenado y
sumiso por la senda lúbrica y tortuosa del placer". "Á
las duras peñas promoverá e provocará á luxuria, si
quiere", dice Sempronio. Hay en Celestina un
positivo satanismo, es una hechicera y no una
embaucadora. Es el sublime de mala voluntad, que
su creador supo pintar como mujer odiosa, sin que
llegase á ser nunca repugnante; es un abismo de
perversidad, pero algo humano queda en el fondo, y
en esto lleva gran ventaja al Yago de Shakespeare,
no menos que en otras cosas.
Elicia y Areusa son figuras perfectamente dibujadas,
discípulas de Celestina, no prostitutas de mancebía
ó mozas del partido, sino "mujeres enamoradas",
como las llamaban, que viven en sus casas, sin el
sentimentalismo de las de Terencio ni el ansia y sed
de ganancia de las de Plauto, más verisímiles que
las primeras y menos abyectas que las segundas.
Los criados de Calisto son todavía menos romanos y
más españoles; no esclavos, sino consejeros y
confidentes, que le ayudan y acompañan, aunque
avariciosos y cobardes. Calisto y Melibea han sido
siempre comparados con Romeo y Julieta en lo
infantiles, apasionados y candorosos. "Mucho de
Romeo y Julieta se halla en esta obra—dice
Gervinus (Histor. de la poes. alem.)—, y el espíritu
según el cual está concebida y expresada la pasión
es el mismo". Y Menéndez y Pelayo, á quien
seguimos: "Nunca antes de la época romántica
fueron adivinadas de un modo tan hondo las crisis
de la pasión impetuosa y aguda, los súbitos
encendimientos y desmayos, la lucha del pudor con
el deseo, la misteriosa llama que prende en el pecho
de la incauta virgen, el lánguido abandono de las
caricias matadoras, la brava arrogancia con que el
alma enamorada se pone sola en medio del tumulto
de la vida y reduce á su amor el universo y sucumbe
gozosa, herida por las flechas del omnipotente Eros.
Toda la psicología del más universal de los
sentimientos humanos puede extraerse de la
tragicomedia. Por mucho que apreciemos el
idealismo cortesano y caballeresco de D. Pedro
Alarcón, ¡qué fríos y qué artificiosos y amanerados
parecen los galanes y damas de sus comedias al
lado del sencillo Calisto y de la ingenua Melibea, que
tienen el vicio de la pedantería escolar, pero que
nunca falsifican el sentimiento!".

Cuanto al arte de la composición dramática, la traza

es sencillísima, clara y elegante, y más de maravillar
por la época en que se compuso, antes de nacer el
teatro moderno, puesto que es la primera madre de
él La Celestina. Calisto, de noble linaje, entra,
siguiendo á un halcón, en la huerta donde halla á
Melibea. Enamorado de ella y desdeñado, acude á
Celestina, que con sus arterías y hechizos prende el
mismo fuego en el pecho de la virginal doncella, y
con sus mañas y mujeres se atrae la voluntad de los
criados de Calisto. Pero la codicia la hace á ella no
querer partir con ellos el collar que le había regalado
el galán tan bien servido, y á ellos que maten á la
vieja, quedando medio descalabrados al saltar por la
ventana, huyendo de la justicia, y ahorcados por ésta
en la plaza. Sólo al través de la puerta se habían
hablado los amantes, y, según lo concertado, va de
noche Calisto á la huerta de Melibea; pero después
de lograr tan apetecida dicha, al salir y saltar de la
tapia, cae muerto el amante. Ella, al saberlo, como
heroína del amor, hace que su padre la oiga al pie de
la torre, en cuya azotea ella sola le cuenta su
desgracia y luego se deja caer muerta á sus pies. El
triste anciano endecha tan horrible desventura y las
miserias del mundo, de la vida y del amor.

"El genio gusta de la sencillez, el ingenio gusta de

las complicaciones—dice Lessing en su
Dramaturgia...—El genio no puede interesarse más
que por aventuras, que tienen su fundamento unas
en otras, que se encadenan como causas y efectos".
Hasta la muerte de Celestina todo era comedia, la
comedia del amor y de la vida; desde aquel punto se
convierte la acción en tragedia. Mueren ambos
criados. Torna lo agradable con la escena de la
huerta. Pero cuanto más agradable, más triste y
terrible siéntese la desgracia inesperada de Calisto y
la trágica muerte de Melibea. Este cambio repentino
es de efecto maravilloso. El despeño de la acción así
preparado y ejecutado es lo más admirable de la
obra.

