TQM Necessitates Collaboration in BAM Construction Company - Report Example

Name Course Date Title: Application of Total Quality Management in BAM Construction Company Table of Contents Introduction 3 The factors that determine TQM implementation 3 a)Capable leadership 3 b)Customer driven 5 c)Product/services 5 d)Systems 7 e)Process 8 f)Resources utilization 9 g)Human resources development 9 Conclusion 10 References 11 Application of Total Quality Management in TQM Construction Company Introduction Companies are targeting to increase the output and reduce losses through reduction of stock, work in progress, inventory levels and increase in output through the use of new techniques. Total Quality Management (TQM) has been herald as the solution to development problems. It is an organized management system whose objective is to meet the customer’s needed by doing the right things first. The management and employees participate in continuous improvement in the design, development and production of products and services. It integrates management and quality tools with the objective of increasing business and to reduce loss because of inefficiencies. It has been implemented successfully in different sectors including manufacturing and construction sectors. The main principle of TQM, which is important to any organization, is to achieve customer satisfaction (Williams, 2006). This is the objective of many organizations including construction firms like BAM Construction Company (UK). Implementation of TQM in construction industry is quiet challenging. The industry suffers from poor workmanship, cost overrun and timelines. Thus implementation of TQM is a paramount solution, which is both a technique and philosophy in which there is a commitment for continuous improvement, customer satisfaction and motivation of employees. It goes beyond the conventional quality control and quality assurance. The aim of this report is to analyse how TQM is implemented in the BAM Construction Firm in the most efficient and effective way, taking into consideration the relationship between the organizational behaviour, culture, objective and TQM philosophies in the development of a more comprehensive model for the implementation of TQM. BAM Construction Firm is specialized in design, development, refurbishment, construction and operation of outstanding buildings The factors that determine TQM implementation a) Capable leadership For any implementation program to succeed there must be a strong commitment by the leadership and management in an organization. The management should have a good knowledge of TQM. Committed leadership will provide the required resources in terms of money and time to enable improvement (Besterfield et al., 2011; Voehl and Harrington, 2012). The management should draft a mission and vision statements that focus on quality to provide a summary of the philosophy of the organisation with an emphasis on the quality and customer satisfaction. The management also set up and develop policies and procedures for the implementation of TQM process. The quality statement for BAM construction capture quality of services as it states ‘to complete every project in harmony with the customers specified requirements’. The leadership should have the capacity to determine the goals and the opportunities for improvement, as well as the needs of the firm (Besterfield et al., 2011). The communication process is very important as it enables everyone to explain what is going on, get the views on the proposed system and decide on the best way to implement it. Communication is essential when working to meet the customer satisfaction and improve supply and implementation process (Williams, 2006). BAM Construction process consists of a number of participants who include the contractor, sub-contractor, client and vendor. The organizing committee are organized in such a way that the participants relate in an orderly manner such that the information can flow freely and effectively. Good communication provides a flow of ideas to resolve problems related to the project and promote teamwork to complete the task effectively. In other words communication facilitates faster processing and resolution of disagreements and enhances field cooperation (Besterfield et al., 2011). Every project is led by a project manager, who organize a team and make sure that there is integration and good communication horizontally across various departments in the organization. The usual way to manage projects in the construction industry is to manage, control and coordinate projects (Tang, 2005). The managers are given goals for the year. They in turn put together a team, set goals and ensure that there is proper communication and integration across various departments. The project managers are rewarded based on meeting the goals. The challenges in this method include internal conflicts due to competition to meet short term goals, accusations, and poor communication when the goals are not met. Another problem is that the management may focus inward rather than on the customer as well as fabrication of reports of conformity (Kerzner, 2009). b) Customer driven The main focus of TQM is to achieve both internal and external customer satisfaction. According to Shimomura and Kimita, (2013), this can be achieved by first defining the requirements of the client and translating them into standards. Customer satisfaction can be met by implementing the following: Creating customer awareness of the quality management initiative in the organisation Establishing the expectation of the customer Assessing the level of customer satisfaction Work towards improving the satisfaction (Shimomura and Kimita, 2013) The construction project is basically a continuous process where the customers must be satisfied (Goetsch & Davis, 2006). The customers can be the departments or the employees within the organization or can be the contractors, designers or the owners. Thus the customer’s requirements should be defined clearly before beginning the project, and should be agreed by all the consigned parties that include the owners, designers and the contractors. More time is required at the beginning of the project to enable smooth running of the project. The set objectives provide an overview of the scope of the project and provide guidelines for the design process and direction of the construction process as