Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Cost of quality : Toyota

The recent issue with the Toyota cars makes me wonder whether we understand the true cost of quality - the quality of work or product or service, etc. I was quite fortunate to study the TPS (Toyota Production System) during my masters study many years ago. Frankly, I am fascinated by the Toyota Way. The concept is wonderful and the Kaizen standard is really unbeatable. Practically, everybody in the company is responsible for the continuous improvements that we see in the Toyota cars today. The quality that you see in the Toyota cars comes from years of research and commitment from everybody in the company.

Unfortunately, the recalls and negative news have cast negative spotlight on the company recently. I am not sure what has happened to their standard of quality. But, these issues have caused much negative publicity and will cost them dearly. Many companies have failed because of bad quality products. Now, for Toyota, the cost of quality would be everything. It will either make or break the company.

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