Del estilo y lenguaje de La Celestina, la mayor

alabanza que le cabe es haber casado en ella su
autor el período y sintaxis, que venía fraguándose
por influjo humanista del Renacimiento y en que
sobresalieron el Arcipreste de Talavera, Hernando de
Pulgar, Fernán Pérez de Guzmán, Diego de San
Pedro y mosén Diego de Valera, con la frase y
modismos, refranes y voces del uso popular, que
nadie hasta él había empleado. El autor de La
Celestina llevó el habla popular á la prosa, como el
Arcipreste de Hita la llevó al verso. De aquí las dos
corrientes de estilo y lenguaje, que cualquiera echa
de ver en La Celestina. El habla ampulosa del
Renacimiento erudito la pone en los personajes
aristocráticos, y á veces en los mismos criados, que
remedan á su señor; el habla popular campea en la
gente baja, sobre todo en Celestina; á veces, y
siempre más ó menos, se mezclan y hacen un todo
rimbombante, prosopopeico y abultado para
nosotros, pero muy propio de la época aquella. "El
Renacimiento—dice Menéndez y Pelayo—no fué un
período de sobriedad académica, sino una
fermentación tumultuosa, una fiesta pródiga y
despilfarrada de la inteligencia y de los sentidos.
Ninguno de los grandes escritores de aquella edad
es sobrio ni podía serlo". Estamos todavía lejos de
aquel maravilloso prosista de los tiempos de Carlos
V, Juan de Valdés, cuyo principio estilístico será
eternamente el único verdadero: "Que digais lo que
querais con las menos palabras que pudiéredes, de
tal manera que, esplicando bien el conceto de
vuestro ánimo y dando á entender lo que quereis
dezir, de las palabras, que pusiéredes en una
clausula ó razon, no se pueda quitar ninguna sin
ofender ó á la sentencia della ó al encarecimiento ó
á la elegancia". "¿Qué os parece del estilo?", le
pregunta Torres, hablando de La Celestina. "En el
estilo, á la verdad, va bien acomodado á las
personas que hablan. Es verdad que pecan en dos
cosas, las cuales fácilmente se podrían remediar...:
la una es el amontonar de vocablos algunas veces
tan fuera de propósito, como magnificat á maytines;
la otra es en que pone algunos vocablos tan latinos,
que no se entienden en el castellano y en partes
adonde podría poner propios castellanos, que los
hay. Corregidas estas dos cosas en Celestina, soy
de opinión que ningún libro hay escrito en castellano
adonde la lengua esté más natural, más propia ni
más elegante". Tiene razón. Las voces latinas son
pocas en comparación con las que usaron Juan de
Mena, Juan de Lucena, para no hablar de otros
renacentistas que habían perdido los pulsos, casi
tanto como algunos mozos escritores de hoy, que
creen escribir elegante castellano y dar á entender
que saben latín y hasta griego empedrando su estilo
de voces bárbaras, pues bárbaras para el castellano
son las griegas y latinas. Pero Valdés no podía ver
estas barbaridades y hace bien en tachar las pocas
de La Celestina. Es, sin embargo, el primer libro
donde se ve el habla popular y no mal casada con la
erudita, y, aunque con alguna afectación,
hermosamente arreada á la latina cuanto á la
construcción del período prosaico. Por eso era el
libro más natural y elegante escrito hasta entonces, y
en él y en las Epístolas de Guevara y el Lazarillo.
que vinieron más tarde, fué donde españoles y
extranjeros aprendían nuestro idioma. El
Renacimiento español puede decirse que nace con
La Celestina, y con ella nace nuestro teatro, pero tan
maduro y acabado, tan humano y recio, tan reflexivo
y artístico, y á la vez tan natural, que ningún otro
drama de los posteriores se le puede comparar.

Es La Celestina para leída, más bien que para

representada, cabalmente por carecer de
convencionalismos teatrales y no estar atada á otros
fueros que á los de la libertad y de la vida, que la
vida y la libertad no pueden encorralarse entre
bastidores. Pero el alma es dramática, dramáticos
los personajes, los lances, el desenvolvimiento
interno y el lenguaje dialogado, tan diferente del
lenguaje de Cervantes, como el drama lo es de la
novela. No es novela dramática, porque toda novela
es narración; ni poema dramático, porque no menos
es narración todo poema; es puro drama, y no
representable por tan puro drama como es y pura
vida. El naturalismo ó realismo, ó como quiera
llamarse al mirar derechamente á la naturaleza, á los
hombres, y quintesenciar una y otros por el arte, es
tan fuerte aquí como en la obra del Arcipreste de
Hita; aunque ya lo postizo del remedo humanista
altere los personajes señoriles de Calisto y Melibea
con la folla, que hasta en la vida real afectaban en el
habla las personas cultas.
472. El año 1499 imprimióse en Burgos, en 16 autos, la Comedia de
Calisto y Melibea, que ha reimpreso Foulché-Delbosc en 1902 del
único ejemplar que, hasta poco ha, tampoco conocía nadie. Su
presente dueño, el benemérito hispanista Huntington, acaba de
reproducirla con el esmero que suele. Describió minuciosamente
este preciosísimo ejemplar el sabio hispanófilo, director de la Revue
Hispanique, en el tomo IX (año 1902, págs. 185-190), añadiendo
unas advertencias críticas de subido valor, las cuales, con otras del
tomo VII, ha de leer antes que nada el que quiera enterarse de La
Celestina, porque edición y notas vuelcan de todo punto el problema
ó el montón de problemas que acerca de tan famoso drama se han
despertado y todavía no han tenido cumplida solución. Hay que leer
después el magnífico trabajo sobre La Celestina escrito por
Menéndez y Pelayo, en el tomo III de los Orígenes de la Novela
(1910), y el muy discreto y más ceñido del agudo y erudito Adolfo
Bonilla, en sus Anales de la Literatura española (1904). Por ahora,
la edición de Burgos de 1499 ha de tenerse por primera ó princeps,
aunque hubo de haber otra anterior, ya que en ella se lee: Con los
argumentos nuevamente añadidos.

