Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Juran
Introduction
Joseph M. Juran made many contributions to the field of quality
management in his 70+ active working years. His book, the Quality
Control Handbook, is a classic reference for quality engineers. He
revolutionized the Japanese philosophy on quality management and in
no small way worked to help shape their economy into the industrial
leader it is today. Dr. Juran was the first to incorporate the human aspect
of quality management which is referred to as Total Quality
Management.
The process of developing ideas was a gradual one for Dr. Juran. Top
management involvement, the Pareto principle, the need for widespread
training in quality, the definition of quality as fitness for use, the project-
by-project approach to quality improvement--these are the ideas for
which Juran is best known, and all emerged gradually.
Quality Control • Prove that the process can produce the product under operating
conditions with minimal inspection.
Dr. Juran’s work in Japan also helped many companies around the world
develop an institutional memory of what it takes to be a quality leader.
In those companies, quality work is properly valued from the lowest-
level worker to the highest-level manager. And a company with a
cultural embrace of quality will continually strive to improve and learn
from past mistakes.
Pareto principle
In 1941 Juran stumbled across the work of Vilfredo Pareto and began to
apply the Pareto principle to quality issues (for example, 80% of a
problem is caused by 20% of the causes). This is also known as "the
vital few and the trivial many". In later years Juran preferred "the vital
few and the useful many" to signal that the remaining 80% of the causes
should not be totally ignored.
Management theory
When he began his career in the 1920s the principal focus in quality
management was on the quality of the end, or finished, product. The
tools used were from the Bell system of acceptance sampling, inspection
plans, and control charts. The ideas of Frederick Winslow Taylor
dominated.
Juran's Trilogy
He also developed the "Juran's trilogy," an approach to cross-functional
management that is composed of three managerial processes: quality
planning, quality control and quality improvement. These functions all
play a vital role when evaluating quality.
Juran was promoted to department chief in 1928, and the following year
became a division chief. He published his first quality related article in
Mechanical Engineering in 1935. In 1937, he moved to Western
Electric/AT&T's headquarters in New York City.
Juran was born in a small village in Romania in 1904. He was the third
of four children and lived in poverty for much of his childhood. His
father left the family in 1909 to find work in America and some three
years later there was enough money for the rest of the family to join him
in Minnesota.
Juran excelled at school in America and his affinity for mathematics and
science meant that he soon advanced the equivalent of three year grades.
He enrolled at the University of Minnesota in 1920 and became the first
member of his family to enter higher education. By 1924 he had earned
himself a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and in 1936 a J.D. in Law at
Loyola University. During his career, Juran has produced many leading
international handbooks, training courses and training books that have
all been widely received and have collectively been translated into 16
languages. He has been awarded more than 40 honorary doctorates,
honorary memberships, medals and plaques around the world. For his
work on quality in Japan he was awarded the Second Order of the
Sacred Treasure for `the development of quality control in Japan …
J. M. Juran's major contribution to society was in the field of quality
management and he is often called the "father" of quality. Perhaps most
importantly, he is recognized as the person who added the managerial
dimension to quality—broadening it from its statistical origins. His
writings are numerous; from the first standard reference work on quality
management, the Quality Control Handbook, to his memoir, Architect of
Quality. We will bring you many of his articles and white papers
through the e-Lifeline.
Dr. Juran notes several premises leading him to the conclusion that our
companies need to chart new direction in managing for quality. He also
notes that those who wish to chart a new course will inevitably be faced
with resistance when creating a unified approach in the form of non-
uniformities inherent in any company. Dr. Juran’s answer to these
obstacles is a universal thought process he calls the “Quality Trilogy.”
The underlying concept of the Quality Trilogy is that managing for
quality consists of three basic quality-oriented processes; quality
planning, quality control, and quality improvement.
A Close Shave
In 1947 Dr. Juran had occasion to examine the test the Gillette Company
was using to evaluate the quality of shaves made by razor blades. His
analysis led to extensive changes in the design of the test, which in turn
contributed to a remarkable improvement in shaving comfort.
Years ago Dr. Juran gave the name "Pareto" to the principle of the "vital
few and trivial many." On subsequent challenge, he was forced to
confess that he had mistakenly applied the wrong name to the principle.
This confession changed nothing – the name "Pareto principle" has
continued in force, and seems destined to become a permanent label for
the phenomenon.
