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Quality Management in Construction Projects

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Dr. Nabil El Sawalhi

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Total Quality Management

• Today TQM is considered a fundamental requirement for any organization to compete, let alone lead, in its market.

• It is a way of planning, organizing, and understanding each activity of the process and removing all the unnecessary steps routinely followed in the organization.

• TQM is a philosophy that makes quality values the driving force behind leadership, design, planning, and improvement in activities.

• Table 1.11 summarizes periodical changes in the quality system.

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Table 1.13 describes cultural changesneeded in an organization to meet Total Quality

Management

Total Quality ManagementThe Total Quality Management (TQM) concept was born following World War II. It was stimulated by the need to compete in the global market where higher quality, lower cost, and more rapid development are essential to market leadership

Changing Views of Quality

• Gryna (2001, p. 3) has described the changing business conditions. He says:• The prominence of product quality in the public mind has resulted in quality

becoming a cardinal priority for most organizations. These include• 1. Competition.• 2. The customer-focused organization.• 3. Higher levels of customer expectation.• 4. Performance improvement.• 5. Changes in organization forms.• 6. Changing workforce.• 7. Information revolution.• 8. Electronic commerce.• 9. Role of a quality department.

Definition of TQM (BS4778:1991)

A management philosophy embracing all activities through which the needs and expectations of the CUSTOMER and COMMUNITY, and the objectives of the organization are satisfied in the most efficient and cost effective manner by maximising the potential of ALL employees in a continuing drive for improvement.”

Total Quality Management

Chase, Aquilano, and Jacobs (2001) have defined TQM as :Managing the entire organization so that it excels on all dimensions of products and services that are important to the customer

Total Quality ManagementQuality element Previous state TQM

Definition Product-oriented Customer-oriented

Priorities Second to service and cost

First among equals of service and cost

Decisions Short-term Long-term

Emphasis Detection Prevention

Errors Operations System

Responsibility Quality Control Everyone

Problem solving Managers Teams

Procurement Price Life-cycle costs

Manager’s role Plan, assign, control, and enforce

Delegate, coach, facilitate, and mentor

Total Quality Management

• Requires cultural change – prevention not detection, pro-active versus fire-fighting, life-cycle costs not price, etc

• Many companies will not start this transformation unless faced with disaster/problems or forced by customers

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• The primary purpose of TQM is to achieve excellence in customer satisfaction through continuous improvements of products and processes by the total involvement and dedication of each individual who is a part of that product/process

• They show that TQM has resulted in improved customer satisfaction, reduced cycle times, documented cost savings, and more satisfied and productive work forces

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• The TQM philosophy stresses a systematic, integrated, consistent, organization-wide perspective involving everyone and everything.

• It focuses primarily on total satisfaction for both internal and external customers, within a management environment that seeks continuous improvement of all systems and processes

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• TQM emphasizes the understanding of variation, the importance of measurement, the role of the customer and the commitment and involvement of employees at all levels of an organization in pursuit of such improvement to fully satisfy agreed customer requirements

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Principles of Total Quality Management

• Juran describe TQM in terms of the Juran Trilogy, which involves quality planning, quality control, and quality improvement.

• (Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers) view, as mentioned TQM is a management approach that strives for the following in any business environment:

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• Under strong top management leadership established clear mid and long-term vision and strategies.

• Properly utilize the concepts, values and scientific methods of TQM.

• Regard human resources and information as vital organizational Infrastructures.

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• Under an appropriate management system, effectively operate a quality assurance system and other cross-functional management systems such as cost, delivery, environment and safety.

• Supported by fundamental organizational powers, such as core technology, speed and vitality, ensure sound relationship with customers, employees, society suppliers and stockholders.

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• Continuously release corporate objectives in the form of achieving an organization’s mission, building an organization with a respectable presence and continuously securing profits.

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TQM Six Basic Concepts

1. Leadership2. Customer Satisfaction3. Employee Involvement4. Continuous Process Improvement5. Supplier Partnership6. Performance Measures(All these present an excellent way to runa business)

1- Leadership

Top management must realize importance of quality

Quality is responsibility of everybody, but ultimate responsibility is CEO

Involvement and commitment to CQI Quality excellence becomes part of business

strategy Lead in the implementation process

Characteristics of Successful Leaders

1. Give attention to external and internal customers2. Empower, not control subordinates. Provide resources, training, and

work environment to help them do their jobs3. Emphasize improvement rather than maintenance4. Emphasize prevention5. Encourage collaboration rather than competition6. Train and coach, not direct and supervise7. Learn from problems – opportunity for improvement8. Continually try to improve communications9. Continually demonstrate commitment to quality10. Choose suppliers on the basis of quality, not price11. Establish organisational systems that supports quality efforts