En su primer estado, la obra no tenía otro título que el que sirvió de

incipit á la edición de Sevilla de 1501 y se ha conservado en las
posteriores: "Síguese la comedia de Calisto y Melibea, compuesta
en reprehension de los locos enamorados, que, vencidos en su
desordenado apetito, á sus amigas llaman e dizen ser su dios. Assi
mesmo fecha en aviso de los engaños de las alcahuetas e malos e
lisongeros sirvientes". Acaso al fin iba un explicit con la fecha y lugar
de la impresión. No se conoce ejemplar alguno de esta edición, y
aun hay quien supone no la hubo.

Vengamos al segundo estado de la obra, que es el que presenta el

ejemplar llamado Heber, por el nombre de quien antes lo poseyó, y
es el reproducido por Foulché-Delbosc y Huntington, esto es, la
edición de Burgos de 1499. Su título dice: "Comedia de Calisto y
Melibea. Con sus argumentos nuevamente añadidos; la qual
contiene demas de su agradable y dulce estilo muchas sentencias
filosofales e avisos muy necessarios para mancebos, mostrandoles
los engaños que estan encerrados en sirvientes y alcahuetas". En
este segundo estado, la obra lleva, además del dicho título, el incipit
que reproduce el título del primer estado, el "argumento" general y
un "argumento" delante de cada uno de los 16 autos.

En su tercer estado la obra lleva el mismo título que en el segundo;

pero, además, una Carta de El autor á un su amigo, unos versos
acrósticos, el incipit, el argumento general y argumento de cada
auto, y al fin lleva seis octavas del editor Alonso de Proaza.
Tenemos un ejemplar completo de una edición que ofrece este
tercer estado, hecha en Sevilla en 1501, naturalmente por dicho
Alonso de Proaza, y reeditada por Foulché-Delbosc en 1900, el cual
cree que se hizo esta edición de 1501 sobre la de Burgos del año
1499. Acerca de Proaza véase la Biblioteca de Gallardo, I, núm.
457, y el trabajo citado de Menéndez y Pelayo.

Hasta aquí la obra se llamó Comedia y tuvo 16 autos; pero otro

cuarto estado nos ofrece la edición de 1502, de Sevilla, con el nuevo
título de Tragicomedia de Calisto y Melibea, y que, además de todo
lo del tercer estado, contiene hasta 21 actos, un Prólogo nuevo y
tres nuevas octavas añadidas á las del final ("Concluye el autor").
El quinto estado de la obra lleva el título y todo lo del anterior y 22
actos: el añadido es el de Traso, que no trae la edición de Valencia
de 1514. Cito esta última edición por ser hoy la mejor, tal como se
halla reproducida por Eugenio Krapf, Vigo, 1900: "La Celestina, por
Fernando de Rojas, conforme á la edición de Valencia de 1514,
reproducción de la de Salamanca de 1500. Con una Introducción del
doctor don M. Menéndez y Pelayo".

473. ¿Á quién se deben todas esas sucesivas añadiduras, que

hemos visto hallarse en los diversos estados de la obra? ¿Son del
autor del primitivo estado ó son de otros editores y correctores? Lo
primero que se ve añadido en el segundo estado son los
argumentos que, por consiguiente, no son del autor. En la Carta á
un su amigo, en el tercer estado, en que aparece por primera vez,
no se nombra á Mena ni á Cota, que sólo son nombrados en las
ediciones de 21 autos, en las cuales la carta está retocada. En la de
Sevilla de 1501 dícese nada más: "Vi que no tenia su firma del
auctor, y era la causa que estava por acabar; pero quienquiera que
fuesse...". Tampoco se hallan estos nombres en los acrósticos de la
edición de Sevilla de 1501, y sí en las de 21 autos. Dícese en
aquélla:

"Si fin diera en esta su propia escriptura

carta: un gran hombre y de mucho valer".

En vez de:

"Cota é Mena con su gran saber".