A quality professional from the beginning of his career, Juran joined the inspection branch of the
Hawthorne Co. of Western Electric (a Bell manufacturing company) in 1924, after completing
his B.S. in Electrical Engineering. In 1934, he became a quality manager. He worked with the U.
S. government during World War II and afterward became a quality consultant. In 1952, Dr.
Juran was invited to Japan. Dr. Edward Deming helped arrange the meeting that led to this
invitation and his many years of work with Japanese companies.
Juran founded the Juran Center for Quality Improvement at the University of Minnesota and the
Juran Institute. His third book, Juran's Quality Control Handbook, published in 1951, was
translated into Japanese. Other books include Juran on Planning for Quality (1988), Juran on
Leadership for Quality (1989), Juran on Quality by Design (1992), Quality Planning and
Analysis (1993), and A History of Managing for Quality (1995). Architect of Quality (2004) is
his autobiography.
The Quality Trilogy emphasizes the roles of quality planning, quality control, and quality
improvement. Quality planning's purpose is to provide operators with the ability to produce
goods and services that can meet customers' needs. In the quality planning stage, an organization
must determine who the customers are and what they need, develop the product or service
features that meet customers' needs, develop processes which are able to deliver those products
and services, and transfer the plans to the operating forces. If quality planning is deficient, then
chronic waste occurs.
Quality control is used to prevent things from getting worse. Quality control is the inspection
part of the Quality Trilogy where operators compare actual performance with plans and resolve
the differences. Chronic waste should be considered an opportunity for quality improvement, the
third element of the Trilogy. Quality improvement encompasses improvement of fitness-for-use
and error reduction, seeks a new level of performance that is superior to any previous level, and
is attained by applying breakthrough thinking.
While up-front quality planning is what organizations should be doing, it is normal for
organizations to focus their first quality efforts on quality control. In this aspect of the Quality
Trilogy, activities include inspection to determine percent defective (or first pass yield) and
deviations from quality standards. Activities can then focus on another part of the trilogy, quality
improvement, and make it an integral part of daily work for individuals and teams.
Quality planning must be integrated into every aspect of the organization's work, such as
strategic plans; product, service and process designs; operations; and delivery to the customer.
The Quality Trilogy is depicted below in Figure 2.
Juran's Quality Planning Road Map can be used by individuals and teams throughout the world
as a checklist for understanding customer requirements, establishing measurements based on
customer needs, optimizing
Figure 2
Quality Trilogy
Source: J.M. Juran, Juran on Planning for Quality, The Free Press, New York, pp. 11-
12.
Juran's Quality Trilogy and Quality Roadmap are not enough. An infrastructure for Quality must
be
Figure 3
Dr. Juran's Quality Planning Roadmap
Source: J. M. Juran, Juran on Planning for Quality, The Free Press, NY, 1988, pp.14-
15.
Under the "Big Q" concept, all people and departments are responsible for quality. In the old era
under the concept of "little q," the quality department was responsible for quality. Big "Q" allows
workers to regain pride in workmanship by assuming responsibility for quality.
CONCLUSION
Throughout his career Joseph M. Juran has led a very successful life and
has made many
contributions to the fields of quality control and quality management.
During his career
Juran taught many of society’s leaders and affected the entire world.
There are many
people who haven given quotes of approval regarding Juran. Among
these people are
Steve Jobs founder of Apple Computer and Next, Peter Drucker a writer
and theorist and
Lawrence Appley chairman emeritus of the American Management
Association. The
quote that says the most is given by Jungi Noguchi, Executive Director
of the Japanese
Union of Scientists and Engineers, who stated, “Dr. Juran is the greatest
authority on
quality control in the entire world.” Juran never sought fame through his
work; he only
wanted to make sure that his accomplishments were purposeful and
genuine. Juran was
once quoted saying that “…it wouldn’t bother me if I’m not remembered
at all.” As long
as there is an interest in quality, Juran will not be forgotten.
BIBIOGRAPHY
http://www.public.iastate.edu/~vardeman/IE361/f02mini/
kroh.pdf
http://www.wetherhaven.com/~conversation/Documents/
vitalfew-juran-ppt.pdf
http://www.jmjuran.com/biography.htm
http://www.skymark.com/resources/leaders/juran.asp