Q4.

The Problem
Zhang and Liu should follow the instructions of Qicai who said “Quality department is right. I hope Quality
Department continues to put Quality first. I hope production department has these products reworked.
Meeting the delivery deadline is secondary”. The problem with practices in Baolong can be seen below :-
Reactive Quality Management
Conflict between Quality and Delivery Deadlines
Inspections were reactive and wasteful. They didn't prevent defects from happening.
Generated more costs and led to rejection of entire batches.
As a result they had less than estimated stocks for delivery leading to higher lead times to produce newer batches
Orders were not able to meet deadlines leading to higher costs due to wastage
Certain orders had to be flown personally to meet deadlines which resulted in increased costs
The following were the causes of the problems :-
• Traditional production model
• Piece rate wages – which acted as an incentive for bulk production without any focus on quality
• Mass production – Variability is usually hidden in mass production and detected only later at the inspection stage.
• Overemphasis on low costs – Costs should not be the only deciding factor in manufacturing decisions. For e.g., selecting a
supplier based on only costs can be detrimental to the overall process
• No proper training – Low skilled workers did not know where to concentrate and how to implement lean practices
Practices to follow the chosen instructions
This set of instructions should be chosen because focusing on quality is a long term asset, it
not only brings out the hidden problems like over production, high wastage etc. but also
helps in preventing further defects. This results in cost reductions and will help Baolong to
achieve its goal of reducing costs by RMB20 million for the year.
Proactive Quality Management (Quality at the source)
Establishing a Quality Culture
Standardized Work To eliminate variation in production quality, first make sure everyone is
making the product in the same manner. Document the work methods, materials, tools,
machinery settings and training of each worker and work station. Focus on the methods,
not on the output. If the methods are consistent, the output will be consistent.
Value-centered mindset means everything needs to be bring value to the customer
Waste-conscious thinking helps to reduce essential non value added and remove non value
added
Continuous flow of work apply single piece flow. This reduces the risk of larger defects,
makes fixes easier and establishes a smooth delivery flow.
Visual Management and Mistake proofing A means of signaling like an Andon light that production
quality is not right. If a drop in production quality is detected, a team of engineers and workers must
immediately go to the work center to analyze the problem and implement corrective action. This
corrective action is not something done once a week or at convenient intervals, the problem is
addressed immediately when it is discovered.
Pull systems means producing according to the demand downstream
Upstream leadership empowers the operator who is doing the work to inform issues and solve the
issues at the root.
Analysis and continuous improvement Continuously analyze the work, outcomes, mistakes and build on
that.
Turning Principles into Practices
Do not accept/build/ship a defect – Defects are not to be consciously created, allowed to progress through the
process or delivered to the customer. The goal is zero defects policy.
Defects can’t leave the station/team/person – any quality issues are resolved at the same stage of work where they
are created/discovered.
Standardized work process, quality, explicit policies give clear work flow. The value and quality become
fundamental business requirements, which are properly communicated and are expected at every stage of the
workflow.
Apply Jidoka - Autonomation (or automation with a human touch) enabled an operator to operate multiple
machines instead of one operator for every machine
4P model for Baolong
Continual Organizational Learning through Kaizen
Go look and see for yourself
Make decisions slowly through consensus, implement rapidly
Problem Solving
CI and Learning

The view of operators, managers must be considered,
team huddles should be done because they are the
ones associated mostly with the machines.
People and Partners
Respect, Challenge and
Grow Them
Wastes should be eliminated at the root
Process
(Eliminate Waste)
Grow leaders who live the philosophy
Respect, develop, and challenge your people and teams
Respect, challenge and help your suppliers
Create Process Flow to surface problems
Use pull systems to avoid overproduction
Level out workload(heijunka)
Stop when there is a quality problem(jidoka)
Standardize tasks for continuous improvement
Use visual control so that no problem is hidden
Use only reliable, thorough tested technology

Short term goal of Base management decisions on a long

meeting delivery term philosophy even at the expense of
deadlines should short term goals.
not overshadow the
long term goal of Philosophy
achieving zero
(Long term Thinking)
defects target