Dícese en la Carta que él (el que se da por autor de ella y de los

acrósticos y Prólogo) halló en Salamanca el primer auto y que él
continuó y acabó la comedia, añadiéndole otros 15, que compuso en
quince días de vacaciones. Bonilla, con otros pocos, cree esto al pie
de la letra y supone que la primitiva Comedia tuvo dos autores: uno
del primer auto, otro de los 15 restantes. Por el contrario, Lorenzo
Palmireno, Moratín, Blanco White, Gallardo, Germond de Lavigne,
Wolf, Ticknor, Menéndez y Pelayo, Carolina Michaëlis de
Vasconcellos, opinan que esto que allí se dice es un artificio del
único autor, el cual lo es de los 16 autos. Foulché-Delbosc es de
parecer que la Carta no es del autor de la Comedia, sino de algún
editor que ha inventado ese artificio, no menos que lo de haber
compuesto en quince días los 15 autos restantes. Para mí, único es
el autor de los 16 autos de la primitiva Comedia, y la razón está en
la unidad del plan, tan maravillosamente entablado en el primer
auto, y en la unidad de caracteres, de estilo y lenguaje, que en los
16 son iguales. Ni vale lo que dice Bonilla que, no habiendo razón
en contra, debemos dar crédito á lo que el autor dice en la Carta.
Porque la Carta no parece ser del autor de la Comedia, por lo
menos está amañada, como dice Menéndez y Pelayo. De hecho la
Carta y los demás preliminares están llenos de contradicciones,
muestran particular afición á Juan de Mena, tomándole versos y
palabras, lo cual no se halla en la Comedia primitiva, y no están
escritos con la gallardía que ella, ni mucho menos con el ingenio
que en toda ella campea. Diríase que el autor, que supo escribir
obra tan portentosa como la primitiva Celestina y los 15 autos en
quince días (!), no se supo dar maña para escribir una Carta ni un
Prólogo, que está tomado del Petrarca é infantilmente acomodado á
su propósito, por no decir de una manera despropositada y fuera de
sazón. No puede, pues, darse crédito á cuanto en estos preliminares
se dice, ni puede contrarrestar ese dicho al hecho manifiesto de la
unidad de plan, caracteres, estilo é ingenio, que se manifiesta en los
16 autos. Dice el autor de la Carta que "quiso celar y encobrir su
nombre", y con todo eso lo pone luego en los versos acrósticos: "El
bachiller Fernando de Rojas acabó la comedia de Calysto y Melybea
y fvé nascido en la puebla de Montalbán". Y en la penúltima octava
de Proaza, "corrector de la impresión", se declara el enigma de los
acrósticos:

"Por ende juntemos de cada renglon

de sus onze coplas la letra primera,
 las quales descubren por sabia manera
su nombre, su tierra, su clara nacion".

Así en la primera edición en que aparece por primera vez la Carta.

¿Pudo el autor caer en tamaña contradicción, escribiendo la Carta y
consintiendo se declarase lo que en ella decía no querer declarar?
Carta y versos parecen, pues, ser de Proaza; por lo menos no son,
para mí, del autor de la Comedia. Carta, versos acrósticos y octavas
finales aparecen por primera vez en la misma edición de Sevilla de
1501. Las octavas finales son de Alonso de Proaza, que se da por
corrector de la edición. El mismo corrector añadió en la edición del
año siguiente de 1502 otras tres octavas. Á él, pues, han de
achacarse los cambios que en la misma edición de 1502 hizo en la
Carta y en los acrósticos, introduciendo á Cota y Mena. Y así como
fué autor de los versos finales y los aumentó, así debió de serlo de
la Carta y de los acrósticos, mudando en una y otros lo que le
pareció, como en cosa propia. Tanto en la Carta, como en los
acrósticos, como en los versos finales hay sentencias y palabras de
Juan de Mena, al cual se muestra muy aficionado Alonso de Proaza,
mientras que no hay apenas recuerdo de tal poeta en los 16 autos
de la primitiva Celestina.

