Title: Towards a system dynamics modelling framework for quality in manufacturing

Authors: Purnendu Mandal, Peter E.D. Love, A. Gunasekaran

Addresses: Division of Management and Marketing, Lewis College of Business, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25755, USA. School of Management Information Systems, Edith Cowan University, Churchlands, Perth, WA 6018, Australia. Department of Management, University of Massachusetts, North Dartmouth, MA 02747-2300, USA

Abstract: Improvements in quality in organisations result due to interactions and interdependencies among various factors such as an organisation|s physical capacity, technology and employee skills, and management leadership. These interactions can be studied through cause and effect modelling. There is a need to understand how policies relating to quality effect and transform organisations| performance over time and ultimately determine the dynamics of quality. This paper presents a system dynamics framework, based on causal relations, to model quality issues in a manufacturing environment. The framework can be used to identify the long-term consequences of policy options on quality and manufacturing system performances. As a result of applying this framework, it is suggested that it can be used to improve organisational performance and competitiveness.

Keywords: system dynamics; causal modelling; quality; improvement; policy.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMTM.2002.001453

International Journal of Manufacturing Technology and Management, 2002 Vol.4 No.3/4, pp.333-343

Published online: 03 Jul 2003 *

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