Quality Management and Master Ordnance Repair

Abstract

Because of the redefinition of national defense needs and the reduction of defense budgets, the management of complex combatant repair is more imperative than ever. To this end, the US. Navy is calling for Total Quality Leadership (TQL) strategies from its agencies and contractors. These strategies are derived from well known initiatives of quality management, such as those of Deming. They define the basis of any quality program.Quality methodologies have proven highly effective in the manufacturing sector, but many remain unproven or tentative in service and repair industries. The authors believe that TQL methods can be effective in the repair industry also, but must be developed or adapted to suit the unique characteristics of that industry: high skill, non-rote crafts, with continual .customer interface at all levels of operation.In establishing a direction for TQL development, the authors have chosen two elements. The first is the-Malcolm Baldrige Quality Improvement Program, which provides guidelines for direction. The second is the Master Ordnance Repair (MOR) Program, which provides the management vehicle. From its beginning in 1983, MOR has been a program of management. The task is explicit in its charter, NAVSEAINST 8000.2, which requires that a MOR contractor manage combat system work and testing.Quality management methods are applied to the MOR program to achieve MOR objectives using Baldrige measurements. Methods are presented which deploy the quality function across the organization. Techniques are provided to improve the company's ability to control its processes and the robustness of its product. These include methods of process analysis that determine added value, ownership, and internal customer. Stress is placed on in-process verification rather than on end-of-process inspection.The recommendations of this paper require no extraordinary skills or costs, but do require a formal and systematic approach to quality issues. The authors believe that with TQL methods in place, continuous improvement will follow.