La edición de Sevilla de 1502 fué preparada por el mismo Proaza, y

en ella fué donde añadió octavas finales y retocó Carta y acrósticos.
Ahora bien: en esta edición es donde por primera vez se ve mudado
el título de Comedia en el de Tragicomedia y se añaden autos
enteros, hasta llegar á 21 los primeros 16 y se ingieren trozos en los
mismos 16 primitivos, y además aparece un Prólogo, que alude á
ese alargamiento de la primitiva Comedia. ¿Quién no ve que el que
todo esto hizo fué el mismo Proaza? ¿Envióle el autor de la
Comedia todas esas añadiduras ó son de Proaza mismo?
Realmente el que hizo el Prólogo fué el que alargó la obra, pues en
él se da razón del alargarla. El Prólogo es una mala acomodación
del que puso el Petrarca al libro segundo de su obra De remediis
utriusque fortunae. La gran verdad filosófica, raíz de las mudanzas
de la fortuna, de que el Petrarca trata en su obra, proviene de que
"lucha es la vida del hombre sobre la tierra", como dijo Job, y que
lucha es el vivir y el ser de toda la naturaleza. Por eso el Petrarca
desenvuelve en su Prólogo maravillosamente esta raíz de la fortuna.
El Prólogo añadido á La Celestina trae todo esto como grave parto
de los montes bramadores para parir el ridículo ratón, de que no es
extraño haya habido diversidad de opiniones acerca de La
Celestina. ¿Es esto propio del excelso ingenio que escribió la
Comedia? Por su cargo y aficiones literarias conocía Proaza el
Tratado de Petrarca, y, hallando citas de él en la Comedia, endilgó el
Prólogo con otro del poeta italiano para disimular la superchería;
pero el plagio es tan fiero, la acomodación tan desmañada, el estilo
tan otro del de la Comedia, que mentira parece se le desmintiera á
Menéndez y Pelayo, á quien siguen otros críticos españoles. Pero el
sello de Proaza se halla indeleble en medio del Prólogo. Al llegar en
él á cierta especie, acuérdase de que la toca Juan de Mena, y
dejando allí á Petrarca, nos planta la cita que halló en la Glosa que
hizo Hernán Núñez á su poeta predilecto. ¿De quién son los actos
añadidos juntamente con el Prólogo, en el cual alude á ellos y por
ellos se escribió? Todos los críticos españoles, siguiendo á
Menéndez y Pelayo, opinan que son del mismo autor que compuso
la primitiva Comedia. Lo dicho creo que basta para sospechar que
fuesen del mismo Proaza. Y, efectivamente, el estudio de los actos
añadidos y su cotejo con los 16 primitivos lo confirman de tal
manera, que redondamente digo no ser lo añadido del primitivo
autor y ser probablemente de Alonso de Proaza.

"La forma en 16 actos es indiscutiblemente de mérito superior á la

forma en 21. No se necesita mucho sentido crítico para
comprenderlo. Pero este argumento no puede servir para probar
que el autor de las adiciones no es el autor de la obra, sino todo lo
más que las adiciones echaron á perder el texto primitivo". Así
discurre, y muy bien, el señor Bonilla (Anal., pág. 19); pero el caso
es juzgar en qué medida lo echaron á perder. Porque bien añade
que Tamayo y otros fueron menos felices al retocar sus obras de
cuando por primera vez las escribieron. Pero ¿es éste el caso? Es
cuestión de pura estética y, además, de estilo y de erudición. Hasta
dónde llegó á echarse á perder la Comedia con las adiciones lo verá
el lector, y básteme decir que no podrá el Sr. Bonilla traer ejemplo
semejante al que hallamos en el auto 14, donde el despeño del
drama y conversión súbita de una comedia en tragedia, que el autor
puso por portentoso golpe de ingenio artístico y fué preparando con
tanta destreza hasta aquel punto, desaparece en la segunda
redacción con alargar la obra por varios actos inútiles, episódicos,
que nada tienen que ver con la acción principal y sólo sirven para
destruir el efecto más trágico del drama, quebrándolo en el punto
más culminante. Eso no es añadir ni corregir; es destruir, es partir
por el eje toda la obra; es borrar y rechazar el mayor golpe de
ingenio el mismo autor que lo creó y lo fué paso á paso preparando
por todo el drama. Hay escritores que no saben divertirse nunca del
propósito, y el buen dramaturgo ha de ser de esta laya. El autor de
La Celestina lo es como el que más, hasta el punto de que
Menéndez y Pelayo dice no darse en la primitiva redacción ni un
solo trozo episódico, ni largo ni corto, sino que todo va siempre
derecho al intento. Vienen las adiciones, y en cinco actos añadidos
comprende lo episódico... pues los cinco actos enteros. Todos
forman un episodio desatado de la acción, y no sólo desatado, sino
que, por encajarse en medio de ella y en el mismo trance del nudo,
destruye todo su efecto y la unidad de la obra. Alárgase por todo un
mortal mes lo que había de soltarse en unas horas. ¿Qué cambio
fué ese del autor en su manera de proceder? Si tal hubo, el autor
enloqueció, perdió todo su ingenio y es verdaderamente digno de
lástima, tan grande creador primero como desatinado corrector
después. Al autor le gustaba la erudición humanística, pero era la
corriente y tomada de Petrarca. El corrector no se contenta con
seguir esta moda del Renacimiento, sino que busca erudiciones
exquisitas y raras y las amontona donde peor pegan y enfrían el
movimiento de la acción, que, sin duda, no sintió en lo hondo de su
alma como lo había sentido el autor. Los pensamientos del autor
siempre son propios de un pensador elevado, de un ingenio sutil, de
un muy maduro juicio, y entallan tan al justo á la acción como el
vestido más lindamente cortado; los del corrector se despegan de
ella y no pocas veces son livianos y aun frisan en verdaderas
patochadas. Á la delicadeza y propiedad de caracteres y
sentimientos del autor sobrepone el corrector pinceladas groseras y
exageradas de pintor de brocha gorda, que avillanan los
sentimientos y malean los caracteres de la primitiva Comedia. Trae
puntualmente el autor los refranes y con comedida parsimonia; el
corrector los ensarta juntos por medias docenas, sin ton ni son, y
casi nunca los cita con puntualidad. Tan á menudo trae el autor
hondas y galanas sentencias de Petrarca como citas de Mena trae
el corrector. En el estilo, alguna vez le imita; pero las más veces es
muy otro. Y gracias que ya no tiene que terciar Celestina, porque no
hubiera podido hacerla decir el corrector ni una sola cláusula á
derechas.