Quality council job1. Develop core values, vision statement, mission statement, and quality

policy statement2. Develop strategic long-term plan with goals and annual quality

improvement program with objectives3. Create total education and training plan4. Determine and continually monitor cost of poor quality5. Determine performance measures for the organization, approve them for

functional areas, and monitor them.6. Continually determine projects that improve processes, particularly those

affect external and internal customer satisfaction7. Establish multifunctional project and departmental or work group teams

and monitor progress8. Establish or revise the recognition and reward system to account new way

of doing business. Must begin from top management, most important CEO commitment

2- Customer Satisfaction

Customer is always right – in Japan customer is “King” Customer expectations constantly changing – 10 years ago

acceptable, now not any more! Delighting customers (Kano Model) Satisfaction is a function of total experience with organization Must give customers a quality product or service, reasonable

price, on-time delivery, and outstanding service Need to continually examine the quality systems and practices

to be responsive to ever – changing needs, requirements and expectations – Retain and Win new customers

Issues for customer satisfaction

Checklist for both internal and external customers1. Who are my customers?2. What do they need?3. What are their measures and expectations?4. Does my product/service exceed their

expectations?5. How do I satisfy their needs?6. What corrective action is necessary?

Customer Feedback

To focus on customer, an effective feedback program is necessary, objectives of program are to:

1. Discover customer dissatisfaction2. Discover priorities of quality, price, delivery3. Compare performance with competitors4. Identify customer’s needs5. Determine opportunities for improvement

Customer Feedback Tools/Method

Warranty cards/Questionnaire Telephone/Mail Surveys Focus Groups Customer Complaints Customer Satisfaction Index

3- Employee Involvement

People – most important resource/asset Quality comes from people Deming – 15% operator errors, 85% management

system Project teams – Quality Control Circles (QCC), QIT Education and training – life long, continuous both

knowledge and skills Suggestion schemes; Kaizen, 5S teams Motivational programmes, incentive schemes Conducive work culture, right attitude,

commitment

4- Continuous Process Improvement

View all work as process – production and business Process – purchasing, design, invoicing, etc. Inputs – PROCESS – outputs Process improvement – increased customer

satisfaction Improvement – 5 ways; Reduce resources, Reduce

errors, Meet expectations of downstream customers, Make process safer, make process more satisfying to the person doing

Continuous Improvement

Inputs – processing – outputs

InputMaterialsInfo, DataPeopleMoney

ProcessWork methodsProceduresToolsProduction – Cutting, Welding, etc.Bank – deposit/withdrawal process, Kad Pintar Application Process at NRD

Outputs

Products

Delivered service

In-process jobs – forms signed, drawing completed

Others

Also by-products, wastes

Conditions

feedback

5- Supplier Partnership

40% product cost comes from purchased materials, therefore Supplier Quality Management important

Substantial portion quality problems from suppliers

Need partnership to achieve quality improvement – long-term purchase contract

Supplier Management activities

Supplier Partnership

Define product/program requirements;1. Evaluate potential and select the best suppliers2. Conduct joint quality planning and execution3. Require statistical evidence of quality4. Certify suppliers, e.g. ISO 900, Ford Q15. Develop and apply Supplier Quality Ratings

Defects/Percent non-conforming Price and Quality costs Delivery and Service

6- Performance Measures

Managing by fact rather than gut feelings Effective management requires measuring Use a baseline, to identify potential projects, to asses

results from improvement E.g. Production measures – defects per million,

inventory turns, on-time delivery Service – billing errors, sales, activity times Customer Satisfaction Methods for measuring Cost of poor quality

• Internal failure• External failure• Prevention costs• Appraisal costs

Performance Measures

Award Models (MBNQA, EFQM, PMQA) Benchmarking – grade to competitors, or

best practice Statistical measures – control charts, Cpk Certifications

ISO 9000:2000 Quality Mgt System ISO 14000 Environmental Mgt System, Underwriters Lab (UL), GMP QS 9000, ISO/TS 16949

Implementing TQM

• Successful Implementation of TQM–Requires total integration of TQM into day-to-day

operations.• Causes of TQM Implementation Failures

–Lack of focus on strategic planning and core competencies.

–Obsolete, outdated organizational cultures.

