The purpose of this study is three-fold. First, based on the synthesis of literature on quality concepts, critical factors that must be practiced to achieve effective quality management in an organization were identified. A framework to be used by organizations to evaluate their quality assurance practices were developed. Second, a field survey was conducted to identify the degree to which quality assurance is being practiced in Indian Manufacturing organizations and to locate the organizational areas where better management control can make the quality assurance system more effective. Finally, an attempt was made to develop models that could be used to forecast the level of quality achieved.

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Networks of distributed, remote sensors are providing ecological scientists with a view of our environment that is unprecedented in detail. However, these networks are subject to harsh conditions, which lead to malfunctions in individual sensors and failures in network communications. This behavior manifests as corrupt or missing measurements in the data. Consequently, before the data can be used in ecological models, future experiments, or even policy decisions, it must be quality controlled (QC'd) to flag affected measurements and impute corrected values. This dissertation describes a probabilistic modeling approach for real-time automated QC that exploits the spatial and temporal correlations in the data to distinguish sensor failures from valid observations. The model adapts to a site by learning a Bayesian network structure that captures spatial relationships among sensors, and then extends this structure to a dynamic Bayesian network to incorporate temporal correlations. The final QC model contains both discrete and continuous variables, which makes inference intractable for large sensor networks. Consequently, we examine the performance of three approximate methods for inference in this probabilistic framework. Two of these algorithms represent contemporary approaches to inference in hybrid models, while the third is a greedy search-based method of our own design. We demonstrate the results of these algorithms on synthetic datasets and real environmental sensor data gathered from an ecological sensor network located in western Oregon. Our results suggest that we can improve performance over networks with less sensors that use exhaustive asynchronic inference by including additional sensors and applying approximate algorithms. / Graduation date: 2013

This study uses simulation to examine differences between fixed sampling interval (FSI) and variable sampling interval (VSI) Shewhart X-bar control charts for processes that produce positively autocorrelated data. The influence of sample size (1 and 5), autocorrelation parameter, shift in process mean, and length of time between samples is investigated by comparing average time (ATS) and average number of samples (ANSS) to produce an out of control signal for FSI and VSI Shewhart X-bar charts. These comparisons are conducted in two ways: control chart limits pre-set at ±3σ_x / √n and limits computed from the sampling process. Proper interpretation of the Shewhart X-bar chart requires the assumption that observations are statistically independent; however, process data are often autocorrelated over time. Results of this study indicate that increasing the time between samples decreases the effect of positive autocorrelation between samples. Thus, with sufficient time between samples the assumption of independence is essentially not violated. Samples of size 5 produce a faster signal than samples of size 1 with both the FSI and VSI Shewhart X-bar chart when positive autocorrelation is present. However, samples of size 5 require the same time when the data are independent, indicating that this effect is a result of autocorrelation. This research determined that the VSI Shewhart X-bar chart signals increasingly faster than the corresponding FSI chart as the shift in the process mean increases. If the process is likely to exhibit a large shift in the mean, then the VSI technique is recommended. But the faster signaling time of the VSI chart is undesirable when the process is operating on target. However, if the control limits are estimated from process samples, results show that when the process is in control the ARL for the FSI and the ANSS for the VSI are approximately the same, and exceed the expected value when the limits are fixed.

