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Chapter 20
C. Quality Improvement
1. TERMS AND CONCEPTS
Define basic quality improvement concepts
such as prevention versus detection, the
importance of customer satisfaction, the cost
of poor quality, total quality management
(TQM), etc. (Comprehension)
Body of Knowledge IV.C.1
Prevention versus Detection
Part IV.C.1
Prevention versus detection is a quality improvement concept wherein it is far
more desirable to prevent errors and mistakes prior to their occurrence rather
than attempting to detect errors after they are committed. The logic of prevention
versus detection is generally acknowledged to be based on:
1. The avoidance of escalating costs
2. The likelihood of missing errors as part of the normal inspection process
In the case of avoiding escalating costs, the further into production or service
delivery an error passes, the more expensive it is to rework or scrap the product or
service delivery due to the increasing value-added effort and materials consumed.
In fact, much effort has been expended by industrial and academic research and
development organizations to quantify exactly the financial resources consumed,
and ultimately wasted, for each step or phase into production or service delivery
that bad products or services advance. And while there are many mathematical
models that quantify the costs of errors in specific production or service delivery
operations, the most common model is based on a factor of 10, wherein it is
assumed that the cost to correct an error increases 10 times for each stage or step
in a production or service delivery operation past the point where the original
error was made.
In the case of missing errors as part of the normal inspection process, we
know that the sampling methods used to support the inspection process are based
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