Effect of ISO 9001 non-conformity process on cost of poor quality in capital-intensive sectors

Understanding and application of quality costs in automotive manufacturing companies in North Macedonia: empirical study

Purpose

This study aims at presenting deeper insights regarding the understanding and application of the quality costs (CoQ) in the automotive manufacturing industry. The empirical research included three general determinants: reasons for, difficulties during and benefits from implementing quality costs, as well as two specific determinants: measuring and evaluating quality cost elements.

Design/methodology/approach

The empirical research methodology employs the expert evaluation method – the Delphi method, using a survey questionnaire comprising a total of 200 questions, and answered by 9 companies.

Findings

The survey results showed that companies do recognize the reasons for implementing quality costs as a need arising from the quality management standards, the lack of knowledge of quality costs by employees and management as the biggest difficulty while the biggest benefit includes the quality costs enhance the company competitiveness. The costs competence and qualification, the quality management system costs, the costs for improvement, the production control costs, the input control costs, the new measuring and control equipment calibration costs, the costs related to scrap, repairs and product finishing are the most significant elements of the quality costs.

Research limitations/implications

This study is limited by the small number of surveyed companies from the automotive cluster.

Practical implications

The proposed quality costs model provides to the management to conceive CoQ elements as possible drivers in the improvement process of product quality. The structure and the nature of the CoQ elements is expected to advance the process of detailing the quality costs elements.

Originality/value

The novelty of this paper refers to development of a generic quality cost model, whose relevance is confirmed by the structuring of the model with elements published in literature and validating in research companies.

Quality cost management in the SMEs of Poland

Purpose

The purpose of the study is to examine the research problem that represents an attempt to approximate the importance of quality costing in managing a modern enterprise using the selected enterprises from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Poland.

Design/methodology/approach

The primary goal of the research is a need to acquire knowledge about the use of quality cost accounts in enterprises operating in Poland. The research has been conducted in the SMEs of production and services. From October 2018 to December 2018, survey-based research was carried out in the selected SMEs of production and service in Poland. The targeted participants of the study are from the medium-sized enterprises, employing 50–250 people.

Findings

The pilot studies conducted in companies indicate that modern enterprises are focused on quality. Many enterprises declare to be continuously improving quality system and quality costing. However, generally, these are large companies that have implemented ISO standards, often part of international corporations. The survey result of the study shows that medium-sized enterprises still make little use of modern cost accounting variants. Based on the study, only 9.75% (39 enterprises) from a representative group of 400 companies from the sectors of manufacturing, services and production as well as service companies apply quality costing. Some of the other enterprises are only taking measures to implement quality cost accounting.

Research limitations/implications

The research has been conducted in randomly selected SMEs in the form of a questionnaire interview. In order to further analyze the construction of quality cost management (QCM) systems and the use of information from QCM by enterprises, case study method should be used more widely.

Practical implications

The results of the study provide useful help for companies that are quality-oriented and want to implement quality costing. The survey has been conducted in 400 enterprises, and the survey results of considered SMEs reveal the most important aspects of the application of quality costing.

Originality/value

The questionnaire used, the answers provided and the resulting conclusions fill the identified research gap. In the author's opinion, findings of research are relevant and useful, not only for accounting practice but also for theory. They show that although TQM and quality costing have been very popular in the literature since the 1990s, the degree of application of quality costing in practice (except for large, often international companies) is too low. So, the suitability of QCM in managing a modern enterprise from the SMEs should be promoted.

Future research avenues of cost of quality: a systematic literature review

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify the future research suggestions which have been made by several authors with regard to cost of quality (CoQ) and to group them into respective themes.

Design/methodology/approach

This study was based on a systematic literature review (SLR) of 97 peer-reviewed journal articles in the field of CoQ published in well-known academic databases, such as Emerald, Elsevier, SpringerLink, Taylor & Francis, Wiley and Scopus. The time horizon for reviewing the literature was 9 years, particularly in the period between 2010 and 2018. The “Affinity diagram” was applied to group the future research suggestions into logical themes and the “Pareto diagram” to further categorize and prioritize these themes.

