Reviewing The Modern Chair's Videos; a Complete Training Video on Quality Management

The video “Modern Chairs – A Total Quality Management Training Video” walked us through the various stages of a project, first using non-Total Quality Management (TQM) techniques and building up to using a complete TQM strategy. The first segment shows us the results of the team when using a non TQM strategy, where each individual just sort of did their own thing; the results were 30 chairs stacked in 120 seconds.

The team then applied the first stage of TQM principles, which are teamwork and the production line process; now, instead of each individual working as such, the team members worked in a line process as a team, where each member had a specific role and only that role. Applying the first stage of TQM increased productivity to 30 chairs stacked in 110 seconds. The next segment of video explained the effects of time on quality specifically that at a certain point a faster process produces more defects and errors.

Next the second stage of TQM, process optimization, is applied; in this stage, the process that has begun in stage one is fine tuned for optimal efficiency. In regards to this example, it was the timing of passing chairs along the chain; too fast and quality diminished due to over processing, too slow and efficiency diminished…it was about finding the wait time that optimized the process to its most efficient form. Applying the second stage of TQM further increased productivity to 30 chairs stacked in 90 seconds.

The team then applied the third stage of TQM, continual improvement; in this stage the process is further improved upon as time goes on. In this example the team implemented a new line process which involved expanding from one line to two lines. This method further improved efficiency to 30 chairs stacked in 65 seconds, by far the best results produced by the team.

TQM made this project better by identifying a process that could be improved upon by implementing a teamwork orientated line process, additionally TQM strategy successfully identifies areas where defects are possible and eliminates them through efficient processing. TQM, once implemented, is then optimized to increase efficiency and is occasionally reviewed to find further improvements