质量控制外文翻译

1、Quality control refers to the process, most often implemented in manufacturing,of monitoring the quality of finished products through statistical measures and anoverall corporate commitment to producing defect-free products. Quality controlprinciples can also be utilized in service industries.The te

2、rm quality control came into common use in the 1950s thanks to W.Edward Deming, whose Fourteen Points have become the bible for quality controlproponents. With the post-war world returning to normal manufacturing patterns,Deming preached that inspecting products for quality after they were manufactu

3、redwas unacceptable. Instead, he proposed a process known as statistical qualitycontrol that would use closely monitored performance measures to gauge quality as aproduct was being manufactured. The goal of statistical quality control was to gatherdata that would allow for the constant improvement o

4、f manufacturing processes,which would in turn improve quality control. Introducing such statistical controlscould be expensive, but Deming argued that instituting quality measures ultimatelysaved companies money.Another important tenet of Demings beliefs was that upper management waslargely to blame

5、 for quality failures. He firmly believed that, given the right tools andworking environment, workers would strive to create the highest quality productspossible. In Demings own words, the basic cause of sickness in American industryand resulting unemployment is failure of top management to manage.

6、He believedthat strong leadership led to an inspired work force that did not fear management anddid not fear taking chances when seeking ways to improve quality.If strong leadership is the buzzword for managers in a quality environment, thenempowerment is the key concept for workers in Demings syste

7、m. Improvededucation and training are the key factors in reaching employees and making thembelieve that their increased participation in the work process is an essential part ofimproving quality. Involvement, participation, and teamwork are seen as absolutemusts if a quality workplace is to be creat

8、ed.The Japanese were the first to adopt Demings Fourteen Points, and with greatsuccess. As an example, Deming learned of one Japanese factory that doubledproduction in just one year and was expecting to gain an additional 25 percentimprovement the following year, with no increase in the amount of ho

9、urs worked. Allthis occurred as a result of simply improving quality. What is most significant aboutthis achievement is the year it happened1951. Many American and Europeancompanies chose to ignore these dramatic results and nearly perished as a result.Critics contend that by the time American manuf

10、acturing plants realized that qualitycontrol was a significant issue, it was the late 1970s and Japanese firms such asHonda and Sony were taking over large portions of the American consumer market.In the 1990s, most American firms have embraced quality control practices.Analysts indicate that when f

11、irms first began adopting these principles, many wenttoo far, becoming bogged down in quality control charts and measurements ofinconsequential operating factors. In too many cases, American industry went fromignoring statistical quality control to applying it to every single facet of a business, no

12、matter how small. This overemphasis quickly disappeared, however, and has beenreplaced by a commitment to overall quality control that is unprecedented in theAmerican workplace.The Scope of Japanese InfluenceBecause they have been practicing quality management since the 1950s, theJapanese are still

13、the leader in producing quality products in a number of industriesand are still the role model for U.S. companies to emulate. For example, a study of theair conditioning industry in the early 1990s found that the worst Japanese airconditioning plant had an error rate that was less than one-half that

14、 of the best U.S.company.This drastic difference is largely due to the Japanese adherence to one ofDemings most important that quality should be designed in to a productinstead of inspected out. Japanese firms treat suppliers as equals, sharinginformation with them as if the supplier was an internal

15、 department of the company.This ensures that quality is already a part of the product before it is evenmanufactured.Another common practice in Japan that has found its way to the United States arequality circles. Workers are brought together on a regular basis to brainstorm aboutquality and manufact

16、uring processes, all with an eye towards improving quality. Thecircles are a success if management follows through on its end of the deal andincorporates the suggestions made in the quality circles into operations. Whenworkers see their suggestions implemented, it increases their confidence inmanage

17、ment and in the company as a whole, which in turn increases theircommitment to the company and to producing high quality goods.A highly trained work force is one of the keys to producing quality goods, andthe training programs of many American companies reflect this recognition, for theyare allocati

18、ng more time and money to this area. Still, many U.S. companies lagbehind in this respect. Researchers have stated that a higher commitment to trainingand lifelong learning are needed if the commitment to quality is to continue.Today, the key components of quality control that were preached by Demin

19、g andpracticed by the Japaneseincluding benchmarking, supplier partnering, andcontinuous improvementhave found their way into American industry. Each ofthese components demands a closer look.BenchmarkingBenchmarking is a continuing process of measuring products, services, andpractices against your s

20、trongest competitors. More simply stated, it means using thebest companies as the yardstick against which your company measures itself. If yourcompany comes up short, than improvements must be made to ensure that yourproducts are just as high in quality as those of your competitor.There are two type

21、s of benchmarking. The first, competitive benchmarking,entails benchmarking against direct competitors in the marketplace. This can includecomparing specific numerical or statistical measurementsreturn on assets used,market share, etc. The more detailed information that can be obtained about acompet

22、itor, the better.The second method, noncompetitive benchmarking, can take two forms. The firstis measuring your company against the best companies in the world, regardless ofindustry. Companies such as 3M, Coca-Cola, and General Electric are considered tobe trendsetters and leaders in quality, so co

23、mpanies from nearly every industry studythem and copy their best practices. Business analysts note that noncompetitivebenchmarking is a broaderand sometimes more usefulinstrument of qualitycontrol. By only benchmarking against competitors, a company only ensures it will beas good as that competitor.

