ADVANCED QUALITY PLANNING


Before we address the "why" of planning, we assume that things do go wrong. But why do they go wrong? Obviously, many specific answers address this question. Often the answer falls into one of these four categories:

  1. We never have enough time, so things are omitted.

  2. We have done this, this way, in order to minimize the effort.

  3. We assume that we know what has been requested , so we do not listen carefully .

  4. We assume that because we finish a project, improvement will indeed follow, so we bypass the improvement steps.

In essence then, the customer appears satisfied, but a product, service, or process is not improved at all. This is precisely why it is imperative for organizations to look at quality planning as a totally integrated activity that involves the entire organization. The organization must expect changes in its operations by employing cross-functional and multidisciplinary teams to exceed customer desires ” not just meet requirements. A quality plan includes, but is not limited to:

  • A team to manage the plan

  • Timing to monitor progress

  • Procedures to define operating policies

  • Standards to clarify requirements

  • Controls to stay on course

  • Data and feedback to verify and to provide direction

  • An action plan to initiate change

Advanced quality planning (AQP), then, is a methodology that yields a quality plan for the creation of a process, product, or service consistent with customer requirements. It allows for maximum quality in the workplace by planning and documenting the process of improvement. AQP is the essential discipline that offers both the customer and the supplier a systematic approach to quality planning, to defect prevention, and to continual improvement. Some specific uses are:

  1. In the auto industry, demand is so high that Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors have developed a standardized approach to AQP. That standardized approach is a requirement for the QS-9000 and/or ISO/TS19469 certification. In addition, each company has its own way of measuring success in the implementation and reporting phase of AQP tasks .

  2. Auto suppliers are expected to demonstrate the ability to participate in early design activities from concept through prototype and on to production.

  3. Quality planning is initiated as early as possible, well before print release.

  4. Planning for quality is needed particularly when a company's management establishes a policy of "prevention" as opposed to "detection."

  5. When you use AQP, you provide for the organization and resources needed to accomplish the quality improvement task.

  6. Early planning prevents waste (scrap, rework , and repair), identifies required engineering changes, improves timing for new product introduction, and lowers costs.

  7. AQP is used to facilitate communication with all individuals involved in a program and to ensure that all required steps are completed on time at acceptable cost and quality levels.

  8. AQP is used to provide a structured tool for management that enforces the inclusion of quality principles in program planning.

WHEN DO WE USE AQP?

We use AQP when we need to meet or exceed expectations in the following situations:

  1. During the development of new processes and products

  2. Prior to changes in processes and products

  3. When reacting to processes or products with reported quality concerns

  4. Before tooling is transferred to new producers or new plants

  5. Prior to process or product changes affecting product safety or compliance to regulations

The supplier ” as in the case of certification programs such as ISO 9000, QS9000, ISO/TS19469, and so on ” is to maintain evidence of the use of defect prevention techniques prior to production launch. The defect prevention methods used are to be implemented as soon as possible in the new product development cycle. It follows then, that the basic requirements for appropriate and complete AQP are:

  1. Team approach

  2. Systematic development of products/services and processes

  3. Reduction in variation (this must be done, even before the customer requests improvement of any kind)

  4. Development of a control plan

As AQP is continuously used in a given organization, the obvious need for its implementation becomes stronger and stronger. That need may be demonstrated through:

  1. Minimizing the present level of problems and errors

  2. Yielding a methodology that integrates customer and supplier development activities as well as concerns

  3. Exceeding present reliability/durability levels to surpass the competition's and customer's expectations

  4. Reinforcing the integration of quality tools with the latest management techniques for total improvement

  5. Exceeding the limits set for cycle time and delivery time

  6. Developing new and improving existing methods of communicating the results of quality processes for a positive impact throughout the organization

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AQP AND APQP?

AQP is the generic methodology for all quality planning activities in all industries. APQP is AQP; however, it emphasizes the product orientation of quality. APQP is used specifically in the automotive industry. In this book, both terms are used interchangeably.

HOW DO WE MAKE AQP WORK?

There are no guarantees for making AQP work. However, three basic characteristics are essential and must be adhered to for AQP to work. They are:

  1. Activities must be measured based on who, what, where, and when.

  2. Activities must be tracked based on shared information (how and why), as well as work schedules and objectives.

  3. Activities must be focused on the goal of quality-cost-delivery, using information and consensus to improve quality.

As long as our focus is on the triad of quality-cost-delivery, AQP can produce positive results. After all, we all need to reduce cost while we increase quality and reduce lead time. That is the focus of an AQP program, and the more we understand it, the more likely we are to have a workable plan.

