Quality Improvement in the Concrete Blocks Production - Thesis Example

The primary question that will be answered in this paper shall be whether or not the implementation of ISO 9001:2008 in the processes involved in the manufacture of concrete blocks will improve the quality of each block manufactured by the organization. The secondary question that will be answered by this dissertation shall be: what are the steps involved in the implementation of ISO 9001:2008?

The third question that needs to be answered will be: what are the organizational processes that will be affected by the implementation of ISO 9001:2008? Another quern that will be posited shall be: how can the quality be improved or maintained when the ISO 9001:2008 is fully operational or implemented already? Using the collective experiences of authors and industry practitioners of ISO 9001:2008 an implementation framework will be developed for an organization that manufactures concrete blocks to ensure if not guarantee its quality (Cia - 1t).

The primary impetus for the organization in ensuring the quality of the concrete blocks they manufacture is to ensure the safety of the people that will be using them (Cia -101). Concrete blocks are used as walls or support structures of buildings. An improperly produced concrete block could result in injury and even death (Kal). Not only it is imperative to ensure the safety of the concrete blocks but also another immediate concern would be to ensure that the whole production process is efficient and can offer a maximum yield.

 The Plan Do Check Act is at the heart of the Toyota way of doing things (Sobek II and Smalley). Toyota has been studied and has written about several times that it is negligent not to include the lessons that we can learn in the way they used the Plan Do Check Act concept in their management style. Toyota is the most successful implementation of the concept and has not stopped developing new ways of improving itself. In the true essence of its adherence to continual improvement in the Plan Do Check Act framework, the “Toyota Way” was developed (Lik - 04).

ISO 9001:2008 and its predecessor Quality Management Systems have strictly used the same concept in the operation and implementation of the ISO framework. All the authors through their work have been one in saying that the first step towards achieving success in the implementation of a Quality Management System is the organization’s determination and dedication to settling the current state of its manufacturing processes. To determine the current state of the manufacturing process to produce quality products the following has to be established first.