Quality management

Evidently, common property solutions are always associated with lower levels of social welfare than what could be achieved under optimal manage- ment. Two interesting questions arise then: how big is this welfare loss and what can be done about it? The answer to the first question should allow decision makers to decide whether or not to intervene in the aquifer; if inter- vention is desirable, the answer to the second question should allow them to decide on the most appropriate type of policy instrument to apply. The size of the welfare loss brought about by common property arrangements is largely an empirical question. In water quantity management, a few studies exist, beginning with Gisser and Sanchez [5], although results vary somewhat (see Provencher [15] for a survey). However, for quality management, perhaps due to the negative impacts on public health often associated with contami-

For an illustration one sample from subject Basic statistical methods of quality management is shown. Firstly brief statement is mentioned, an algorithm of manual computation without the help of the software then follows. This computation is verified by the software, which is used during education and it is free for students. The algorithm in the software is described in detail.

Abstract: Problem statement: The aim of this study is to identify the extent to which Information Technology (IT) has been used to support TQM in order to identify the role of IT in implementing Total Quality Management (TQM). The primary emphasis of this study was on how IT provides help and supports in TQM processes rather than on TQM performance. This has many policy implications for different firms that are welling to enhance the role of IT in different aspects of their TQM. Approach: The questionnaire survey was used as the data collection method. Data were analysed using SPSS programme. This study is limited only to the managers of operations departments in different companies at Sohar Industrial Estate in Oman. Results: The results of the research indicate that the usage of IT is not the same among the different TQM dimensions. The highest level of IT support was used in information and analysis, output quality assurance and important innovation. While the lowest level of IT support was used in quality results and supplier quality assurance. Conclusion/Recommendations: As IT role should be enhanced in modifying work processes in order to improve product quality and productivity. Value and international implications: This study is the first to be applied in Gulf area, an area that exhibits arapid groth and presence of international companies.

SCQM involves changes in the structure, context (culture, values and political system) and processes of an organisation. he logic of structural, contextual and procedural changes seems to be the best sequence of activities for quality management implementation to reach the maximum result. Such a change provides lasting and signiicant positive results. Systems thinking, process mapping and process capability analysis in the SCQM model, help to identify opportunities to improve outcomes by improving structures and processes. Further, the SCQM’s approach to the change is fundamental, gradual and evolutionary. It considers a comprehensive change at individual, teams and organisational levels. In SCQM, the emphasis is on redesigning simpler, standardised and more efective processes, determining reasonable and achievable objectives for processes, and improving them continually and continuously until objectives are achieved. Employees using problem-solving techniques evaluate the ability of the processes to reduce variation and provide high quality and defect-free services. hey plan for the desired situation and change the organisation accordingly. As a result, they would be more motivated and committed.

24 with requirements as priority and enhancement as secondary; ii) quality as “impression management”, meaning the “stage-managed” preparations for external assessment; iii) quality as a “burden”, particularly “administrative and cost burden”, in the words of Laughton (2003, p. 309), and “part of an inspectorial compliance culture”; iv) quality as “failure to close the loop”, meaning the exclusion of key areas; v) quality as “suspicion of management motives” or, as argued by Harvey (2006, p. 290) “manifestation of managerialist control”, monitoring and controlling the academic work and weakening the academic autonomy; vi) quality as “lack of mutual trust”, emphasising the accountability of front-line academics; vii) quality as “a culture of getting by” where front-line academics, constrained by lack of time, deal with confusing demands. The lack of time to deal with the quality requirements and the bureaucracy associated with the quality management procedures are indeed a weakness stressed by academics and one recurring factor for their resistance to quality management (Harvey, 2006; Laughton, 2003; Newton, 2002).