well as determine the project team motivation (Goetsch & Davis, 2006). c) Product/services The policy of the company in harmony with TQM is to provide quality products and services to meet the client’s needs at a lower cost. According to Berger (2007), the main factor in reducing the quality costs is to improve the quality, and the main factor to improve the quality is to perform corrective action. Thus quality costs can be used as a scorecard in determining where the corrective action will yield the greatest return, and thus aid in identifying targets for the corrective action (Berger, 2007). In other words, quality costs are used to assess the effectiveness of TQM, choose quality improvement programs and provide justification of the cost. In order to maximise the results and to demonstrate of quality improvement, it requires bringing together the cost of review, testing, inspection, rework and scrap. This approach is not only effective in increasing the chances of quality improvement, but it also helps in communicating to the management team about the advantage of TQM implementation (Goetsch & Davis, 2006). Cost of quality comprises of cost of appraisal, cost of failure and cost of prevention. These costs signify the difference of the cost of product or service and the reduced cost in case there was no failure of product, substandard service or manufacturing defects. Cost of appraisal are the costs that results from activities used to determine if the process, service or the product are in conformity to the standards, while the costs of prevention are those costs that results from activities used to prevent errors or deviations (Handfield and McCormack, 2007). Continuous Improvement - TQM is a continuous process because it is a combination of improvement techniques and process that are undertaken in a changed management setting. Such environment must be sustained in recurring and regular basis in the life of the enterprises to ensure continuous improvement. A main transformation can be realized through innovation. Avoidance of defects by building in quality will cost less than the usual method of trying to establish defects by inspection (Oakland & Marosszeky, 2006). Thus the shift in procedure and methods should focus on correction and prevention of defects. Continuous improvement will prevent deterioration and maintain improvement. It produces excellence in design, produces teamwork and ensures that there is proper communication in the construction process. According to Low (1998), the main factors for continuous improvement in the construction include the following: Work smoothly in or with groups. Be active a discover future changes and get ready for it Aim at improving the process with the goal of meeting the customer’s expectation. Set higher goals in process improvement and implement the plan. Establish the origin of when diagnosing a malfunction of the system. Be aware of the interdependent and integrated nature of the project process This approach will boost the productivity and reduce waste due to errors as a result save the costs due to the efficiency (Low, 1998). d) Systems The company ensures that their products meets quality specifications. International quality standards (ISO) mainly focus on production process or the company’s work, not mainly on output (Keeney, 2002). But there is a close relationship between the implementation process and the quality of the products. It has been recognized as an international symbol for quality management and it is essential in competitive global market. BAM construction is certified for quality management under ISO 9001:2000. It uses TQM as a driving force for continuous improvement in the construction industry (Keeney, 2002). A successful TQM can be achieved by adopting quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) standards. QA such as ISO 9001 and 9002 sets the level that the services and products must meet. The QA is a continuous process that should be based on the customer’s requirements, but not based on the desires of the designers and suppliers. It change, improves and endeavours to satisfy the competitive, volatile and ever changing market. The standards must go beyond the basic contract documentation and specifications. Understanding the client’s standards including those not easy to determine is vital. After the client is assured of the required products and services, a quality control plan can be formed that will complete the total quality management plan (Chan, 2001). QC is the measure of how the product or services conforms to the tolerances and the specification set out in the design. A good QC plan ensures conformity to the specifications of products and services. Examples of the parameters controlled here include the material size and type, the reliability and the manufacturing tolerances (Chan, 2001; Oakland & Marosszeky, 2006). TQM process must include innovation, taking risk and continuous adaptation. The risks involved can be minimized by training the quality management team at every level of the organization. Customized training programs for technicians, engineers, management and support staff is essential. This include orientation of the procedure and the concept of TQM, which provide employees with knowledge that can be used later to advance the process. This is because TQM requires discipline, participation and orderly approach in order to improve the process (Oakland & Marosszeky, 2006). e) Process Process improvement is called statistical control process since it involves measurement and data analysis for the process to be improved. It is essential to have accurate data for the management and employees when making decisions for innovation or planning for the implementation of the project. The tools used in planning and scheduling process are Gantt charts, CPA and PERT. Graphs check sheets, and histograms can be used to analysis data (Kerzner, 2009). Gant chart is used to represents the schedules for all the activities perform in a project. It is used to track activities or progress for various tasks after putting on the schedule. Each horizontal bar represents a task of a specific timeline representing the start and the end of the project. It is easy to use. An example of Gantt chart is shown below. Network diagram is basically a flowchart of the tasks in the project. The network is generated by influenced the relationship