1. TQM TECHNIQUES BENCHMARKING Target key areas for improvement within operations – Increase productivity, competitiveness, and quality – Quality results have to be measured against a target benchmarking is very important – understanding of its competitors thoroughly – comparing themselves with the best performing competitors in every aspect of business endeavour – gauge their performances to stay competitive. – develop both high-quality targets and various possible sources of information concerning how to perform each aspect better.

2. Benchmark is therefore a fixed measure of performance with clearly defined criteria that examine in detail something your company does and compares it with a similar process being performed elsewhere with a view to finding ways to significantly improve your own process / system. It compares a process against those of recognized leaders to identify opportunities for quality improvements. The objective is to find the best in the world and use that as a target to achieve or exceed. – The underlying assumption is to gain a position of competitive advantage. The purpose of is to discover the reason for a difference in performance. Benchmarking is therefore about the search for and the integration of business process best practices, into an organization to create the potential for dramatic increases in performance.

3. Types of Benchmarking Internal Benchmarking External Benchmarking Process Benchmarking Reverse Engineering

4. QUALITY FUNCTION DEPLOYMENT To design a product well, design teams need to know what it is they are designing, and what the end-users will expect from it. Quality Function Deployment is a systematic approach to design based on a close awareness of customer desires, coupled with the integration of corporate functional groups. It consists in translating customer desires (for example, the ease of writing with a pen) into design characteristics (pen ink viscosity, pressure on ball- point) for each stage of the product development. Ultimately the goal of QFD is to translate often subjective quality criteria into objective ones that can be quantified and measured and which can then be used to design and manufacture the product. It is a complimentary method for determining how and where priorities are to be assigned in product development. The intent is to employ objective procedures in increasing detail throughout the development of the product.

5. FAILURE MODES AND EFFECTS ANALYSIS (FMEA) A widely used evaluation method for both the automobile industry and other organizations employing techniques that involve problem solving approaches. Properly applied, an FMEA can be a useful tool in organizing and pinpointing areas of highest concern and then for focusing effort and documenting results. The basic steps are to identify the root process, list potential problems that could occur, rate the failure mode for severity, occurrence, and detectibility, and then derive a Risk Priority Number (RPN) which can direct design or improvement effort to the areas of greatest concern. Actions are then undertaken to reduce the risk presented by the failure mode.

6. Just in time production (JIT) A ‘pull’ system of production Actual orders provide a signal for when a product should be manufactured. Demand-pull enables a firm to produce only what is required, in the correct quantity and at the correct time.

7. Brainstorming Brainstorming can be an effective way to generate lots of ideas on a specific issue and then determine which idea – or ideas – is the best solution. Brainstorming is most effective with groups of 8-12 people and should be performed in a relaxed environment. If participants feel free to relax and joke around, they'll stretch their minds further and therefore produce more creative ideas.

8. Kaizen Kaizen was created in Japan following World War II. The word Kaizen means "continuous improvement". It comes from the Japanese words 改 ("kai") which means "change" or "to correct" and 善 ("zen") which means "good". Kaizen is a system that involves every employee - from upper management to the cleaning crew. Everyone is encouraged to come up with small improvement suggestions on a regular basis. This is not a once a month or once a year activity. It is continuous.

9. TOTAL PRODUCTIVE MAINTENANCE (TPM) Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) is maintenance activities that are productive and implemented by all employees. TPM involves everyone in the organization from operators to senior management in equipment improvement. It encompasses all departments including: – Maintenance, Operations, Facilities, Design Engineering, Project Engineering, Construction, Engineering, Inventory and Stores, Purchasing, Accounting and Finance, Plant and Site Management