ARE THERE PITFALLS IN PLANNING?

Just like everything else, planning has pitfalls. However, if one considers the alternatives, there is no doubt that planning will win out by far. To be sure, perhaps one of the greatest pitfalls in planning is the lack of support by management and a hostile climate for its practice. So, the question is not really whether any pitfalls exist, but why such support is quite often withheld and why such climates arise in organizations that claim to be "quality oriented."

Some specific pitfalls in any planning environment may have to do with commitment, time allocation, objective interpretations, tendency toward conservatism, and an obsession with control. All these elements breed a climate of conformity and inflexibility that favors incremental changes for the short term but ignores the potential of large changes in the long run. Of these, the most misunderstood element is commitment.

The assumption is that with the support of management, all will be well. This assumption is based in the axiom of F. Taylor at the turn of the 20th century, which is "there is one best way." Planning is assumed to generate the one best way not only to formulate , but to implement, a particular idea, product, and so on. Sometimes, this notion is not correct. In today's "agile world," we must be prepared to evaluate several alternatives of equal value. (See the section on system engineering).

As a consequence, the issue is not simply whether management is committed to planning. It is also, as Mintzberg (1994) has observed , (1) whether planning is committed to management, (2) whether commitment to planning engenders commitment to the process of strategy making, to the strategies that result from that process, and ultimately to the taking of effective actions by the organization, and (3) whether the very nature of planning actually fosters managerial commitment to itself.

Another pitfall, of equal importance, is the cultural attitude of "fighting fires." In most organizations, we reward problem solvers rather than planners. As a consequence, in most organizations the emphasis is on low-risk "fire fighting," when in fact it should be on planning a course of action that will be realistic, productive, and effective. Planning may be tedious in the early stages of conceptual design, but it is certainly less expensive and much more effective than corrective action in the implementation stage of any product or service development.

DO WE REALLY NEED ANOTHER QUALITATIVE TOOL TO GAUGE QUALITY?

While quantitative methods are excellent ways to address the "who," "what," "when," and "where," qualitative study focuses on the "why." It is in this "why" that the focus of advanced quality planning contributes the most results, especially in the exploratory feasibility phase of our projects.

So, the answer to the question is a categorical "yes" because the aim of qualitative study is to understand rather than to measure. It is used to increase knowledge, clarify issues, define problems, formulate hypotheses, and generate ideas. Using qualitative methodology in advanced quality planning endeavors will indeed lead to a more holistic, empathetic customer portrait than can be achieved through quantitative study, which in turn can lead to enlightened engineering and production decisions as well as advertising campaigns .

HOW DO WE USE THE QUALITATIVE METHODOLOGY IN AN AQP SETTING?

Since this volume focuses on the applicability of tools rather than on the details of the tools, the methodology is summarized in seven steps:

  1. Begin with the end in mind. This may be obvious; however, it is how most goals are achieved. This is the stage where the experimenter determines how the study results will be implemented. What courses of action can the customer take and how will they be influenced by the study results? Clearly understanding the goal defines the study problem and report structure. To ensure implementation, determine what the report should look like and what it should contain.

  2. Determine what is important. All resources are limited and therefore we cannot do everything. However, we can do the most important things. We must learn to use the Pareto principle (the vital few as opposed to the trivial many). To identify what is important, we have many methods, including asking about advantages and disadvantages, benefits desired, likes and dislikes, importance ratings, preference regression, key driver analysis, conjoint and discrete choice analysis, force field analysis, value analysis, and many others. The focus of these approaches is to improve performance in areas in which a competitor is ahead or in areas where your organization is determined to hold the lead in a particular product or service.

  3. Use segmentation strategies. Not everyone wants the same thing. Learn to segment markets for specific products or services that deliver value to your customer. By segmenting based on wants, engineering and product development can develop action oriented recommendations for specific markets and therefore contribute to customer satisfaction.

  4. Use action standards. To be successful, standards must be used, but with diagnostics. Standards must be defined at the outset. They are always considered as the minimum requirements. Then when the results come in, there will be an identified action to be taken, even if it is to do nothing. List the possible results and the corresponding actions that could be taken for each. Diagnostics, on the other hand, provide the "what if" questions that one considers in pursuing the standards. Usually, they provide alternatives through a set of questions specific to the standard. If you cannot list actions, you have not designed an actionable study. Better design it again.