Findings

A plethora of future research suggestions identified in the literature are analytically presented. Moreover, the analysis showed that the future research suggestions in the field of CoQ can be grouped under eleven meaningful themes, which are further categorized into two broad categories, meaning the vital and the useful.

Research limitations/implications

This SLR was based on only fully accessed English articles published in international, peer-reviewed journals of the selected publishers. The restricted number of keywords used and the subjectivity in applying the “affinity diagram” are also limitations of this study.

Practical implications

This paper provides insights into the future research perspectives in the field of CoQ. Thus, this analysis can serve as a resource for both researchers and practitioners to further develop this area according to the future research suggestions and the respective themes revealed.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first SLR presenting and analyzing the future research suggestions of CoQ.

Development of 18 Quality Control Gates for Additive Manufacturing of Error Free Patient-Specific Implants

Unlike subtractive manufacturing technologies, additive manufacturing (AM) can fabricate complex shapes from the macro to the micro scale, thereby allowing the design of patient-specific implants following a biomimetic approach for the reconstruction of complex bone configurations. Nevertheless, factors such as high design variability and changeable customer needs are re-shaping current medical standards and quality control strategies in this sector. Such factors necessitate the urgent formulation of comprehensive AM quality control procedures. To address this need, this study explored and reported on a variety of aspects related to the production and the quality control of additively manufactured patient-specific implants in three different AM companies. The research goal was to develop an integrated quality control procedure based on the synthesis and the adaptation of the best quality control practices with the three examined companies and/or reported in literature. The study resulted in the development of an integrated quality control procedure consisting of 18 distinct gates based on the best identified industry practices and reported literature such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guideline for AM medical devices and American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards, to name a few. This integrated quality control procedure for patient-specific implants seeks to prepare the AM industry for the inevitable future tightening in related medical regulations. Moreover, this study revealed some critical success factors for companies developing additively manufactured patient-specific implants, including ongoing research and development (R&D) investment, investment in advanced technologies for controlling quality, and fostering a quality improvement organizational culture.

An integrated Bayesian–Markovian framework for ascertaining cost of executing quality improvement programs in manufacturing industry

Purpose

Typically, the budgetary requirements for executing a supplier’s process quality improvement program are often done in unstructured ways in that quality improvement managers purely use their previous experiences and pertinent historical information. In this backdrop, the purpose of this paper is to ascertain the expected cost of carrying out suppliers’ process quality improvement programs that are driven by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

Design/methodology/approach

Using inputs from experts who had prior experience executing suppliers’ quality improvement programs and employing the Bayesian theory, transition probabilities to various quality levels from an initial quality level are ascertained. Thereafter, the Markov chain concept enables the authors to determine steady-state probabilities. These steady-state probabilities in conjunction with quality level cost coefficients yield the expected cost of quality improvement programs.

Findings

The novel method devised in this research is a key contribution of the work. Furthermore, various implications related to experts’ inputs, dynamics related to Markov chain, etc., are discussed. The method is illustrated using a real life of automotive industry in India.

Originality/value

The research contributes to the extant literature in that a new method of determining the expected cost of quality improvement is proposed. Furthermore, the method would be of value to OEMs and suppliers wherein the quality levels at a given time are the function of quality levels in preceding period(s).

Cost of quality measurement in food manufacturing companies: the Greek case

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to focus on the cost of quality (CoQ) of food manufacturing companies. The study aims at empirically validating the conceptual structure of the core dimensions of CoQ (prevention, appraisal, internal and external failure cost) and determining their level and relationships. Determining the reasons for not measuring the CoQ as well as the barriers-difficulties and benefits of the CoQ measurement is also an aim of the present study.

Design/methodology/approach

Greek food manufacturing companies were approached through a structured questionnaire and 91 participated in the study. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, descriptive statistics and correlation analysis are applied for data analysis.

Findings

The structure of the core dimensions of CoQ is empirically validated, while all of them range within medium levels and are inter-related. The reasons for companies not measuring the CoQ as well as the barriers-difficulties of companies measuring the CoQ are not significant. On the contrary, significant benefits are derived from the CoQ measurement.

Research limitations/implications

The small sample of the food manufacturing companies operating in one country and the subjective business evidence collected are the main limitations of the present study.

