If quality is to be maintained and
improved
in the production process, care must be taken to build cohesion
throughout every stage of work. There must be smooth communication
and cooperation among all the people at every stage of the
manufacturing process.
Customer-oriented TQM means that one
should always
satisfy and never inconvenience the people in the next
process because they are customers. TQM concept rests on the
premise that assuring quality to each customer at each stage will
assure
quality of the finished product.
The concept “The next process is the
customer” led to the formal
commitment never to send defective parts to those in the
following process and was later institutionalized as the
kamban system.
Design engineers treat manufacturing
people as their customers and try to satisfy them when they work on
a new product.