initial alternatives of managerial systems, they identified the quantities of all quadruple criteria in the balanced evaluation card. In the next stage, using weights network analysis process, all decision making criteria are determined and finally by indentifying limitations and using 0-1 linear programming method, the optimum mix for selection of managerial systems is presented. However, in their method, several indices of balanced evaluation card are not identified. Further, the problem was solved by a definite approach. Thawesaengskulthai (2008) presented a method to determinate the quality management and consistent improvement. In the selection of quality management systems, first he presents the quality management systems selection model in the form of a hierarchical model and he determined criteria and sub-criteria for selecting quality management systems based on deductive and inductive approaches and weights of criteria and sub-criteria is identified using experts’ consensus mechanism. Finally, the relative significance of alternatives is determined using questionnaires and experts’ opinions and the quality management systems were ranked by simple weight averaging from values determined by experts. In Thawesaengskulthai's method, facilitating assumptions were used for determining weights and calculating agents are simple. In addition to this, organizational limitations were not included in selecting quality management systems. In the proposed method of this article, fuzzy AHP method was used for ranking quality management systems, then using the obtained results and organizational limitations, a 0-1 linear programming was proposed for selecting the best optimal mix for aerial industries research center. In this paper, we present an empirical method based on his approach to select the most appropriate quality applications. The organization of this article is as follows. We first present the proposed method in section 2 and the results from applying the proposed method in the selection of quality management systems in aerial industries research center are examined in section 3. Finally, concluding remarks are given in the last section to summarize the contribution of the paper.

Modern organizations nowadays do their business under very complex and changeable conditions, which require a constant adjustment to very turbulent environment, in order to exist and carry on with efficient work. Without project management organisations cannot adjust themselves to all changes and function efficiently. Project management, as a special management discipline, is developing more and more and is in accord with fast management development as a general science about managing the business and other systems and undertakings. From using basic concept based on software packages, we have reached forming and using new areas such as project quality management, project risk management, human resources management, project communications management, project changes management...

Abstract: Producing high quality beef asks for the implementation of a performing management of raising cattle ecologically. The main ways of improving beef quality management have a technical nature: sustainable grazing management to conserve floral diversity and to obtain ecological beef and rational distribution of the cattle over the grassland to facilitate vegetation recovery and to avoid the setting of invasive species. Implementing a sustainable management of the resources in the neighborhood of animal farms has beneficial effects on beef quality, brings good economic income through the practice of best beef quality management, protects the environment long-term, and reduces infrastructure expenses thus avoiding the risks of meat contamination.

abordagem axiomática utilizada no desenvolvimento deste trabalho mostrou viabilidade de aplicação, bem como um significativo potencial na estruturação de uma metodologia para construção e sistematização de um modelo de gestão da qualidade, que não deve estar unicamente pautado no pragmatismo das certificações de sistemas da qualidade, mas que possa também captar certas abstrações e complexidades relativas ao contexto em que se inserem as organizações. A caracterização dos atributos do cliente (CAs) e a definição dos requisitos funcionais buscando contemplar tais atributos do cliente, direciona para o que se pode denominar de “boas práticas” de projeto, além de contemplar aspectos tão citados e almejados por modelos de gestão da qualidade com enfoque no TQM (Total Quality Management), no sentido de estarem focados e direcionados pelos clientes.

If quality management was proved to be an important approach to make organizaions operate beter and thus to contribute to well-being of the society, it would be expected that it is somehow included in our regular school pro- grammes on all the levels. We expect that learning and living quality approaches in childhood and youth would be the least costly way to improve the culture of quality in the society and to implement it in our organizaions as well. The paper gives some insight in the situaion by searching for quality management related programmes and ap- proaches in our primary, secondary and teriary school programmes. The purpose of this paper is only to highlight the issue of teaching for quality in our regular educaion programmes – just to become aware of it and to find some improvement opportuniies. There should be sill some more detailed research on this topic to give strong sugges- ions.

The present paper discusses the idea of kaizen and its role as part of Total Quality Management philosophy. The major points of interests are the core of the kaizen philosophy and what can be learned from it, implementation requirements and the importance of quality culture as one of the most important determinant of successful integration of organization on market. This philosophy stresses the high importance of working environment as actual place of improvement and as source of information regarding improvement of organization area.

