Non-quality in industry: a gold mine waiting to be exploited

In industry, non-quality is often equated with scrap, i.e., non-compliant products destined for destruction. And so the costs of non-quality are equated with the loss of earnings associated with this scrap. Eventually, a cost to the brand in terms of image is acknowledged. But in reality, this is only the tip of the iceberg. Non-quality has a considerable impact on a company's structural competitiveness, as it reveals processes that generate waste: of material resources, human resources, energy, and time. According to a study by the AFNOR group dated December 2023 and available for free download here 80% of companies estimate their non-quality costs (NQC) to be between 0 and 5% of their turnover! And 17% of these companies believe that this share of non-quality costs in their turnover will increase, compared to only 8% in 2017 who feared this would be the case. The subject is therefore very much a topic for the future, especially if we add concepts such as societal performance to the notion of quality, which goes well beyond product non-conformities.

Two out of three industrial companies measure the costs of non-quality

It is this under-exploited gold mine of CNQs that the Occitanie delegation of the AFNOR group, the Toulouse Haute-Garonne Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the France Qualité Performance Occitanie Association wanted to explore during a conference held on December 20, 2023, in Toulouse, before an audience of quality managers from the industrial world. The message was clear: if we want to fill the mine, we need to invest in it! Indeed, while 91% of decision-makers surveyed by the AFNOR group in its study said that measuring non-quality costs was necessary or even essential, only 67% actually do so and 40% systematically define an action plan if the objectives are not met. Logically, there is a clear distinction in favor of ISO 9001-certified companies (the quality standard, which, incidentally, is currently under review ) and ISO 14001 (the environmental management standard), which are equipped to track these costs and the levers for reducing them. But what are the keys to success?

Two industry representatives who came to present their approach, Séverine Goldstein for aircraft manufacturer ATR and Damien Lescrinier for Pierre Fabre Laboratories, responded unanimously: the keys lie in the hands of the quality function, which must break down barriers and coordinate its approach with both top management and operational staff as needed. From a managerial perspective, financial departments should view the handling of non-quality issues not as an additional cost for the company, but as a worthwhile investment through which every error, every loss of time, and every anomaly can be converted into margins for increased profitability. Ideally, quality control and management control should be combined; the teams monitoring the process should be multidisciplinary. , explains Séverine Goldstein.

Involve operational staff in defining measurement and analysis tools

Conversely, the quality function must also work closely with operational staff, who must perceive the handling of non-quality issues not as a means of individual control, but as a collective approach that improves their working conditions. The difficulties faced by operational staff are those faced by the entire company. Workshops must also be multidisciplinary, and the overall vision , emphasizes Damien Lescrinier, for Pierre Fabre. What's more, operational staff must be fully involved in defining measurement and analysis tools. The quality function must listen and educate, but also report on successes; team satisfaction and motivation are at stake. Damien Lescrinier testifies. Incentivizing operational staff to reduce non-quality can also translate into financial gains. adds Séverine Goldstein, for ATR.

For both speakers, the pitfall of an approach to resolving non-quality would be to exhaust oneself in an attempt to exhaustively identify and comprehensively measure all possible and imaginable costs, thereby falling into discouraging inertia. Conversely, they believe it is necessary to select the most relevant themes, priorities, and corrective actions: For the approach to be successful, change must be initiated quickly.