by Ling Ho-Wan Howard, Ryoo Byung-Hoon. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-74). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iii / LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS --- p.vi / LIST OF TABLES --- p.vii / PREFACE --- p.viii / Chapter / Chapter I. --- IT PROFILE OF HONG KONG --- p.1 / IT Penetration in2002 --- p.1 / Government Initiatives --- p.2 / Software Industry of Hong Kong --- p.2 / Chapter II. --- IT STRATEGY --- p.5 / IT Strategy - 3 Check Points --- p.5 / Flexible Platform --- p.5 / Strategy vs. ROI --- p.8 / Outsourcing or Internal Development --- p.9 / Quality Management System ´ؤ Instituting Best Practices --- p.10 / Deming's 14 Points --- p.11 / The Juran Trilogy --- p.12 / Crosby's 14 Quality Steps --- p.13 / Chapter III. --- SOFTWARE QUALITY MANAGEMENT - CMM --- p.16 / Software Development Project --- p.16 / Software Project Process Model --- p.17 / Software Quality Management --- p.19 / Capability Maturity Model (CMM) --- p.20 / Bootstrap 3.2 --- p.23 / Trillium --- p.25 / ISO 9001/TickIT --- p.26 / SPICE --- p.27 / Chapter IV. --- CMM PRACTICES IN THE WORLD --- p.29 / The CMM Practices - Worldwide --- p.29 / Two studies on Software Process Management in Taiwan --- p.32 / Software Process Management in Taiwan: A Longitudinal Study of Top 1000 Companies --- p.32 / Software Project Process Management Maturity and Project Performance --- p.34 / Chapter V. --- SOFTWARE PROCESS MANAGEMENT IN HONG KONG --- p.36 / The CMM in Hong Kong --- p.37 / Case Studies on the SPM in Hong Kong --- p.41 / Case 1: Dow Chemical --- p.41 / Case 2: Oracle Hong Kong --- p.44 / Case 3: Bentley Systems Inc. (Hong Kong) --- p.48 / Case 4: i-Cable --- p.50 / Case 5: SinoPac Securities (Asia) Ltd --- p.53 / Implications of the Statistics --- p.55 / Factor comparison of mean value --- p.56 / Implications --- p.58 / Chapter VI. --- CONCLUSION --- p.60 / APPENDIX --- p.62 / BIBLOGRAPHY --- p.72

Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Voedseltuisnywerhede (hierna genoem tuisnywerhede) word in 'n toenemende mate van aktuele belang as gevolg van verskeie redes soos die veranderde rol van die hedendaagse vrou en omdat 'n sekere behoefte eie aan vandag vervul word. Bekostigbare voedsel van goeie gehalte is van die uiterste belang. Dit is belangrik om bestanddele van swak gehalte vroegtydig te ontdek voordat produkte van swak gehalte gelewer word en 'n markaandeel verloor word. Tuisnywerhede het 'n verantwoordelikheid teenoor kliente om produkte van goeie gehalte teen bekostigbare pryse te voorsien. Daar word toenemende druk op tuisnywerhede geplaas om produkte van gewenste gehalte te verskaf en om aan kliente se verwagtinge te voldoen. 'n Totalegehaltebestuurprojek kan tuisnywerhede help om hul totale stelsel te ondersoek en te verbeter. In die studie is aile dimensies van die bestuur van gehalte by tuisnywerhede in SuidAfrika ondersoek en geevalueer en 'n TQM model vir tuisnywerhede is ontwikkel. Die probleem is ontleed deur 'n literatuurstudie te doen waarop die empiriese ondersoek gebaseer is. Verskeie inligtingsbronne, in die vorm van artikels, referate en ander geskrewe literatuur oor TQM en tuisnywerhede, is geraadpleeg. 'n Proto-model vir totalegehaltebestuur by tuisnywerhede is uit die literatuur ontwikkel en na die ondersoek aangepas. Die empiriese ondersoek was tweeledig van aard, naamlik op makro- en mikrovlak. Empiriese data is deur middel van posvraelyste aan aile tuisnywerhede in Suid-Afrika verkry. Dieptestudie-ondersoeke deur middel van waarneming, onderhoude en gestruktureerde vraelyste aan tuisnywerheidbestuur, verskaffers en kliente van drie gekose tuisnywerhede is op mikrovlak uitgevoer om hul persepsies oor die gehalte van produkte en bestuur van totale gehalte in tuisnywerhede te ontleed. Die resultate wat uit hierdie studie voortspruit dui daarop dat: • tuisnywerhede wat as 'n handelsko6perasie bedryf word, die meeste voordele bied vir aile partye wat betrokke is. tuisnywerhede met 'n formele gehaltebestuursprogram sonder uitsondering beter resultate toon teenoor die wat nie formele gehaltebestuur toepas nie. • verskaffers se werksfasiliteite nog nooit op enige wyse ge"inspekteer is of vir higieniese praktyke getoets is nie. / Food home industries (hereafter referred to as home industries) are increasingly becoming more important in our society due to several reasons such as the changing role of the modern woman and because a specific need peculiar to today is met. Affordable, high quality food is of the utmost importance. It is essential to identify ingredients of a low standard in good time before poor quality products are supplied and market share is lost. It is the responsibility of home industries to provide the customer with affordable products of a high quality. Home industries are increasingly pressurised to measure up to the customers' expectations and to supply them with top quality products. A total quality management project can assist home industries in examining their total system and can identify areas for improvement. In this study all dimensions of management and quality in home industries were examined and evaluated. A TQM model for home industries was developed. The problem was analysed by means of a literature study on which the empirical investigation was based. Various sources of information such as articles, papers read at conferences and other written literature on TQM and home industries were consulted. A proto model for total quality management for home industries was developed from the literature and was adapted after the investigation. The empirical investigation was executed at both a macro- and a microlevel. Empirical data was obtained through questionnaires distributed to all managers of home industries in South Africa. In-depth studies by means of observation, interviews and structured questionnaires to home industry management, suppliers and customers of three selected home industries were done at microlevel in order to analyse the quality of products and the management of total quality in home industries. The results that emerge from this study indicate that • home industries which are run as trade co-operatives hold more advantages for all parties concerned. home industries which follow a formal quality management programme prove, without exception, to have better results than those which do not implement formal quality management. • the working facilities of suppliers have never been inspected or tested for hygienic practices in any way. / Business Management / DCOM (Sakebestuur)

