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Name: Le Ngoc Tuong Vi (Vicky)

Class: SUD 10

I. Continuous improvement and the type of added values to begained

A continual improvement process, also often called a continuous improvement process

(abbreviated as CIP or CI), is an ongoing effort to improve products, services, or processes.

These efforts can seek "incremental" improvement over time or "breakthrough" improvement all

at once.1

Quality based organization should strive to achieve perfection by continuously improving the

business and production process. And this improving is possible if Portakabin management

learns from the problems and identifies the opportunity from the problem. The process of

improvement achieves the greatest result when it operates with in the frame work of the problem

solving method.

It means that continuous improvement is the complete process of identifying, describing, and

analyzing strengths and problems and then testing, implementing, learning from, and revising

solutions. It relies on an organizational and system culture that is proactive and supports

continuous learning.An essential part of improving quality is to identify problems as and when

they occur. These can then be addressed and resolved immediately. This is what Portakabin

mean by zero tolerance to address any issues.

In the initial stages of Portakabin, quick results a frequently obtained because the solutions are

obvious or an individual has a brilliant idea. However in the long term a systematic approach

will yield the greatest benefits. There are the following phases in problem solving:

Identify the Opportunity. The objective of this phase is to identify and prioritize opportunities for

improvements. It consist of three parts: identify the problem, form the team and define the scope.

With zero tolerance, Portakabin deploys a 'commando team' as part of its Quality Team to

address any issues. This team scrutinizes products and processes from the customer's viewpoint.

1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continual_improvement_process

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Analyze the current Process. The objective of this phase is to understand the process and how it

is currently performed. Key activities are to define process boundaries, outputs and customers,

inputs and supplies, and process flow; gather data: and identify root causes. Throught zero

tolerance program, Portakabin has good result such as the company can management risks,

solve problem before it become the big problem and make customer more and more satisfaction.

For example, on one occasion the quality team found blistering on the walls of a particular

building.

Develop the optimal Solution: this phase has the objective of establishing and feasible solutions

and recommending the best solution to improve the process. Once all the information is available

the project team begins its search for possible solutions. When the quality team found blistering

on the walls of a particular building, the leader of the quality team collect the information about

this problem. After that, he listen and collect many ideas of his team member and decide the

solution. The solution is that a quick 'alert' to the manufacturing team led to the fault being

eliminated before it became a problem for the customer.

Implement the changes: Once the best solution is selected, it can be implemented this phase has

the objective of preparing the implementation plan, obtaining approval, and implementing the

process of improvement.

Study the result: This phase has the objective of monitoring and evaluating the change by

tracking and studying the effectiveness of the improvement efforts through data through data

collection and review of progress. It is in institutionalize meaningful change and ensure ongoing

measurement and evaluation effort to achieve continues improvement. After this problem, leader

of qualityteams complete quality reports with the purpose of:

Fixing the immediate problem;

Identifying its cause;

Making changes to prevent the problem reoccurring.

Standardize the solution: Once the team is satisfied with change it must be institutionalized by

positive control of the process, process certification, and operator certification. Positive change

assures that important variables are kept under control. It specifies the what, who, how, where

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and when of the process and is an updating of the monitoring activity. Standardizing the solution

prevents backsliding.

Other example of the type of added values to be gained is Portakabin continuous improvement

customer service. Providing customer service is another vital part of Quality Management. The

company believes that providing exceptional levels of customer service is as important as the

quality of the products it makes. To support this commitment, it has developed a number of

initiatives aimed at continuously improving service. Portakabin:

Guarantees to complete projects on time and on budget;

Operates a Customer Charter that sets out minimum standards that customers of its Hire

Division can expect to receive. This charter includes the pledge where Portakabin will

recompense the customer if it fails to deliver a building on time;

Offers a complete plan, design and build service, whereby a client can choose simply to

accept the keys and open the doors on completion;

Runs a comprehensive customer satisfaction survey every month.

II. Measured quality managementISO is the International organization for standardization. It is the largest developer and publisher

of international standards operating with a framework of 162 countries co-ordinated by a central

secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland.

Portakabin is approved to meet the International Standards ISO 9001 and ISO14001. In order to

gain these awards, the company must prove their achievements to International Standards

Organizations. Being accredited to International Standards tells customers that an organization

meets the tough guidelines set by awarding bodies.

The ISO9000 family focuses on what the organization does to fulfill the customers quality

requirements and applicable regulatory requirements while aiming to enhance customer

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satisfaction and achieve continual improvement of its performance in pursuit of these

objectives.2

ISO 9001 is the only standard in the family against which organizations can be certified. It is

based on eight principles from total quality management (TQM):

1. Customer Focus Understanding needs, meeting requirements and exceeding

expectations

2. LeadershipEstablish unity of purpose and organizational direction. Promote employee

involvement in achievement of objectives.