42 While social quality management practices are social/behavioural practices, technical quality management relates to mechanical methods. For instance, quality training, cross-functional cooperation and long-term supply chain relationships are practices which are included in the first dimension. On the other hand, just-in-time and design for manufacturability are practices which are included in the second dimension, focusing on controlling processes and products making sure established requirement are fulfilled (Schniederjans and Schniederjans, 2015). According with the authors most studies fail to understand the potential contingency factors, being this a reason why the literature is not conclusive regarding whether there is a positive or negative linkage between quality and innovation. Schniederjans and Schniederjans (2015) developed their research assuming the structural contingency theory that states the firm must align its contingencies with external and internal environment factors. Organization size, organizational task and managerial ethical evaluation are the factors that may influence a positive or negative relationship between quality and innovation. The first concept relates with organization dimension in terms of number of employees. Organizational task refers to task uncertainty and interdependence, being the first related to lack of information and the second individuals’ perception regarding their tasks dependence. The last concept, managerial ethical evaluation, depends on teleological evaluation, which depends on perceiving consequences of different alternative for stakeholders, and on deontological evaluation, which is the process of comparing alternatives regarding perceived moral obligations (Schniederjans and Schniederjans, 2015). Managers should understand which contingencies they are facing concerning the mentioned dimensions (organizational size, organizational task and managerial ethical evaluation) so that they are able of using the best processes and practices given the situation and consequently improve innovation performance.

There has only been limited research on instruments to assess the progress and performance of DQM initiatives, usually named data quality management maturity models 3 , the exception being, to our best knowledge, the models developed in [24], [25] and [26]. Furthermore, there are some well publicized practitioners’ approaches, like the ones from [27, 28, 42], although they are lacking an underlying theory base. In the context of this work, we will use two important stages coming from the consultants’ side 4 [28], because they are widely used by practitioners, namely in our case study context. These stages are called reactive and proactive, although they are not disjoint, as one organization can be simultaneously in both stages, despite the objective being to attain the proactive and the governed ones.

that mainly address clinical components and resource use, and on the other an interrelated set of assumptions, expectations and expressions), which are only ‘loosely coupled’ [38]. Accord- ing to Orton and Weick, a ‘loose coupling’ between a management policy and procedures in a clinical department provide the advantage of flexible organization, reaction to local (patients’) needs and local problem solving. On the other hand, in loosely coupled systems systematic changes are more difficult to implement, inhibiting an organization’s strategic development [39, 40]. More fundamentally, loose coupling may reflect a situation where hospitals created a ‘facade’ of quality management strategies to attract recognition, funding, patients and status, while not successfully pursing their implementation. In addition, management policies and procedures might be implemented in different ways and supported by different management styles. In a related study that used the same dataset, we assessed the relationships between orga- nizational culture, organizational structure and quality management. Of the participating hos- pitals, 33% had a clan culture as their dominant culture type, 26% an open and developmental culture type, 16% a hierarchical culture type and 25% a rational culture type. Our findings sug- gest that the type of organizational culture was not associated with the development of quality management in hospitals [41].

The article determines the problems of enterprises switch to quality management system in the modern context, characterizes Total Quality Management. Keywords: competitiven[r]

The present paper addresses quality management from the specific perspective of project management consulting service providers, in the framework of large infrastructure projects. Because of their supposed superiority in knowledge and experience, project management consultants have an ultimate responsibility for the proper implementing of the project. Therefore, quality management in consulting organizations should focus on critical success factors. As there is no consensus yet regarding the most important aspects of the consulting activity on which depend the achievement of the project aims, there is scope for further investigating this subject. Here, the case of a project management consulting organization involved in large infrastructure projects in Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, Ukraine and Serbia is analyzed. Data collected through a questionnaire-based survey among international consultants and support personnel suggest that factors related to leadership style and communication skills are more closely tied to the success of the project than more technical aspects. The results constitute an empirical evidence of main success factors for specialized consulting services in project management and can be useful in improving business and project performance and achieving business excellence.