474. Acerca de las fuentes de la obra ha tratado largamente

Menéndez y Pelayo en el tomo III de los Orígenes de la Novela;
pero creo sinceramente que su inmensa erudición bibliográfica le
hace ver relaciones, que de hecho no hay, entre muchas obras y La
Celestina. Las fuentes ciertas de la primitiva Comedia son el Libro
de Buen Amor, de Hita, de quien tomó toda la traza y el principal
personaje, esto es, la vieja Celestina, cambiando la viuda doña
Endrina, más á propósito para los amoríos clericales, en doncella,
que á su intento venía mejor; ensanchando la acción con la
secundaria de los criados y mujeres de la vida, y convirtiéndola al fin
en tragedia, con la imitación de la novela griega de Hero y Leandro.
De Hita toma el autor otras varias cosas, y, sobre todo, tiene
siempre los ojos en él para beberle el espíritu realista y popular y la
manera sentenciosa. La segunda fuente es el Corbacho, que imita
en varios pasajes de estilo enteramente vulgar y castizo. La tercera
es el Petrarca, sobre todo en su libro De los Remedios contra
próspera y adversa fortuna, que se tradujo y se leyó mucho en todo
el siglo xv, y tornólo á traducir galanamente Francisco de Madrid,
arcediano de Alcor, y fué impreso el año de 1510 en Valladolid. El
eruditísimo y benemérito hispanista italiano A. Farinelli ha tratado
Sulla fortuna del Petrarca in Ispagna en el Giornale storico della
letteratura ital. (t. XLIV, pág. 297), recordando cómo el Prólogo de La
Celestina comenzaba con la misma sentencia que el del segundo
libro del De Remediis, y notando tres lugares de la Comedia que á
esta obra parecen aludir, bien que sin citar los pasajes de la del
Petrarca. Yo he hallado otras muchas referencias, que se verán en
las notas con la traducción de Francisco de Madrid, edición de
Sevilla de 1524; Juan Varela, de Salamanca; la cual he estudiado
minuciosamente, así como el texto original De Remediis utriusque
fortunae en la edición de Basilea, 1554 (Francisci Petrarchae
Florentini, Philosophi, Oratoris et Poetae clarissimi... Opera quae
extant omnia). El corrector conoció esta devoción del autor con las
obras del Petrarca, y pudiera haberle imitado en no pocas de sus
añadiduras; pero sólo le tomó lo que toca á las riquezas, en el auto
IV, y alguna otra cosa que en mi edición puntualizo, y le plagió
desmañadamente en el Prólogo. En cambio sacó cuanto pudo,
erudición y frases enteras, de Juan de Mena, de quien el autor
apenas para nada se acuerda. Hay que señalar en la primitiva
Comedia una referencia al Diálogo entre el Amor y un viejo, de
Rodrigo de Cota; otra á la Cárcel de Amor; otra al Tostado.

