Total Quality Management of Dubai City in Based Companies - Example

Student Name: Instructor Name: Unit Name: Date: Total Quality Management of Dubai City in (United Arab of Emirates) based Companies 1. INTRODUCTION Total Quality Management is one of management strategies adopted by many organizations as a means of achieving quality in the organization from all angles starting from the customers, suppliers to all other business processes that take place in an organization setting (Total quality Management). The main goal or rather the aim of adoption of total quality management in the organization is not just to achieve quality, but also to continually improve the level of quality in the operations of the organization. Over the years, many firms have continually been using TQM as a means of improving their capabilities in all processes so as to attain a fit and a competitive edge over the rest in the market. TQM has provided incremental flow of improvements in many organizations with the flow of improvements starting from the bottom of the organizations’ hierarchy to the top (Hakes). The main focal point of total quality management is customer satisfaction (Kurtus). In an organization, there exists a chain of customers comprising of both internal and external customers. Internal customers exist within the organization and they include all the individuals involved in the product processes where else the external customers are the ultimate users of the products being produced. Achieving and improving quality of the goods produced starts at the beginning of the chain where the workers involved in the production processes presents the supervisor with a quality good (Kurtus). If the supervisor is satisfied with the quality of the good produced, then he/she can dictate the wage of the worker and in the process, the worker gets to keep his/her job, receives promotion or a wage raise and the same happens to the supervisor too. This results into satisfaction of the internal customers which results in improvement of quality of the goods produced. When goods produced are of quality in terms of conformance to specifications, fitness for use and value for the price paid for, results in satisfaction of the external customers (Kotelnikor). On the other hand, the suppliers consist of both internal and external suppliers in an organization. External suppliers are those involved in supplying of raw materials and the necessities for production of finished goods. The quality of external suppliers can be achieved through giving them clear instructions and requirements for the suppliers to be made, and paying them on time or as agreed (Total Quality Management). When the suppliers made are of good and required quality, then the organization is able to produce quality goods to its ultimate customers. Internal suppliers are the employees in the organization whose satisfaction can be achieved and improved through provision of good task instructions to the workers by their supervisors, provision of the right tools and equipments for carrying out the job and provision of good working conditions (Hakes). For an organization to maintain a high competitive position in the market or in the industry it operates in, continuous improvement of the levels of quality for its products and levels of customers’ satisfaction are deemed necessary. An organization can be able to achieve continuous improvement by not just working harder, but by working smarter, valuing workers suggestions and adopting various quality methods such as just-in-time, poke-yoke and variability reduction methods (Kotelnikor). Dubai city is one of the seven emirates in UAE located in the Persian Gulf. Initially, Dubai emerged as an oil economy when oil was discovered in 1966, a thing which attracted massive number of foreign workers and interest from the international oil. Due to its geographic location, Dubai city has emerged to be an international city and a business center. With the opening of a free trade zone around its Jebel Ali port in 1979 which permitted foreign companies free import of labor and export of capital, the city has attracted a large number of investors in its tourism, real estate, oil, motor vehicles and financial sectors, just to mention but a few. One of the Dubai’s leading companies in sale and distribution of auto spare parts is Z2 Group FZCO. Z2 Group FZCO is renown for its broad product portfolio and major presence in the Jebel Ali Free Zone (Z2 Group). Application of TQM in Z2 is very evident as one of its management strategies to drive it towards attainment of a competitive edge over its competitors. Under external customers’ satisfaction, Z2 offers its customers access to a well-organized worldwide distribution system. Z2 sources its products direct from the manufacturers such as Volvo, Scania, Nissan, Toyota, Isuzu and Mitsubishi who are renown in production of quality spare parts globally. By sourcing its spare parts from these manufacturers, Z2 is able to ensure the high standards for its products and ensure their customers access quality spare parts for their vehicles. The prices offered to its customers are competitive in such a way that the products are priced according their value. Before any of the Z2 products is delivered to the customers, they are thoroughly inspected to ensure that they meet the specifications and the requirements of the customer. Quality is among the top most elements upheld by Z2 Group. Evergrow International is another firm located in Dubai city. It exports, imports and stocks goods such as gifts and gift sets, premium watches, radios, key rings, bags, pens, desktop items and other novelties and promotional