Quality Function Deployment

The Practitioner's Approach

Bossert

• Editore: CRC Press
• Anno: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781000147681
• Edizione: 1
• Argomento: Tecnología e ingeniería
• Categoria: Ingeniería industrial

Quality Function Deployment is an information system producing structured data for quality managers and practitioners. This is a practical guide to implementing such a system for readers assumed to be familiar with it. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

PART ONE

1

What Is Quality Function Deployment?

When first approached about Quality Function Deployment (QFD), most managers question what it is. Quality Function Deployment, or QFD as it is commonly known, is a process that provides structure to the development cycle. This structure can be likened to the framework of a house. The foundation is customer requirements. The frame consists of the planning matrix, which includes items such as the importance rating, customer-perceived benchmarking, sales point, and scale-up factors. The second floor of the house includes the technical features. The roof is the trade-off of technical features. The walls are the interrelationship matrix between the customer requirements and the technical characteristics. Other parts can be built using things such as new technologies, functions, technical characteristics, processing steps, importance ratings, competitive analysis, and sales points. The components utilized are dependent upon the scope of the project.

The thing that makes QFD unique is that the primary focus is the customer requirements. The process is driven by what the customer wants, not by innovations in technology. Consequently, more effort is involved getting the information necessary for determining what the customer truly wants. This tends to increase the initial planning time in the project definition phase of the development cycle, but it reduces the overall cycle time in bringing a product to market. This is illustrated in Figure 1, which is reproduced with permission from GOAL/QPC. When a product is conceived, the primary focus is on who the customer is, since the customer sets the stage for all the work. What the customer wants will determine whether new technologies are needed, whether simple improvements are possible, or whether a revolutionary concept is required. Success in determining customer requirements is directly related to success in the marketplace. This is critical to the whole process.

Figure 1
COMPARISON OF OLD AND NEW DESIGN SYSTEMS

Once a product is defined, QFD enables the design phase to focus on the key customer requirements, those elements that are defined as being very important to the customer. By addressing these elements, the design phase is shortened to focus on items that the customer really wants. By concentrating efforts, less time will be spent on redesign and modifications. The savings have been currently estimated as one-third to one-half of the time taken using traditional means. If a new product took eighteen months from concept to market, using QFD could reduce the time to nine to twelve months, with little if any changes to the product once it is in the marketplace. For many companies, this can mean many dollars saved not only in development but also in additional income brought in due to getting out a product that met the customer’s needs faster than before.

Another way to think of QFD is to compare the product development cycle to the human body. QFD would be the skeleton, which provides form and structure to the cycle and serves as the framework that ties all activities into a complete package. Without the frame, there would be activity, but it would be vulnerable to outside influences like personnel changes, product redesign, fickle management, and so on. QFD documents all pertinent information to keep everyone on track. When critical decisions are made, they are documented so that all people on the team are not only aware of them but also buy into those decisions.

Once QFD is used, there is a tendency to wonder how things were ever accomplished before. The danger is using QFD as an end to itself. QFD is simply a tool to be utilized where appropriate. Like all tools, there are both proper and improper ways to use it. This book will demonstrate some of the proper ways to effectively use the QFD process. In the following chapters, we will show some ways to get started in the QFD process; how to get customer information from a variety of sources; how to look at the matrices, various tools that can be utilized to get the job done, and potential pitfalls and how to counter them; and some different ways to use the QFD process. The question to ask yourself with any QFD matrix is, “Does this make sense?” If it does, then you are probably using the tool effectively. If not, then re-examine your intent for doing the QFD. There may be another tool that will better fit your needs.

What are the benefits of using QFD? Since QFD is a customer-driven process, it creates a strong focus on the customer. QFD exercises tend to look beyond the usual customer feedback and attempt to define the requirements in a set of basic needs, which are compared to all competitive information available. Therefore, all competitors are evaluated equally both from the customer’s perspective and from a technical perspective. Once this information is in hand, then, through a Pareto ranking, the requirements are prioritized, and the manager can then effectively place resources where they can do the most good–on the requirements that are meaningful to the customer and that can be acted upon. An example of this is a plastic part on a car door that was warped by extreme heat when sitting in a parking lot all day. The solution that was found was to use a polymer that was not as sensitive to heat changes over extended periods of time. We could do something about the warping, not about the heat.

Another benefit of QFD is that it structures experience and information into a concise format. In many companies, there is a wealth of information available but not put together in a document. QFD places that information into a structured format that is easy to assimilate. This information contains all necessary rationale for choosing the design, identifying trade-offs, and listing future enhancements. This is important for the times when there are personnel who leave the project and new people are brought on board, as the documentation allows for the swift integration of ideas and progress. QFD is also flexible enough to adapt to new information, since the matrix structure will grow or shrink based on the information received. In essence, QFD produces a living document, one that reacts to input and better defines real needs.

The QFD process is a very robust process. This means that things can be changed in the structure, but when done correctly, the top results do not really change. One QFD exercise involved the development of twenty-five customer requirements. The project leader decided to address the top eight for further development work. He was concerned that if the importance ratings changed, the priority of the requirements would change. A computer program was set up so that all the importance ratings could be changed, holding everything else constant. The result was that the top eight items were always the top eight items, that only the order of occurrence changed. For example, the number one item might move to number three on the priority listing. This goes a long way in relieving concerns that managers may have when going through the QFD exercise.

