The history of quality, or quality management, has its origins during the first decades of the 20th century, in harmony with the development of business and production management that existed at that time.
It was approximately from the 30s when quality management began to be approached with the seriousness necessary to turn it into a whole field of business knowledge.
The quality studies and practices that developed during the mid-20th century practically revolutionized production systems.
This transformation came to condition these systems for the continuous optimization of the quality of the product in relation to its production costs and its marketing benefits.
This phenomenon has also led consumers to pay more attention to the quality levels of the products they choose, thus requiring companies to have a firm position and effectiveness in their efforts.
The first historical approaches to quality occurred mainly in the United States and Japan.
So it is not surprising that the main methods and theories have emerged from these nations, and that the rest of the world has adopted them over time.
Background
It is stated that quality is something inherent to the human being, inasmuch as every product is made in order to satisfy a need and must meet minimum physical and functional conditions in order to achieve it.
Although it was not theoretically addressed then, the notions of quality are present in society from the stage of artisan manufacturing of objects.
Guidelines about quality could be found in the codes of ancient civilizations.
For example, men had to guarantee the full operation and durability of their houses or their weapons for hunting.
Insufficient quality standards at that time could result in the execution of the men.
During the Middle Ages the creation of craft trades and specializations around certain practices provided a higher level of criteria and importance to quality.
Knowledge and specialized production began to generate reputation and renown around some producers, which meant confidence in the quality of their products. During these centuries the first notions of brand appeared.
For a long time, quality was based on the reputation and skills of each artisan, who moved and marketed their merchandise by himself.
This changed with the acceleration of urban spaces compared to rural ones and, eventually, with the arrival of the Industrial Revolution.
The Industrial Revolution and quality
The Industrial Revolution would forever change the modes of production known so far: it would give way to mass production through the use of machinery and massive labor.
Factories also arose, and every person with sufficient capital to enter the market rose as an entrepreneur in this new era.
The conceptions of quality during this time evolved in such a way that they could adapt to much faster production mechanisms, where serial production had to guarantee the correct manufacture and functionality of the final goods.
Inspection then arises as a method of approaching all levels of the factory system and making sure to minimize possible failures and errors.
Despite everything, quality was not yet managed on a theoretical basis. Everything was moving so fast that, in business, the ultimate goal was to generate large profit margins.
Later it would be discovered that even optimal working conditions affect the final quality of a product.
Quality management in the 20th century
The United States was a major driver during the 20th century for the elimination of custom production of goods and the standardization of mass production methods during the early 20th century.
This led to a decline in quality, which would eventually be reversed by the American technology company Bell.
It is from this moment that the development of quality management as it is known today begins.
It began with the observation of production levels and the insertion of an inspection department that was in charge of determining which finished products were suitable for commercialization and which were not.
George Edwards and Walter Shewhart were the first to lead this department, and they set the tone for quality management through the conception of statistics that addressed product variables.
They also stood out for the creation of business organization charts, which showed the different stages of production and the ways to optimize each one.
The notion became popular that quality management should even extend to the administrative departments of a company, and not be limited only to production levels. They conceive the PDCA cycle (Plan, Do, Check, Act).
Quality continued to be optimized over the decades, until the end of World War II marked a bifurcation in its theoretical and practical approach.
In the United States, inspection techniques continued, while on the other side of the world, in Japan, quality was addressed by minimizing or eradicating defects from the early stages of manufacturing.
This split optimization of quality in different corners of the world was eventually integrated. Thanks to globalization towards the end of the century, quality management processes were consolidated at all levels of a company.
These levels range from the administrative sector, through the financial and productive sectors, even affecting the physical space and the conditions under which workers work in the manufacture of a product.
With this, quality is now an inherent value not only in man, but in every company or factory of products or goods.
The consumer now knows that there is a requirement that he must demand of all production; If this is not satisfied, there will always be other options on the market.
References
- Durán, MU (1992). Quality management. Madrid: Diaz de Santos.
- Gonzalez, FJ, Mera, AC, & Lacoba, SR (2007). Introduction to quality management. Madrid: Delta Publications.
- Juran, JM (1995). A history of managing for quality: The evolution, trends, and future directions of managing for quality. Asq Press.
- Rodríguez, MC, & Rodríguez, DR (sf). The concept of quality: history, evolution and importance for competitiveness. Universidad de la Salle Magazine, 80-99.