24、 By benchmarking against the best companies in the world,a company can aspire to be as good as those companies and can surpass thecompetition in its own industry. Additionally, companies may find it easier to gainaccess to information about companies they do not compete with because they are notseen

25、 as a threat to the well-being of the company.The second type of noncompetitive benchmarking is internal benchmarking,which involves comparing functions or processes in different departments within thesame organization. Internal benchmarking is often seen as a logical starting point for abusiness th

26、at is attempting to use benchmarking for the first time.To successfully benchmark, a company must first look closely at its ownpractices and conduct a rigorous self-assessment. Once that self-assessment iscompleted, the company has a good idea of where it stands on each quality issue andcan successf

27、ully compare itself to other companies. The self-assessment must behonest and thorough. It should identify weaknesses, but should also highlightstrengths. Improving weaknesses that are identified should be tied to stated companystrategic aims.Supplier PartneringSupplier partnering is an increasingly

28、 common practice in the United States.Simply put, it means that manufacturers work directly with their parts andcomponents suppliers to improve quality at the suppliers location. This can involvedirect participation in the suppliers operationsthat is, staff from the manufacturermight work on-site at

29、 the suppliers office or provide technical assistance andequipmentor simply a very close working relationship that more resembles apartnership rather than a simple business transaction between two unrelatedcompanies.One of the biggest methods of partnering with suppliers involves sharing the useof s

30、tatistical controls. This is an underdeveloped area in the United States that shouldgrow in the coming years. Most manufacturers have switched to outsourcing as ameans of cutting the costs of production. This increased emphasis on outsourcingmeans that the companies that supply the parts or componen

31、ts must place just as muchemphasis on quality as the manufacturer if the finished product is to be high quality.Among the quality issues that still need to be addressed in themanufacturer-supplier relationship are:Inconsistent quality levels from suppliers, even from different plants of thesame supp

32、lier.While most first-level, or Tier 1, suppliers have made a commitment to qualitycontrol, that commitment has yet to be made by Tier 2 suppliers (thosecompanies that supply smaller parts or raw material to the Tier 1 supplier).The importance of quality must trickle all the way down the supply chai

33、n to bemeaningful.In many industries, mergers are occurring at a record pace. Whenever a mergerof two suppliers occurs, there is the chance that quality will suffer while thedetails of the merger are hammered out.In many industries, especially the auto industry, manufacturers are overcomingthese sup

34、plier problems by helping the suppliers meet quality standards.The other facet of supplier partnering means that the manufacturer also activelyseeks out feedback from the supplier on how the formers operations can be improved.Suppliers often have a unique perspective on the industry they work in and

35、 on thecompanies they supply and can provide valuable advice on how to make changes forthe better. When this happens, it is important that the two companies have aframework in place to manage the partnering system. This can mean that themanufacturers purchasing department would be deemed as the inte

36、rmediary betweenthe two companies, passing information from the supplier back to the appropriateinternal customers.Continuous ImprovementContinuous improvement (CI) is a method for improving every facet of acompanys operations and increasing competitiveness by developing a companysresources. The imp

37、rovement can involve many producing products with zerodefects or achieving 100 percent customer satisfactionbut CI has the same basicprinciples no matter what the goal:Involve the entire company at all levelsFind savings by improving existing processes, not by investing more moneyGather data about c

38、ompany operations and quantify that data, which becomesthe baseline against which improvements will be measuredDo not forget that common sense is perhaps the most important component ofCIDo not just give lip service to improvementimplement or practice ideas.Continuous improvement most often involves

39、 creating a team that includesrepresentatives from all areas of the company. The team first spends timelearningabout the company they work for (looking at it in new ways) and aboutother companies (benchmarking is common during this phase). The necessaryquantitative data is created. The team then pro

40、poses solutions to management andbegins to implement those solutions. Once that is achieved, follow-up mechanismsmust be put in place that seek additional improvements as time goes by. The teammight change members with the passage of time, but hopefully it will become anestablished and accepted part

41、 of the company even as its roster changes. If theendeavor works as planned, the team will have improved quality to show as a result ofits initial efforts. This can make even skeptical employees buy into the concept, whichin turn leads to the continued search for even more improvementshence the termcontinuous improvement. Follow-up mechanisms can include regular audits orregularly scheduled meetings to evaluate progress.Other Quality BuzzwordsQuality control and literature about it have become a huge cottage industry in thebusiness world. In addition to the terms outlined in th