As people work through the QFD process, a team grows. It is one of the best approaches for developing teamwork, since all decisions are based on consensus and a fair amount of discussion takes place. This discussion allows everyone to explain their views, reach a consensus, and move forward on the project. People feel that all their interests are addressed, not always to their satisfaction, but at least their opinions are heard. This communication at the functional interface is critical. As people see what the larger picture is, individual concerns may not be as critical and some rationalization takes place. The process also identifies what actions need to take place so that all team members see how they fit into the overall project. This solidifies the team membership aspect and encourages teamwork.

When one first looks at a QFD matrix, it may appear to be very confusing and busy, with a lot of detail in each matrix. In truth, there is, but now you can take a step back and look at the overall picture. The matrix enables the creation of a global viewpoint from all the detail, a benefit that is frequently overlooked. Many times we get hung up on the details and forget the original purpose.

In terms of age, QFD is a relatively young technique. Its first use was reported in Japan in the late 60s, at the Kobe Shipyard. From there, the applications were further developed in various industries. In the mid 80s, Dr. Donald Clausing brought information on QFD to Xerox. From there a number of organizations have promoted and taught people in the U.S. how to utilize QFD, the two most prominent organizations being GOAL/QPC and the American Supplier Institute.

In order to truly understand the impact of QFD, one has to look at what happens to a team and an organization when the commitment is made to do QFD. Initially, there is reluctance and skepticism. The thought of another Japanese technique is not necessarily well received. As the team progresses, however, there is a conditional acceptance of what is going on, that there may be some value to QFD. Upon completion of the project, there tend to be three camps: one group that sees it as a good tool with some future potential, the zealots who are converts to the QFD mentality, and the one camp who does not see any value to the technique. Fortunately, the majority of the people fall in the first camp. This is the first step in the defining of a culture change. This is covered in Chapter 2. Figure 2 summarizes the benefits of QFD.

Figure 2
QFD BENEFITS

When we speak about developing a matrix, we will be utilizing a combination GOAL/QPC call the A-1 matrix and what ASI calls the customer requirements matrix. The matrix looks like that in Figure 3. All other matrices use a similar format. We will discuss the systems approach in Chapter 7.

Figure 3
A BASIC QFD MATRIX SHOWING THE VARIOUS COMPONENTS

Figure 3 shows a typical starting matrix, which is the foundation of all QFD exercises. Experience has shown that this matrix is also the most difficult one to put together, since it requires a large amount of information from a variety of sources.

On the left side are the customer requirements, what the customer wants in the product. In Chapter 3, we will discuss how to obtain this information as well as how to look beyond it to find the hidden requirements.

The top of the matrix shows the manufacturer’s requirements, what the manufacturer does to ensure the consistency of product. These can be items that are measured by the manufacturer or are specified from suppliers.

The right side of the matrix illustrates the planning matrix. This is where the importance rating, the competitive analysis, the target value, the amount of scale up necessary, and the sales point are listed. From this information, a planning weight will be calculated. This planning weight will help the team focus on the items that will yield the greatest potential for success in the marketplace.

The peak of the matrix is the manufacturer’s requirements. This is where trade-offs are identified. By identifying these early on, product development people can narrow their development efforts, thus speeding up the development cycle.

The body of the matrix is where the relationships are categorized. This is where customer requirements are “translated” into manufacturer’s terms. It is also where interactions between relationships are identified so that the synergistic effect is seen.

The bottom is the prioritized manufacturer’s requirements. This identifies the requirements that are the most critical for success as well as the degree of technical difficulty to achieve.

All other matrices will be comprised of these fundamental features. Once the format is understood, all matrices are easily understood.

2

How to Get Started in QFD

One of the first questions a manager will ask is, “What do I need to do?” It is important that prior to starting any QFD exercise a manager take the following steps.

First, the manager must be willing to commit his or her people with respect to time. Too often a QFD exercise will fail because the team cannot get together. A manager must be willing to give the people on the project all the time necessary for them to complete their assignments.

Second, a manager needs to ensure that all team members are aware of the importance of the QFD project. The best people in most departments are also the busiest. Consequently, they will treat the QFD as just another assignment unless some emphasis is placed on its importance to the company. All team members must understand this importance so that they will spend an appropriate amount of time on the exercise.

Third, the scope of the project must be clearly defined and understood by all team members. This helps to avoid the “Why are we here?” questions, which arise wherever the scope is not understood. By not defining the scope, you will add ten to thirty hours to the QFD exercise. This time will be spent on defining the scope and getting team buy-in to that scope.

The final thing that a manager needs to do in the initial stage is to inform all other managers about the QFD project, its scope, and the team members. This helps to eliminate problems when a team member is asked to do more than he or she has time or energy for.

These steps are necessary to set the stage for success in a QFD exercise. The next consideration is what reporting should the manager expect. Experience has shown that if the team leader reports to the mana...

Indice dei contenuti

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• About the Series
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Table of Contents
• Part One
• Part Two
• Bibliography
• Index