In most urban areas of the world, particulate matter (PM) levels pose severe problems, addressed in several policy areas (air quality, climate change, and human health). PM presents multiple challenges due to the multitude of its sources, spanning many sectors of economic activity as well as nature, and due to the complexity of atmospheric processes involved in its transport and secondary formation. For the authorities, the goal is to assure minimal impacts of atmospheric PM levels, in practice represented by compliance with existing regulations and standards. This may be achieved through an air quality mana- gement plan (AQMP). In Northern America and in parts of Europe, comprehen- sive research programs have guided development of AQMP over the last forty years. This cumulated experience can be utilized by others who face the same problems, but have yet to develop their own substantial research base. The main purpose of the AQMP development process is to establish an effective and sound basis for planning and management of air quality in a selected area. This type of planning will ensure that significant sources of impacts are iden- tified and controlled in the most cost-effective manner. The choice of tools, me- thods and input information is often dictated by their availability, and should be evaluated against current best practices. Important elements of the AQMP are the identification of sources and development of a complete emission inven- tory, the development and operation of an air quality monitoring programme, and the development and application of atmospheric dispersion models. A major task is to collect the necessary input data. The development of the AQMP will take into account: Air Quality Management System (AQMS) requirements, operational and functional structure requirements, source identification through emission inventories, source reduction alternatives, which may be imple- mented, mechanisms for facilitating interdepartmental cooperation in order to assure that actions are being taken and institutional building and training re- quirements. This paper offers a practical guide through the different parts of the air quality management and planning procedures.

Training  courses  and  certificates  of  competence  are  required  for  drivers  and  attendants  in  many  countries,  through  mandatory  laws  (i.e. Europe)  or  codes  of  practice  (i.e. Australia  and  New  Zealand).  According  to  the  OIE  guidelines  for  the  transport  of  animals  by  land  (56),  the  competence  of  animal  handlers  should  be  described  in  a  certificate  issued  by  a  ‘competent  authority’  or  from  an  accredited  independent body. This is also provided for in  European  Union  Regulation  1/2005  which  states  that  training  courses  should  include,  among  other  things,  practical  aspects  of  the  handling  of  animals  and  an  understanding  of  the impact of driving behaviour on the welfare  of  transported  animals  (17).  The  method  of  payment  of  drivers  and  attendants  can  be  of  considerable  importance  for  welfare  during  transport (1). Bonuses have been suggested for  reducing fuel consumption, so as to encourage  slower  driving  with  fewer  accelerations  (30).  Bonuses given for meat quality upon delivery  of the animals (for example a limited number  of dark firm dry [DFD] or pale soft exudative  [PSE]  cases)  can  also  be  used  to  improve  animal welfare (13, 28). 

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  To manufacture quality products or provide services at competitive prices is essential to survive in today's  business climate. We are forced to look for better ways of doing things on continual basis. To meet customer's  needs ‐ on their schedule ‐ requires  high  availability and reliability of equipment and systems when they are  needed.  )n  the  maintenance  and  reliability  field,  professionals  are  constantly  challenged  to  implement  the  best way to ensure equipment is available as and when it is needed at a reasonable cost.  These are called best  practices,  but  it  is  not  as  simple  as  putting  something  into  effect.  To  truly  realize  a  best  practice  requires  learning,  re‐learning,  benchmarking  and  implementing  better  ways  of  ensuring  high  reliability  and  availability of equipment and systems. Any system performance improvement processes in an enterprise, and  more lean manufacturing  particularly is effective when internal processes are stable and controlled [ ]    For this reason, companies wishing to become or to stay competitive, they need competent persons in the  planning  and  control  processes,  but  also  identify  specific  methods  for  improving  internal  coordination  change.  )t  is evident  that the  development  needs  economic  performance  is about  upgrading the  skills and  human  resources  areas  such  as:  labor  organization,  design‐sizing‐measure‐control‐  improvement  ‐  management  of  business  processes,  quality  management,  change  management,  risk  management,  project   management, with direct consequences on labor productivity and competitiveness performance [ ,  ]. Some  companies  have  already  made  a  beginning  by  introducing  and  certification  systems  quality  management,  known as reference standards for these systems focus on identifying key processes and process leaders [ ].   The  organization  and methods  correctly sized  is  designed  initially  planned  performance  level  and  process  control. To pass on a new level of performance it is necessary to apply a continuous improvement procedure  the results obtained [ ].