between the predecessor and successor tasks. This approach assists in determining the internal customer for every task (Kerzner, 2009). Network diagram is shown below. f) Resources utilization Procurement process is the process in which materials and services to be used in the project are acquired by the company. It entails selection of the best suppliers, the right professionals, contractors and other associates to the project. The aim is to acquire the project participants in the most effective way. In order to improve the procurement process the following practices are followed. Ensure that the team participating in selection comprise of members from all section of the organization such as engineering, marketing, operation and purchasing. Lay down the procedure for selecting contractors using British standard registration or through preliminary interview or through a questionnaire. Carry out an audit for the firms identified and evaluate if the they have systems and equipment that satisfy the quality plan. Choose the contractor who meets the preset criteria Share the objectives and the policies of the project with contractor and agree to work together as a team. Ensure that the contractor adopt quality approach in the implementation process (Carter, Ulrich & Goldsmith, 2005) g) Human resources development Human resources is very important in an organization where teamwork and personal interaction can produce improvement through better ideas. The people can be very resourceful when they are motivated to use their potentials to create better and new ideas. The employees are rewarded based work or after working for the company after a certain period of time, for example the end of the year. Human resource can be developed through training programs such as best utilization of their skills to further the project welfare (Carter, Ulrich & Goldsmith, 2005). Training is design to bring behavioral change in an organization. Human resource development in the construction industry is the process which the workers are assisted continually in an organized way to: Sharpen their capabilities needed to do different functions and tasks related to their anticipated roles Improve their individual enabling capabilities fro them to discover their potentials fro the organization development. Improve the organization culture where collaboration and teamwork contribute to the professional development and motivation (Carter, Ulrich & Goldsmith, 2005). Given that the application of TQM requires the management and the employees to work differently, it is essential for the management to participate. The organization’s behaviour and culture must change in order to realize the change in behaviour and improved quality (Shimomura, Y., Kimita, 2013). Otherwise, the TQM implementation will not succeed. The top management starting with the CEO are important in TQM implementation. They endorse the TQM concept, provide leadership by forming steering committee and provide the necessary training, help in development of quality goals and policies, provide the required resources in terms of money and time to enable improvement, and reward those people who contribute to improvement (Tang, 2005; Donaldson & Siegel, 2001). Conclusion The implementation of Total Quality Management program has been successful in BAM construction as all the parties such as employees, contractors, owners and the management are involved in the process. It is seen as a responsibility of all parties involved in the project to support TQM implementation. TQM requires collaboration in controlling the project, which aid in achieving total quality in the construction. The continuous development of people produces competent workers and managers who are committed to the organization goals. Thus it is important to increase investment in training programs. The challenges in this technique include internal conflicts that come about as a result competition to meet short term goals, accusations, and reduced communication especially when the goals are not met. Another problem is that the management may focus inward tasks rather than focusing on the customer satisfaction, in fact there are cases where some individuals fabricate report for conformity purposes. Nevertheless, TQM has been proven to bring development in terms of provision of quality products and services in an organization. References Berger, R. W. (2007). The Certified quality engineer handbook. Milwaukee, Wis: ASQ Quality Press. Besterfield D. H., Besterfield-Michna C., Besterfield G. H., Besterfield-Sacre M., Urdhwareshe H., and Urdhwareshe R., (2011). Total Quality Management, Delhi: Pearson Education India Carter, L., Ulrich, D., & Goldsmith, M. (2005). Best practices in leadership development and organization change: How the best companies ensure meaningful change and sustainable leadership. San Francisco: Pfeiffer. Chan, S. Y. (2001). The usefulness of international quality standards (ISO) 9000 certification. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Baptist University, School of Business, Business Research Centre. Donaldson, S. E., & Siegel, S. G. (2001). Successful software development. Upper Saddle River, NJ [u.a.: Prentice Hall PTR. Goetsch, D. L., & Davis, S. B. (2006). Quality management: Introduction to total quality management for production, processing, and services. Upper Saddle River (N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Handfield R. and McCormack K. P., (2007). Supply Chain Risk Management: Minimizing Disruptions in Global Sourcing, Resource Management, CRC Press Low, S. P. (1998). ISO 9000 and the construction industry: Practical lessons. Oxford, England: Chandos Pub. (Oxford) Keeney, K. A. (2002). The ISO 9001:2000 auditor's companion. Milwaukee, Wis: ASQ Quality Press. Kerzner, H. (2009). Project management: A systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons. Oakland J. S, & Marosszeky M., (2006). Total Quality in the Construction Supply Chain, Routledge Williams K., (2006). Introducing Management, 3rd ed., Routledge Tang, S. L. (2005). Construction Quality Management. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. Shimomura, Y., Kimita, K. & CIRP IPS2 Conference (2013). The philosopher's stone for sustainability: Proceedings of the 4th CIRP International Conference on Industrial Product-Service Systems, Tokyo, Japan, November 8th-9th, 2012. Berlin: Springer Read More