Implementing TQMFor TQM to be successful, the organization must concentrate on the following key elements:• Integrity• Ethics• Trust• Training• Teamwork• Communication• Recognition• Leadership

Implementation Process Must begin from top management, most important CEO

commitment Cannot be delegated (indifference, lack of involvement cited as

principle reason for failure) Top/senior management must be educated on TQM philosophy

and concepts, also visit successful companies, read books, articles, attend seminars

Timing of implementation – is the org ready, re-organization, change in senior personnel, current crisis – then need to postpone to favourable time

Need a roadmap/framework for implementation Formation of Quality Council – policies, strategies, programmes

The Seven TQM Tools

With correct implemention of the Seven TQM Tools 95% of quality related problems can be solved. 1. Check Sheets2. Histograms3. Scatter Diagrams4. Control Charts5. Run Charts6. Ishikawa Diagram7. Pareto Diagram

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Supporting ElementsFor TQM

• The five principles of TQM can be achieved in an organization with the aid of six basic supporting elements:

• 1. Leadership: Senior Management must lead this effort by example,by applying the tools and language, by requiring the use of data, and by recognizing those who successfully apply the concepts of TQM.

• 2. Education and Training: Educating and training employees provides the information they need on the mission, vision, direction, and strategy of the organization as well as the skills they need to secure quality improvement and resolve problems.

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• 3. Supportive Structure: Senior managers may require support to bring about the change necessary to implement a quality strategy.

• 4. Communications: need to be addressed differently in order to communicate to all employees a sincere commitment to change.

• 5. Reward and Recognition: Teams and individuals who successfully apply the quality process must be recognized and suitably rewarded.

• 6. Measurement: external customer satisfaction must be measured to determine the extent to which customers perceive that their needs are being met.

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The strategic implications of TQM include:• Survival in an increasingly competitive world• Better service to the customer• Enhancement of the organization’s “shareholder

value”• Improvement of the overall quality and safety of our

facilities• Reduced project duration and costs• Better utilization of talents of the people

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summary

• Based on those principles, it can be summarized that TQM is a management philosophy that evolved in Japan after World War II.

• It places quality as a strategic objective and focuses on continuous improvement of products, processes, services, and cost to compete in the global market by minimizing rework, and maximizing profitability to achieve market leadership and customer satisfaction.

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• It is a way of managing people and business processes to meet customer satisfaction.

• TQM involves everyone in the organization in the effort to increase customer satisfaction and achieve superior performance of the products or services through continuous quality improvement

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Barriers in the Implementation of TQM

• Employees generally show resistance to the introduction of TQM for a host of reasons, which included fear of the unknown, perceived loss of control, personal uncertainty, Other barriers include:

• Perceived threat to foreman and project manager roles

• Disinterest at the site level• Lack of understanding of what TQM was, particularly

on site• Geographically dispersed sites

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• Fear of job losses• Inadequate training• Plan not clearly defined• Employee skepticism• Resistance to data collection (e.g. rework

costs, non-conformances material waste)

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Reasons to Implement TQM• TQM efforts should be implemented to increase

productivity of the organization (quantity of performance);• increase quality (decrease error and defect rate); increase

effectiveness of all efforts;• increase efficiency (decrease time requirements while

increasing productivity). • Do the right things the right way!• • Quantity• • Quality• • Effectiveness• • Efficiency

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The Process of Implementing TQM

• 1. Establish as top priority by top management• • Visionary• • Set aggressive goals• "Walk the talk"• First, the top management of the organization must

establish that total quality is a top priority of the organization.

• Executives must provide a clear and reasonable vision; set aggressive goals for the organization and each unit, and most importantly demonstrate their commitment to TQM through their actions.

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• 2. Cultural change• • Paradigm change• • Credibility development• • Time• Second, the culture of the organization must be changed so that everyone

and every process embrace the concept of total quality management.• The organization must change its paradigm to adapt to a customer-focus

emphasis where everything done in the organization is aligned with exceeding customer expectations. This becomes an "on-going way of life" for the organization, continually improving and adapting.

• As part of the culture change, credibility among the employees must be built through rewarding positive steps toward the vision of TQM.

• The organization must also allow time for the change to occur and be indoctrinated into the everyday aspects of the organization.

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• 3. Establish small teams - give overall goals• • Define quality• • Identify what customers want• • Measure and change• Third, small teams need to be developed throughout

the organization to define quality, identify customer wants, and measure progress and quality.

• These teams will be responsible for creating their own goals, given the organization's overall goals.

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• 4. Execute change and continuous improvement

• Finally, change and continuous improvement must be implemented, monitored, and adjusted based on analysis of the measurements.

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Quality Function Deployment

• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a technique for translating customer requirements into technical requirements.

• It was developed in Japan by Dr. Yoji Akao in the 1960s to transfer the concepts of quality control from the manufacturing process into the new product development process.

