Er N B Singh

Philip Crosby, an American management consultant initiated the concept of Zero Defect in the field of Quality Management. The purpose of the system is to eliminate identified defects by prevention of occurrence to a maximum extent, if not completely. The spirit of zero defect is the prevention of defects by doing it the right the first time and every time. This leads to the minimisation of defects to the bare minimum and tending to zero with a drive for continuous improvement. " Doing it right the first time " is less expensive than the costs of detecting and correcting the nonconformity.
All creative and innovative ideas for quality improvement come from the designers and process engineers. But the Japanese realised that creative power was not limited to the designers and engineers only. The shop floor worker manufacturing the product can contribute in the quality improvement programme. For this purpose, the proper environment and motivation is needed. The concept of Quality Circles was introduced by Dr Ishikawa, a Japanese quality expert. Quality Circle was defined as a small group of people who, under the leadership of their own foreman or supervisor, are trained to identify, analyse and solve quality-related problems on a voluntary basis and present their solutions to their managers.
The concept of zero defect and quality circle is practised today in most of the companies of international repute and doing a commendable job in the field of quality management.