475. ¿Quién fué autor de la primitiva y verdadera Comedia de

Calisto y Melibea? En Mena ni en Cota no hay que pensar. ¿Lo fué
Francisco de Rojas? Si no hubiera más que el testimonio de Proaza
y los acrósticos, sería para puesto en duda, porque un embuste ó
broma de más entre tantas otras bien poco montaría. Las pruebas,
si lo son, las ha aportado el eruditísimo Serrano y Sanz, uno de los
trabajadores más sesudos, modestos, poco sonados y que más
debieran serlo de nuestros eruditos. El meritísimo catedrático de la
Universidad de Zaragoza halló y estudió dos procesos de la
Inquisición de Toledo, que probaban vivía en 1518 y en 1525 un
bachiller Fernando de Rojas, que parece ser el mismo puesto en los
acrósticos (Rev. Arch., 1902). El primer proceso es de 1517 y 1518,
contra uno que vivía en Talavera, y donde se presenta como testigo
el dicho bachiller; el otro, de 1525 y 1526, contra Álvaro de
Montalván, "vezino de la puebla de Montalván", acusado de
judaísmo y de edad de setenta años. El 7 de junio de 1525 declara
el acusado tener cuatro hijos, entre ellos "Leonor Alvares, muger del
bachiller Rojas, que conpuso a Melibea, veçino de Talavera", y
añade: "aora XXXV años", y "que nombrava por su letrado al
bachiller Fernando de Rojas, su yerno, veçino de Talavera, que es
converso". El Inquisidor "le dixo que no ay lugar, e que nombre
persona syn sospecha; e asy nombro al liçençiado del Bonillo, e por
procurador a Antonio Lopez". Si el padre de Rojas era judío, lo
probable es que lo fuera su madre, y tal lo cree hoy el mismo
Serrano y Sanz, aunque en su estudio opinó lo contrario. El año
1525 tenía la mujer de Rojas treinta y cinco años, y su marido cree
Serrano y Sanz tendría unos cincuenta, de modo que hubo de
escribir la Comedia á los veinticuatro años. Unos treinta y cinco
años antes del 1521 dice el documento que la escribió, esto es, el
año 1490, aunque veremos que probablemente fué después de
1492. Foulché-Delbosc concluye: "Tant qu'un témoignage
indiscutable ne l'attestera pas, nous nous refuserons à reconnaître
Rojas comme l'auteur de la Comedia. Si les vers acrostiches en
1501, et son beau-père en 1525, lui attribuent cette paternité, c'est
probablement que lui-même s'en targuait: nous venons d'exposer les
raisons pour lesquelles cette prétention nous semble inadmisible.
Loin de voir un insigne literato en Fernando de Rojas, nous estimons
qu'il se donna comme l'auteur d'un chef-d'œuvre qu'un autre avait
écrit". (Rev. Hisp., 1902, pág. 185). En mi opinión, el autor de la
Comedia, en su primer estado, si no con certeza, es muy
probablemente el Fernando de Rojas que aparece en los acrósticos
y en los citados documentos. No hay pruebas hasta ahora para no
admitir el testimonio de estos últimos, y aunque sin ellos los
acrósticos no merecieran crédito, los documentos se lo prestan á los
acrósticos y los acrósticos corroboran el dicho de los documentos.

Por declaración del mismo Rojas y por testimonio de su suegro

sabemos que era abogado. Naturalizóse en Talavera, pues ya
parece como vecino de aquella ciudad en 1517, y á ella se refiere
cuanto de él se sabe hasta el 1538. Ejerció aquel año en Talavera,
desde el 15 de febrero al 21 de marzo, el cargo de Alcalde mayor,
sustituyéndole el Dr. Núñez de Durango, según noticias
comunicadas al Sr. Serrano por don Luis Jiménez de la Llave y
tomadas del Archivo municipal. El autor del León Prodigioso (1636),
el licenciado Cosme Gómez Tejada de los Reyes, dice en la Historia
de Talavera, que escribió y se conserva manuscrita en la Biblioteca
Nacional (Ms. 2039): "Fernando de Rojas, autor de La Celestina,
fábula de Calisto y Melibea, nació en la Puebla de Montalbán, como
él lo dize al principio de su libro en unos versos de arte mayor
acrósticos; pero hizo asiento en Talavera: aquí vivió y murió, y está
enterrado en la iglesia del convento de monjas de la Madre de Dios.
Fué abogado docto, y aun hizo algunos años en Talavera oficio de
Alcalde mayor. Naturalizóse en esta villa y dejó hijos en ella. Bien
muestra la agudeza de su ingenio en aquella breve obra llena de
donaires y graves sentencias, espejo en que se pueden mejor mirar
los ciegos amantes, que en los christalinos adonde tantas horas
gastan riçando sus femeniles guedejas... y lo que admira es que,
siendo el primer auto de otro autor (entiéndese que Juan de Mena ó
Rodrigo de Cota) no sólo parece que formó todos los actos un
ingenio, sino que es individuo (indivisible)". Como se ve, á carga
cerrada admite este historiador cuanto en el Prólogo y acrósticos se
dice; pero las noticias acerca de Rojas no dejan de tener su peso y
gravedad, cual la del historiador que nos las comunica. El
testamento de su cuñada Constanza Núñez, descubierto por Pérez
Pastor en el Archivo de Protocolos de Madrid, nos ha permitido
conocer el nombre de la hija de Rojas, que se llamó Catalina Rojas,
casada con su primo Luis Hurtado, hijo de Pedro de Montalbán. En
el archivo de la parroquia del Salvador, de Talavera, hállanse las
partidas de bautismo de 1544, 1550 y 1552, referentes á varios hijos
de Álvaro de Rojas y de Francisco de Rojas, casado el último con
Catalina Álvarez, patronímico que llevaba también la mujer de
Rojas. De su familia fueron, pues, Álvaro y Francisco, si ya no eran
sus propios hijos. En las Relaciones geográficas que los pueblos de
Castilla dieron á Felipe II desde 1574 en adelante, y se hallan en El
Escorial, respondiendo á la pregunta de que se especificasen "las
personas señaladas en letras, armas y en otras cosas que haya en
el dicho pueblo, ó que hayan nacido ó salido de él", el bachiller
Ramírez Orejón, clérigo, que fué, en compañía de Juan Martínez,
ponente, como hoy diríamos, de esta Relación, contesta que "de la
dicha villa (de la Puebla de Montalbán) fué natural el bachiller Rojas,
que compuso á Celestina".