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• QFD is referred to as the “voice of the customer,” which helps in identifying and developing customer requirements through each stage of product or service development.

• QFD is being applied virtually in every industry including construction.

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• QFD helps in constructing one or more matrices containing information related to others.

• The assembly of several matrices showing correlation with one another is called “the house of quality” and is the most recognized form of QFD.

• The house of quality is made up of following major components:

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• 1. WHAT• 2. HOW• 3. Correlation matrix (Roof)—technical

requirements• 4. Interrelationship matrix• 5. Target value• 6. Competitive evaluation

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• Figure 1.28 illustrates the basic house of quality.• The WHAT is the first step in developing the house of quality.• It is a structured set of needs/requirements ranked in terms

of priority and the levels of importance being specified quantitatively. It is generated by using questions such as

• What types of finishes are needed for the building?• What type of air-conditioning system is required for the

building?• What type of communication system is required for the

building?• What type of flooring material is required?• Does the building need a security system?

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• The HOW is the second step in which project team members translate the requirements (WHAT) into technical design characteristics (specifications) and are listed across the columns of the matrix.

• The correlation matrix identifies the technical interaction or physical relationship among the technical specifications.

• The interrelationship matrix illustrates team members’ perceptions of the interrelationship between owner’s requirements and technical specifications.

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• The bottom part allows for technical comparison between possible alternatives, target values for each technical design characteristic, and performance measurement.

• The right side of the house of quality matrix is used for planning. It illustrates customer perceptions observed in the market survey.

• The QFD technique can be used to translate the owner’s need/requirements into developing a set of technical requirements during conceptual design.

• Figure 1.29 illustrates the house of quality for a smart building system.

Steps to the House of Quality

• Step 1: Customer Requirements - "Voice of the Customer“

• The first step in a QFD project is to determine what market segments will be analyzed during the process and to identify who the customers are.

• The team then gathers information from customers on the requirements they have for the product or service.

Step 2: Regulatory Requirements

• Not all product or service requirements are known to the customer,

• so the team must document requirements that are dictated by management or regulatory standards that the product must adhere to.

Step 3: Customer Importance Ratings

• On a scale from 1 - 5, customers then rate the importance of each requirement.

• This number will be used later in the relationship matrix.

Step 4: Customer Rating of the Competition

• Understanding how customers rate the competition can be a tremendous competitive advantage.

• In this step of the QFD process, it is also a good idea to ask customers how your product or service rates in relation to the competition.

• There is remodeling that can take place in this part of the House of Quality.

• Additional rooms that identify sales opportunities, goals for continuous improvement, customer complaints, etc., can be added.

Step 5: Technical Descriptors - "Voice of the Engineer"

• The technical descriptors are attributes about the product or service that can be measured and benchmarked against the competition.

• Technical descriptors may exist that your organization is already using to determine product specification,

• however new measurements can be created to ensure that your product is meeting customer needs.

Step 6: Direction of Improvement

• As the team defines the technical descriptors, a determination must be made as to the direction of movement for each descriptor.

Step 7: Relationship Matrix• The relationship matrix is where the team

determines the relationship between customerneeds and the company's ability to meet those needs.

• The team asks the question, "what isthe strength of the relationship between the technical descriptors and the customersneeds?" Relationships can either be weak, moderate, or strong and carry a numeric valueof 1, 3 or 9

Step 8: Organizational Difficulty

• Rate the design attributes in terms of organizational difficulty.

• It is very possible that some attributes are in direct conflict.

• Increasing the number of sizes may be in conflict with the companies stock holding policies, for example.

Step 9: Technical Analysis of Competitor Products

• To better understand the competition, engineering then conducts a comparison of competitor technical descriptors.

• This process involves reverse engineering competitor products to determine specific values for competitor technical descriptors.

Step 10: Target Values for Technical Descriptors

• At this stage in the process, the QFD team begins to establish target values for each technical descriptor.

• Target values represent "how much" for the technical descriptors, and can then act as a base-line to compare against.

Step 11: Correlation Matrix

• The correlation matrix is probably the least used room in the House of Quality;

• however, this room is a big help to the design engineers inthe next phase of a comprehensive QFD project.

• Team members must examine how each of the technical descriptors impact each other

Step 12: Absolute Importance

• Finally, the team calculates the absolute importance for each technical descriptor.

• This numerical calculation is the product of the cell value and the customer importance rating. Numbers are then added up in their respective columns to determine the importance for each technical descriptor.

• Now you know which technical aspects of your product matters the most to your customer!

The House Of Quality For Smart Building System