materials (Evergrow International). In application of TQM in its business operations, Evergrow International manufacturers some of its products such as premium watches and pen sets in a very unique way on by using the modern art of technology. They are quite innovative in that they always have different models of their Infinity and St. Bernard brand watches, and pen sets. They ensure that their customers are satisfied by making sure that their products have a stunning look, they are superior and are of high quality. Quality is achieved by making use of genuine materials in production of these goods which are sources from the best suppliers of watches and pen sets in the world. Innovation is very high at Evergrow International as a way of continually achieving improvement and maintenance of quality of their products. Customer satisfaction is ensured by having a good distribution system which ensures their products are accessed from all its market shares in West Africa such as Nigeria, Senegal and Mali in wide varieties. Due to its attractive prices to the customers, Evergrow International is a popular stop over by traders and visitors in search for unique and quality novelties, gifts and promotional items for purchase. Currently, Evergrow International is undertaking plans to expand its market share in the African region by appointing distributors and agents in the various countries in Africa so as to make sure its products are accessed by the large growing number of customers with ease. In the Dubai’s large oil economy, Petrolube Oil and Grease Company Ltd (PLOGCO) is one of the firms which manufacturers and exports oil products. Among the products manufactured and exported by PLOGCO are grade oils, greases and lubricants all under different brands (Petrolube and Grease Oil Company Ltd). PLOGCO has a very established way of ensuring quality in its products. It has a high-tech manufacturing plant which is equipped with state-of-the-art blending facilities and has devoted lines for additives and base oils. In the manufacturing plant, TQM tool is applied where by high level of controls are maintained in order to increase efficiency in production both in terms of quality and costs, and reduce wastage. Inspections are conducted on all processes in the manufacturing plant through the use of ‘upstream’ preventive management which is focused on pre-event planning and preventions activities as opposed to past-even inspection (Ross). In pre-event inspections, PLGOCO management focuses on identifying areas of potential problems, identifying the possible causes of the anticipated problems and then taking preventive measures to avoid occurrence of the problems. This is also a way of ensuring continuous improvement in PLGCO as the information obtained is used in the control function. After manufacturing all the products must pass through its modern testing laboratory where stringent quality tests are carried out. Nevertheless, all raw materials are also passed through the laboratory to monitor their quality by the PLGCO’s highly trained laboratory personnel. All these activities provide enough evidence that PLGCO has a strong regard to TQM as a management tool. The firm ensures that the products distributed in the market to its customers are of very high quality and standards, hence a sigh that customer satisfaction is a priority in PLGCO. The PLGCO’s staff team is made up of highly trained employees who are from time to time are trained on the emerging trends in the oil manufacturing industry. They are also trained on how to handle the hi-tech machines and equipments in the manufacturing plant where by employees safety is highly observed and maintained. All these contribute to internal customers and suppliers satisfaction who in turn are able to produce quality goods for the satisfaction of the external customers of PLGCO. Rexel Industries is another firm located in Dubai city, the heart of business activities. Rexel Industries is the lead manufacturer, supplier and exporter of steel furniture such as office exports, lockers, cupboards and filing cabinets (Rexel Industries). All these products are produced to the FIRA-UK standards which make sure that the highest level of safety and quality in storage equipment is maintained. Rexel Industries incorporates six sigma model in its manufacturing process. Six sigma model is a management tool commonly associated with TQM which is aimed at improving the quality of outputs by identifying and eliminating the causes of defects in the manufacturing processes (Ross). In order to ensure quality furniture are produced, Rexel Industries has steps which are set and followed in the manufacturing process where by the products are monitored from the first step of manufacturing to the last step. The aim of this process is to ensure products are produced with no defects. By doing this, Rexel Industries is able to produce quality products which satisfy the specifications and requirements of their customers. In addition, Rexel Industries has a wide range of furniture which are used by different categories of individuals. They cater for the needs of people with disability by designing specialized furniture which are used by people with disabilities working in the offices. The filing cabinets and lockers produced and supplied by Rexel Industries comes with different colors, sizes, locking devices and hinges and air ventilation systems all aimed at satisfying different types of customers. TQM is upheld in Rexel Industries as customer satisfaction can be evident from the quality of products it produces and distributes in the market. On the other hand, Rexel workforce is made up of qualified employees who are continually equipped with skills to enable them keep pace with the modern trends in furniture production. 