3. Involvement of People Take advantage of fully involved employees, utilise all their

abilities to the organizations advantage.

4. Process ApproachThings accomplished are a result of processes. Processes along with

related activities and resources must be managed.

5. System Approach to Management Multiple interrelated processes that contribute to an

organizations effectiveness are a system and should be managed as a system

6. Continual Improvement Should be a permanent objective applied to the organization

and to its people, processes, systems and products.

7. Factual Approach to Decision Making Decisions must be based on the analysis of

accurate, relevant and reliable data and information.

8. Mutually Beneficial Supplier Relationships Both organization and Supplier benefiting

from each others resources and knowledge result in value for all.

The relationship between TQM and ISO 9000 is that they work in conjunction with each other

but are not the same. The main point of difference being that TQM is concerned with

transforming every function and level of the organization from top to bottom to adopt and ISO

9000 is more specific being concentrated on quality management systems alone. ISO 9001 can

2http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_9000

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be part of a larger total quality management environment but it can also be implemented on its

own in organizations that have not adopted TQM.

Being registered as meeting the requirements of ISO 9001 is very important to Portakabin. This

is because many customers will deal only with organizations that can demonstrate they meet this

rigorous standard. All of Portakabin's products meet with modern standards and requirements,

and this enhances consumer confidence.

To reinforce this quality system, Portakabin has a 'zero tolerance' quality checking system in

place, so that no building may leave the production site until it has been checked against, and

complies with, demanding customer standards. Furthermore, because of their high quality

standards, Portakabin are the only modular building company to offer quality guarantees in the

form of 5 and 20 year warranties.

The standards required are wide ranging. For example, the recently ratified Kyoto Protocol

requires industrialised nations to limit their production of gases that are harmful to the

environment. Portakabin takes this requirement very seriously. As a result, all of its buildings are

thermally efficient to minimize energy use. Following Kyoto there are a range of new building

requirements and these are particularly important for Portakabin's public sector customers such

as hospitals and schools.

Portakabin's factory-based production process combines standardization with customization. The

modules to be assembled come in standardised sizes and shapes. However, the way they are put

together and their interior design depends on clients' individual specifications. For example,

modules that are assembled for Sainsbury's to train new checkout staff are different from those

designed for an easy Jet office. To ensure that all customers get what they want, Portakabin

deploys the Quality Systems approach referred to earlier. A Corporate Quality Team (comprising

senior managers) is responsible for ensuring that individual teams understand quality processes.

Communication takes place by means of process charts. These are clear illustrations that set out

the processes involved e.g. in creating a new set of school classrooms or laboratories.

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Meeting ISO 9001 shows that Portakabin has a Quality Management System which among other

things ensures that:

Portakabin has a documented set of procedures for all key processes in the business andthat these processes are checked for efficiency.

The group's Quality Systems Manager (QSM) is responsible for ensuring that Portakabin

has in place systems that guarantee quality throughout the Group. The QSM has created

an electronic system that all PCs throughout the whole company can access to manage

quality. One of the system's key features is the 1-page Quality Manual that defines the

requirements of the Quality Management System. This is easy to communicate both

within the organization and also to customers.

Portakabin outputs are checked for defects and put right where necessary.The company also offers key services such as Total Solutions - a planning and project

management service for customers wanting to hire modular buildings. Portakabin also

offers a wide range of support services to clients for whom a modular building is part of a

larger plan. If requested, Portakabin will take on the customer's project from start to

finish. This includes managing planning applications, project management and providing

health and safety advice, as well as providing access for the disabled.

ISO 14000 is worth mentioning as it is concerned with Environmental Management. Its aims

are to minimize harmful effects on the environment caused by its activities, and to achieve

continual improvement of its environmental performance.3

Meeting ISO 14001 shows that Portakabin also has a well-organized environmental management

system. An environmental management system helps an organization to reduce its impact on the

environment and minimize pollution.

The emphasis on quality can be illustrated by the Portakabin Lilliput products. Lilliput

Childrens Centres are designed to be child-focused.4They meet the tough safety and care

standards that have been created to protect children:

3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_14000

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The Childrens Centres provide a resource for the whole community. They can be built in half the time it takes to build using traditional methods. Multi-functional rooms can be used as kitchens, crche facilities, and training rooms as

well as nurseries.

This contrasts with the much slower process of traditional building with bricks and mortar. These

buildings take far longer to construct and building work may be delayed, for example, by poor

weather.

4http://www.portakabin.co.uk/lilliput.html