Quality is perceived differently by different people.

In a manufactured product, the

customer as a user recognizes the quality of fit, finish, appearance, function, and performance.
The quality of service may be rated based on the degree of satisfaction by the customer receiving
the service. The relevant dictionary meaning of quality is “the degree of excellence.” Of the
many meanings of the word “quality,” two are of critical importance to managing for quality:
- “Quality” means those features of products which meet customer needs and thereby
provide customer satisfaction.
- “Quality” means freedom from deficiencies—freedom from errors that require doing
work over again (rework) or that result in field failures, customer dissatisfaction,
customer claims, and so on.
Food quality also deals with product traceability, (e.g., of ingredient, and packaging
suppliers), should a recall of the product be required. It also deals with labeling issues to ensure
there is correct ingredient and nutritional information.
VARIOUS DEFINITIONS
 Quality is degree of excellance required to meet commodity specification within
given tolerance limit.
 Quality can also defined as composite of those characteristics (attribute) that
differentiate individual units of product and have significance in determining
degree of acceptability of that unit by buyer.
 Quality means conformance to requirements. (Crosby, 1979)
In industrial manufacturing practices, quality can have several definitions, as follows;
1. Product based - Based on features or attributes of the product that enhance quality.
e.g. organically manufactured food products as opposed to regular products.
2. User based – The user determines the quality of product. User based quality as
“fitness for use”. Ex. Ready to eat microwavable dinners as opposed to other forms of
manufactured dinners.
3. Manufacturing based – Conformance to specifications. Manufacturing engineering
specifies the product characteristics and the more closely manufacturing can conform
to those requirements, the better the quality of product.
4. Value based – The element of price is introduced into the definition of quality.
Various types of quality attributes are:
1) Physical attributes: Flavour, color, aroma, taste, texture, shape.
2) Chemical attributes: Moisture content, acidity, starch content, percentage of sugar,
protein, fibre etc.
3) Microbiological attributes: Tolerance limit, total plate count, E.coli
4) Hidden attributes: Toxicity, nutritive value.
OTHER BASIC CONCEPTS OF QUALITY
1. Continuous Improvement
Continuous improvement is an ongoing effort to improve products, services or processes.
Among the most widely used tools for continuous improvement is a four-step quality model—the
plan-do-check-act (PDCA) cycle, also known as Deming Cycle or Shewhart Cycle:
• Plan: Identify an opportunity and plan for change.
• Do: Implement the change on a small scale.
• Check: Use data to analyze the results of the change and determine whether it made a
difference.
  Act: If the change was successful, implement it on a wider scale and continuously assess
the results. If the change did not work, begin the cycle again.
2. Cost of Quality (COQ)
Quality doesn’t cost money. It is poor-quality products and services that pile up extra
costs for organization. Every time work is redone, the cost of quality increases. Obvious
examples include:
• The reworking of a manufactured item.
• The retesting of an assembly.
• The retesting of a product.
• The reworking of a service, such as the replacement of a food order in a restaurant.
3. Reliability
It implies dependability. Reliability introduces the concept of failure and time to failure.
Reliability is the probability that a product will perform its intended function, without failure, for
a specified length of time.
4. Customer Satisfaction
Customers include anyone the organization supplies with products or services. Satisfying
the customer includes providing what is needed when it’s needed. In many situations, it’s up to
the customer to provide the supplier with requirements.
5. Quality System
A quality system is a mechanism that coordinates and maintains the activities needed to
ensure that the characteristics of products, processes or services are within certain bounds. A
quality system involves every part of an organization that directly or indirectly affects these
activities.
6. Quality Control
The term quality control describes a variety of activities. It encompasses all techniques
and activities of an organization that continuously monitor and improve the conformance of
products, processes or services to specifications.
7. Quality Assurance
Quality assurance is defined as the planned and systematic activities implemented in a
quality system so that quality requirements for a product or service will be fulfilled. The
distinction between quality control and quality assurance is stated in an ANSI/ASQ standard:
“Quality control has to do with making quality what it should be, and quality assurance has to do
with making sure quality is what it should be.” The quality assurance function should represent
the customer and be independent of the quality control function, which is an integral part of the
manufacturing operation.
8. Quality Management
Quality management is the means of implementing and carrying out quality policy. They
perform goal planning and manage quality control and quality assurance activities. Quality
management is responsible for seeing that all quality goals and objectives are implemented and
that corrective actions have been achieved.
9. Total quality management
Total quality management, now a well known idea, is a philosophy of management for
continuously improving the quality of products and processes. TQM involves management,
workforce, suppliers, and even customers, in order to meet or exceed customer expectations.
10. Quality Audit
 A quality audit is an independent assessment comparing the various management and
quality activities to a standard. The word independent implies that the person performing the
audit is not associated with the activity being audited. There are two general types of audits:
management and quality system audits and product specific audits.
11. Variation
Variation represents the difference between an ideal and an actual situation. Variation is
inherent in a process over time. It affects every outcome of the process and everyone working in
the process. Managing common cause variation thus requires improvements to the process.
12. Grading
It is a voluntary program of classification of a product based on certain characteristics,
usually related to aesthetics.
13. Inspection
It is the sorting / segregation of non conforming items from the conforming item. It
means separation of defective items from the right items. It is usually a mandatory process done
by Govt. or other agencies to ensure a product’s wholesomeness, safety and adherence to
regulations.