  5. Develop optimals. Everyone wants to be the best. The problem with this statement is that there is only room for one best. All other choices are second best. When an organization focuses on being the best in everything, that organization is asking for failure. No one can be the best in everything and sustain it. What we can do is focus on the optimal combination of choices. By doing so, we usually have a usable recommendation based on a course of action that is reasonable and within the constraints of the organization.

  6. Give grasp-at-a-glance results. The focus of any study is to turn people into numbers (wants into requirements), numbers into a story (requirements into specifications), and that story into action (specifications into products or services). But the story must be easy to understand. The results must be clear and well-organized so that they and their implications can be grasped at a glance.

  7. Recommend clearly. Once you have a basis for an action, recommend that action clearly. You do not want a doctor to order tests and then hand you the laboratory report. You want to be told what is wrong and how to fix it. From an advanced quality planning perspective, we want the same. That is, we want to know where the bottlenecks are, what kind of problems we will encounter, and how we will overcome them for a successful delivery.

APQP INITIATIVE AND RELATIONSHIP TO DFSS

The APQP initiative in any organization is important in that it demonstrates our continuing effort to achieve the goal of becoming a quality leader in the given industry. Inherent in the structure of APQP are the following underlying value-added goals:

  1. Reinforces the company's focus on continuous improvement in quality, cost, and delivery

  2. Provides the ability to look at an entirely new program as a single unit

    • Preparing for every step in the creation

    • Identifying where the greatest amount of effort must be centered

    • Creating a new product with efficiency and quality

  3. Provides a better method for balancing the targets for quality, cost, and timing

  4. Allows for deployment of the targets using detailed practical deliverables with specific timing schedule requirements

  5. Provides a tool for program management to follow up all program planning processes.

The APQP initiative explicitly focuses on basic engineering activities to avoid concerns rather than focusing on the results in the product throughout all phases. Based on the fact that the deliverables are clearly defined between departments (supplier/customer relationships), program concerns and issues can be solved efficiently .

The APQP initiative also is forceful in viewing the review process at the end of the cycle as unacceptable. Rather, the review must be done at the end of each planning step. This provides a critical step-by-step review of how the organizations are following best possible practices. Also, the APQP initiative has a serious impact on stabilizing the program timing and content. Stabilization results in cost improvement opportunities including reduction of special sample test trials. Understanding the program requirements for each APQP element from the beginning provides the following advantages:

  • Clarifies the program content

  • Controls the sourcing decision dates

  • Identifies customer- related significant/critical characteristics

  • Evaluates and avoids risks to quality, cost, and timing

  • Clarifies for all organizations product specifications using a common control plan concept

Application of APQP in the DFSS process provides a company with the opportunity to achieve the following benefits:

  1. It provides a value-added tool allowing program management to track and follow up on all the program planning processes ” focusing on engineering method and quality results.

  2. It provides a critical review of how each organization is following best possible practices by focusing on each planning step.

  3. It identifies the complete program content upon program initiation, viewing all elements of the process as a whole (AIAG 1995; Stamatis 1998).

Once program content has been clarified, the following information can be discerned:

  1. Sourcing decision dates are identified.

  2. Customer-related significant/critical characteristics are specified.

  3. Quality, cost, and timing risks are evaluated and avoided.

  4. Product specifications are established for all organizations using a common control plan concept.

Using the APQP process to stabilize program timing and content, the opportunities for cost improvement are dramatically increased. When we are aware of the timing and concerns that may occur during the course of a program, it provides us the opportunity to reduce costs in the following areas:

  1. Product changes during the program development phase

  2. Engineering tests

  3. Special samples

  4. Number of verification units to be built ( prototypes , first preproduction units, and so on)

  5. Number of concerns identified and reduced

  6. Fixture and tooling modification costs

  7. Fixture and tooling trials

  8. Number of meetings for concern resolution

  9. Overtime

  10. Program development time and deliverables (an essential aspect of both APQP and DFSS)

For a very detailed discussion of APQP see Stamatis (1998).




Six Sigma and Beyond. Design for Six Sigma (Vol. 6)
Six Sigma and Beyond: Design for Six Sigma, Volume VI
ISBN: 1574443151
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 235

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