Masonry Magazine October 1996 Page. 8
J576553238
110
THE UNITEAD
5086 A
12
12
100
OLLARS
Quest
Quality Pays for Quality
By Al Roach, General Partner
Callahan/Roach & Associates
What would you do if a number of your largest customers told you that the quality of your work was unacceptable? Pretend you didn't hear them and continue business as usual? Find new customers? Sell your company? Try to improve?
Well, that's exactly what happened to the masonry industry in 1991. Customers told this industry that its quality was unacceptable. It happened at a customer focus meeting sponsored by Masonry Contractors Association of America (MCAA) and the National Concrete Masonry Association (NCMA).
Those customers were quick to point that they didn't want to spend their time having the producers and contractors pointing fingers at each other trying to place blame. They were tired of hearing arguments as to whether it was a problem with production or a problem with installation. Those customers were fed up and said, "If the industry doesn't improve the level of quality we're going to find another medium".
So, what to do? MCAA and NCMA looked at what they could do to improve the quality of the industry in the eyes of the masonry customers. The result was the development of the Mason Quality Institute (MQI), which is a two-day, interactive training program offered to the members of MCAA and NCMA. Since the first program in 1992, MQI seminars have trained over 470 people representing 60 block producers and 66 mason contractors.
Has MQI been successful? Have member contractors who have implemented the process recognized any real benefits? How are the customers reacting? Has the quality improved? Before we answer these questions, let's make sure we clearly understand what we mean by the Quality Process and how it has developed and been proven successful over time.
Let's turn the clock back a bit to a time where customers were always right where their needs and requirements were always met. Jobs were done right the first time, every time. It was a time when customers expected and got good service.
But all of that faded away after World War II. That was a time of great prosperity for our country. We got lazy about quality because we had a world-wide monopoly. If the product or service was made or offered in the United States - people bought it. They didn't have any choice. The United States was the only country with the resources to provide those products and services. The traditional hallmarks of quality and good customer service that came to this country with our forefathers fell by the wayside. The focus was quantity, not quality. Customers were no longer kings - they were subjects.
But all of that changed when the Japanese, with the help of an American by the name of Edwards Deming, learned about Quality Management and the importance of the customer. The Japanese offered the American-buying public something that those customers had missed for quite some time - reliability, assurances, responsive service, value and professionalism - all of the characteristics that add up to one word-QUALITY.
If masonry contractors need a reason for learning and implementing Quality Management, they have only to look to the lessons learned by the automobile industry. Every automobile manufacturer that was in business after World War II has either gone out of business or has almost gone out of business. Why
8 MASONRY-SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER, 1996