Practical implications

Food companies can be motivated to establish a robust CoQ measurement system, which would reflect the level of the CoQ dimensions. According to the results of the CoQ measurement, a food company can make decisions to increase the prevention and appraisal costs and decrease the internal- and external-failure costs in order to be more competitive in the market.

Originality/value

The paper provides deeper insights into the level and inter-relations of empirically validated CoQ dimensions. Very few studies on the CoQ in food manufacturing companies have been carried out in Greece and the present study makes the picture of the CoQ status in this sector more clear.

Impact of organizational culture on quality management practices: an empirical investigation

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the organizational culture (OC) of the competing values framework (CVF) on quality management (QM) practices. Specifically, it tests OC on two views, QM practices, i.e. the infrastructure quality and core QM practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed hypotheses were tested using empirical data drawn from 262 manufacturing organizations in India. The research model developed was analyzed using structural equation modeling technique.

Findings

The findings of this study revealed that the hierarchical and rational cultures are the dominant types of culture, and top management commitment and Six Sigma structure are the most important aspects of the infrastructure and core QM practices in Indian manufacturing organizations. Further, the results of the study showed that group culture and development culture are the most supportive culture types for both infrastructure and core QM practices. On the contrary, hierarchical and rational culture types are the least supportive for infrastructure and core QM practices. The study proposes the need for the mixed culture approach that facilitates the adoption of business strategies

Practical implications

Before implementing infrastructure and core QM practices, managers must understand the importance of cultural values in their organization to facilitate effective implementation of QM.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence leading to the relationship between OC and QM practices. This is the first study that empirically examined the Indian cultural context using CVF, thus contributing to the scarce body of literature particularly in the developing countries.

Quantifying the relationship between latent variables after successful implementation of QM practices in MSMEs

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between latent variables, i.e. human resource management (HRM) effectiveness, quality cost (QC), and firm performance (FP) for the successful implementation of quality management (QM) practices in micro, small and medium enterprises.

Design/methodology/approach

The data analysis is accomplished in three steps: in the first step, factor analysis was conducted to extract the latent variables representing key QM practices. In the second step, a descriptive analysis (cross-tabulation) was performed to examine the current situation and association between key QM variables and firm size. In the third step, to test the research hypotheses based on latent constructs, structural equation modelling (SEM) has been used.

Findings

The percent point score shows that there are substantial improvements in all organisational aspects after successful implementation of QM practices. The χ2-test revealed that only three domains namely employee participation, recruitment and retaining and supplier relationship are having a significant variation with respect to the firm size. The SEM results show that HRM effectiveness has a direct and positive relationship with FP, whereas QC has a negative association with HRM effectiveness and FP.

Originality/value

Managers will know which aspect they must consider seeing as an indicator of QM practice in their company(s). Out of the three identified latent constructs first will help to create an efficient human capital, whereas the second will help for addressing extra cost due to poor quality. Finally, the third latent variable will show the effectiveness of these two and will assist in evaluating firm’s performance.

A multidimensional longitudinal meta-analysis of quality costing research

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the longitudinal evolution of quality costs measurement, depicted in 99 real data studies of the last 30 years. A meta-analysis of these articles is conducted, in order to highlight the evolution of the variables that have been used for the study of quality costing, in relation to the date of publication, business sector and geographical origin of each paper.

Design/methodology/approach

The analysis of the cost components has been conducted with the use of multiple correspondence analysis, which is a useful tool for the exploration of the interrelations among all elements, aiming at the identification of the dominant and most substantial tendencies in their structure.

Findings

The findings suggest that the level of analysis of quality costs is related to the date of publication, the business sector and the origin of each research. Furthermore, it is pointed out that the most prominent prevention costs are related to suppliers’ assurance, internal audit and new product’s design and development. Appraisal costs are mostly defined by quality audits and procurement costs, while failure costs by defect/failure analysis, low quality losses, complaint investigation and concessions and warranty claims.

Originality/value

The present paper is a longitudinal meta-analysis of 99 quality cost papers that have been published in the last 30 years. It explores the evolution of research in quality costing, not only in relation to the cost components in use, but also in terms of date of publication, business sector and geographical origin of the studies.