5.3 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.3.2 Reduction of variation and waste
The study revealed that QSB implementation resulted in supplier organisations producing less production scrap, which translated to less waste. The reduced scrap should translate to financial savings for the company, however more than half of the respondents expressed a neutral opinion on whether QSB implementation contributes more cost savings.
This means that as much as QSB helps in producing a good quality product with less scrap produced, organisations are still not convinced of the financial gains that flow from QSB implementation. This is not unique to South Africa as the literature revealed contrasting opinions on whether Quality Management Systems implementation results in better financial performance for organisations (Lin & Jang, 2008).
The study also revealed that QSB implementation improved the on-time delivery performance of supplier organisations. This is further confirmation of operational efficiencies brought by Quality Management Systems implementation. Therefore, the objectives of reducing variation and waste in the process and supply chain have been confirmed by the study.
However, requirements for more detailed studies of the impact of Quality Management Systems on supply chain performance and on operational and financial performance have become apparent; particularly in the South African context.
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90 ADDENDUM A
Dear Sir / Madam
I am a General Motors South Africa employee and an MBA student. In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA), at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), I am required to complete a research dissertation on a topic of my choice. The topic I have chosen is an evaluation of the impact of Quality Management Systems at General Motors suppliers. The Quality Management Systems under study is General Motors’ Quality Systems Basics (QSB). I would like to investigate the impact QSB certification or compliance has had in your organisation, particularly your organisation’s shop floor activities. The findings of my survey will be compared to those of other studies and literature on this topic. Based on this, a report will be collated that we are hoping will make a valuable contribution to the body of knowledge in the operations management discipline.
You are part of our selected sample of respondents whose views we seek on the above-mentioned matter. W e would therefore appreciate it if you could answer a few questions that should not take more than fifteen minutes of your time.
Please note for this survey, anonymity is assured and individual questionnaires will only be seen by the researcher.
Thank you in advance for your participation and support.
Luphumlo R. Twala Professor Koot Pieterse Researcher Research Supervisor
91
SECTION A: DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION
Indicate your choice by marking the appropriate block with an (X).
1. My organisation’s name is:
2. I am currently employed as:
A Production Manager A Quality Manager Other (please specify)
3. My highest qualification is:
A Senior Certificate (Matric) National Diploma/ Degree Bachelor’s Degree
Post-Grad. (Please Specify)
4. I have been employed with the company between (how many years)?
0 - 5 years 6 - 10 years 11 - 15 years 16 - 20 years >20 years
5. Is your company QSB certified?
Yes No
6. If not, is your company planning to implement QSB?
Yes No
92
7. If your company is not QSB certified, and is planning to implement QSB, how ready is it for the certification audit?
Not ready at all Some progress made, but more work required
Ready for certification audit
8. How long has your company been QSB certified for?
0 – 3 years 4 – 6 years > 6 years
9. How seriously is QSB implemented in your company’s daily operations?
Totally internalised (implemented seriously) Mostly but not always
Not routinely implemented Not at all
10. What is the workforce size of your company (total number of employees including management)? 1 – 25 employees 26 – 50 employees 51 – 75 employees 76 – 100 employees > 100 employees
11. Is your company certified to any of the following Quality Management Systems?
YES NO
ISO 9001 ISO/TS 16949
93
SECTION B: IMPACT OF QSB CERTIFICATION
Please indicate with an X the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the statements below:
Reduced Product Defects Strongly Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree
R D 1
The information communicated on daily fast response meetings regarding quality problems contributes significantly to reduction of defects. R
D 2
Discipline in documentation of internal and external quality problems have increased significantly since QSB implementation.
R D 3
There have been no recurring customer quality complaints (same quality problem reported more than once) to your company since QSB implementation.
R D 4
In your manufacturing process at least one verification station exist to ensure that the process produces good quality components.
R D 5
Since the implementation of QSB, the highest ranking person (MD or CEO, etc) in your company participates in defect prevention activities [such as Layered Audit Process (LPA)] at regular intervals. R
D 6
Operators and management alike, have become more aware of quality problems since the implementation of QSB.
R D 7
Significant value has been gained towards defect prevention and waste elimination from increased use of tools such LPA and reverse PFMEA, since your company implemented QSB.
R D 8
Fewer defects were produced in your manufacturing process since the implementation of QSB.
R D 9
Significantly fewer customer complaints (PR&Rs) were received by your company, from GM since the implementation of QSB
94
Reduction in Variation and Waste Strongly Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree
RVW1 QSB implementation has contributed significantly to scrap reduction in your manufacturing process.
RVW2 QSB implementation has contributed significantly to on-time delivery to your customers.
RVW3 QSB implementation has resulted in costs savings rather than adding to operating costs. RVW4 QSB implementation in your company has
resulted in your company placing more emphasis / focus on the performance of your suppliers.
RVW5 A significant improvement in managing engineering/technical changes was achieved since the implementation of QSB.
RVW6 Given an option, you would voluntarily implement QSB in your company because it presents additional benefits over and above those derived from TS 16949 implementation.