National Shipbuilding Research Program. Proceedings of the IREAPS Technical Symposium. Paper No. 20: The Utility of Quality Circles and Productivity Teams in U.S. Shipbuilding.

摘要

Quality circles have been found to improve productivity an average of 12% in 3 to 6 months in a controlled research pilot study performed by Business Innovations, Inc. for the U.S. Department of the Navy. Human relations and job satisfaction were also found to improve within a few months of starting quality circles at four companies. Quality circles (QC's) have been adopted widely by U.S. and Japanese industry and are increasingly finding acceptance in U.S. industry, including shipbuilding. The average return on investment for quality circles is 6 to 1. QC's are a simple, but effective, technique for problem solving which involves employees and increases motivation, communication, and productivity. They are a phenomenon of group dynamics not quality control techniques. Implementation of quality circles needs to be carefully planned and should involve all levels of management and employees. An alternative to quality circles at foreman and management levels is 'productivity teams'. These involve more sophisticated training and the use of industrial engineering techniques. Productivity Panels and quality circles area low cost, high return investment for shipyards to cut costs and turn around companies with lagging sales due to decreased international competitiveness.