2. IMPORTANCE OF TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT Dubai city has experienced a huge influx of various types of firms dealing with a wide range of products which are exported to the rest of the world. In the recent times, firms are focusing on the customer satisfaction out of the recognition that the customer is the key element behind the success of any given business. Customer satisfaction when an organization or a business embarks on production of quality products in terms of fitness, conformity to specification and in terms of price valued on the products (Kurtus). In order for these firms located in Dubai city to be able to achieve quality in their products and be able to compete competitively in the international market, there is a need to focus on TQM as a management tool which assist firms to achieve quality from all levels and bring about continuous improvements in their processes. TQM is a topic worthy looking at in the firms based in Dubai city in order to evaluate the level of efficiency in these firms in the international market. It is also important to note that TQM as a management tool provides high return on investment through improving efficiency where by the many firms in Dubai city can be able to achieve high returns on their investments through its application; it works similarly well for service and manufacturing sectors where by Dubai city is a hub for both sectors; and it allows organizations to benefit from the developments that enable managing operations as cross-functional processes where by the firms in the Dubai city can be able to take advantage of the numerous developments avenues available within the city, for example, the free trade zone which offers significant business incentives (Kotelnikor). 3. METHODOLOGY Out of the many firms based in Dubai city, this study focused in only four firms namely; Z2 Group FZCO, Evergrow International, Petrolube and Grease Oil Company Ltd (PLGOCO) and Rexel Industries. This is because all the four firms are internationally known as among the best dealers in the specific products which they deal with. They are involved with manufacturing and export of their products to different parts of the world with their major markets being based in Africa. Furthermore they have distributors and agents located in all their major outlets in their target market. Therefore, due to their relatively large market share and international recognition for quality products, the four firms are seen as a good source of information in evaluating the use and application of TQM in firms based in Dubai city. 4. OWN OPINION By adopting TQM in their management process, the firms in Dubai city stands to compete competitively in the global market as TQM will enable these firms to focus on the most important feature behind success of a given firm which is the customers. When TQM is incorporated in management of processes in a firm, the firm is able to identify its customers’ needs, produce quality products according to the customers’ needs and hence satisfaction of the customers resulting to increased success of the organization. With the increased attention Dubai city has been receiving from the international community in terms of human rights and labor issues concerning its large foreign workforce, focusing on quality of the products produced by the Dubai city based firms can help these firms gain at least a good reputation in the international market and this can contribute to success of the Dubai city based firms globally as opposed to its current major market which is Africa. 5. CONCLUSION It is clear that TQM acknowledges that a product is of no value to the customer if it is does not meet the needs of the customer and if it is not what the customer wants (Total quality Management). Embarking on TQM is very essential in ensuring that the firm is producing the products which meet the customers’ needs and wants. Through TQM, an organization or a firm is able to focus on its customers starting from the internal customers to the external customers at the same time focusing on the suppliers and ensuring continuous improvements in all its business processes. Even though it is hard to determine what the customers want due to the changing tastes and preferences, firms can be able to achieve these through TQM which makes use of continued gathering of information from market surveys, customer focus groups, customers’ interviews and employees’ opinions (Hakes). If all firms based in Dubai city are able to implement these in their operations, them UAE will be able to compete with other firms and organizations from the world’s largest economies such as USA, Germany and Japan, and not forgetting the developing economies such as China. By this, UAE will be ranked among the top world’s economy in the next few decades. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1.Evergrow International. 2010. 15 October 2010 . 2. Hakes, C. "Total Quality Management." The Key to Business Improvement. Springer, 2009. 11-16. 3. Kotelnikov, V. "Total Quality Management (TQM)." 2010. E-Coach. 15 October 2010 . 4. Kurtus, R. Basic Principles of Total Quality Management (TQM). 28 May 2001. 15 October 2010 . 5. Petrolube and Grease Oil Company Ltd. 2010. 15 October 2010 . 6. Rexel Industries. 2010. 15 October 2010 . 7. Ross, J. E. & Perrry, S. "Total Quality Management: text, cases and readings." Business/Quality Management/Manufacturing. St. Lucie Press, 2000. 423-426. 8. "Total Quality Mangement." 2010: 140-147. 9. Z2 GROUP. 2010. 15 October 2010 . Read More