476. La alusión Ganada es Granada, etc., al principio del tercer

auto, indica para Foulché-Delbosc que la Comedia se escribió antes
del 1492, en que Granada se ganó, y después de 1482, en que
comenzó la guerra y aun poco después, acaso el 1483 ó 1484,
cuando no parecían todavía esperanzas de rendirse la ciudad.
Confírmase, según él mismo, con lo del turco es vencido, que lo
refiere al sitio de Rodas en 1480; lo de la puente es llevada, que
supone es el hundimiento de uno de los arcos del de Alcántara, en
Toledo, reparado en 1484; lo del eclipse de sol, que pudiera ser el
del 17 de mayo de 1482; lo de aquel es ya obispo, que cree aludir á
don Pedro González de Mendoza, que comenzó á serlo de Toledo el
1482. Realmente á estos hechos parece aludirse, por lo menos á
algunos; pero si todos eran pasados, ¿por qué sólo la toma de
Granada no lo era? Por eso Bonilla saca de aquí que se escribía
esto después de 1492, y Menéndez y Pelayo dice que nada
prueban, ya que unos son pasados y otros por venir. El te
maravillarías dice tiempo por venir, y esto sin duda alguna, pues
nunca esta forma sirve para lo pasado absoluto, como que es el
tiempo potencial incompleto, y todo potencial pertenece á lo futuro
(Cejador, Lengua de Cervantes, I, 110). Pero lo que pende en el
texto de Assi como, ¿pende igualmente del te maravillarías, ó, por el
contrario es una adversativa con sentido de Así como te
maravillaste, pero no duró mucho tu maravilla cuando se heló el río,
se ganó Granada, etc.? Yo creo más probable esto segundo; si no,
hubiera puesto todos estos hechos seguidamente tras la tierra
tembló. La siguiente observación de Bonilla (Anal. liter. españ.) tiene
la fuerza que se conceda á la opinión sobre el autor de la Comedia.
"Leonor Álvarez, mujer del bachiller Rojas, tenía treinta y cinco años
en el de 1525, dice Bonilla. Suponiendo que se hubiese casado
siendo de doble edad que su mujer, y que el matrimonio se hubiese
verificado en 1506, cuando Leonor Álvarez contaba diez y seis años,
tendremos que Rojas era entonces de unos treinta y dos, habiendo
nacido, por consiguiente, hacia 1474. ¿Cómo había de escribir La
Celestina antes de 1492, es decir, antes de haber cumplido los diez
y nueve años? Todavía nos parece que Rojas debió ser de más
edad que de treinta y dos años en 1506. La Celestina supone tal
experiencia de la vida, una madurez de juicio tan extremada, que no
se pueden imaginar en un joven de veinte á veinticinco años, como
da á entender el Sr. Serrano y Sanz. Es racionalmente imposible
que Rojas escribiese La Celestina á los veinte años. Por eso
creemos que hacia 1500, en que Leonor Álvarez había cumplido los
diez, Rojas tendría ya cumplidos los treinta". Estoy en un todo
conforme con Bonilla en que á los veinte años no puede escribir
nadie La Celestina, aunque sea un ingenio extraordinario, al cual se
lo concede Menéndez y Pelayo. Hay cosas que no vienen del
ingenio, sino de la experiencia, y no porque á los veinte años no
conociese Rojas hechos como los que narra, sino que una cosa es
conocer y otra sufrir y pasar por cosas semejantes, para que del
pozo de la experimentación salgan los sentimientos, que sólo con la
edad salen, cuales son los de La Celestina. Ó Rojas el del proceso
no es el autor de la Comedia, ó tuvo que escribirla después de 1492.
Tal es mi opinión, sacada de lo dicho, pues no puedo creer que la
escribiese antes de tener diez y nueve años. Componer La
Celestina en quince días de vacaciones un estudiante es cosa que
se dice en el Prólogo y que alguno creerá; á mí no me lo
persuadirán frailes descalzos, y que ese estudiante tuviera menos
de diez y nueve años, ni descalzos ni por calzar. Eso no lo puede
creer hombre que haya pasado de los cuarenta y cinco, que sabe lo
que es la vida. Bonilla mide lo escrito por líneas, para deducir que
hay actos que se pudieron escribir en tres ó cuatro horas. ¡Á
máquina y á pluma, quién lo duda! Pero será copiando, no
inventando. "Harto más difícil es componer en veinticuatro horas una
de las buenas comedias de Lope". Pero ¿cree Bonilla que Lope
alude á sus buenas comedias y que alguna de ésas buenas la hizo
en veinticuatro horas? Serían las rellenas de paja, y aun las
veinticuatro horas acaso sean andaluzas.

477. Ediciones de La Celestina: Burgos, 1499; Sevilla, 1501, 1502;

Toledo, 1502; Zaragoza, 1507; Valencia, 1514, 1518; Sevilla, 1523,