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree Doctor of Technology: Quality, Durban University of Technology, 2011. / Quality management remains one of the top ranking strategic issues in all major organisations. However, at present, there is a sentiment that business priorities and quality management priorities have become non-aligned over the last two decades. It is believed that quality management is still predominately understood and practiced using the framework and direction provided historically by quality leaders such as Deming, Juran, Crosby and others. Thus, this study motivated that quality is at a crossroads and in order for it to be aligned with business priorities, once again it needs to evolve its role. This study commenced with the review on related literature on the history of quality management. From this review, it was evident that the various evolutions of quality management were directed to meet the changing business challenges and market needs that were linked to prevailing demand and supply, customer focus, competitive advantage and profitable growth outputs. The literature review thereafter demonstrated the potential opportunities wherein quality management could be utilised to re-establish its previous relevance by supporting organisations in the management of emerging trends. This study identified globalisation, customer power and sophistication, social responsibility and environmental sustainability consciousness as emerging trends that could be the most leveraged with the use of quality management concepts, techniques and tools. Furthermore, the topics of stewardship, leadership, change management and strategy were discussed as enablers to the proposed new evolution of quality management, which should become known as “quality stewardship”. As a guideline to the “quality stewardship” strategy, a Quality Stewardship and Leadership (QSAL) framework was developed in this study. The QSAL framework incorporated Total Quality Management (TQM), systems thinking and business excellence as the underlying theoretical grounding. This framework, displaying a process approach, encapsulated the following components: inputs (risk, revenue and reputation), processes (productivity Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), technical governance, and environmental and social sustainability) and outputs (maximise value) for the proposed new scope for quality management. Abstract iii The primary source of information used in this study was obtained from qualitative and quantitative research methodologies. The research instruments in this study included surveys in the form of questionnaires and an organisational assessment which was undertaken by utilising a Viable Systems Model (VSM). The organisational assessment that was part of the preliminary study was undertaken in two beverage multi-national organisations in South Africa. The pilot and principal studies consisted of surveys in the form of questionnaires. The objective of the survey was to gain an understanding of current quality management practices, current quality management thinking and acceptability of the proposed QSAL framework across selected manufacturing organisations in South Africa. Both the preliminary and principal studies displayed variable levels of responses in quality management practices and a high level of agreement or awareness to the questions on the current thinking of quality management and acceptability of the proposed QSAL framework in the quantitative studies. Thus, based on the review of related literature and empirical studies, the motivation for this research, that quality management was ready for the next evolution in order to support current business challenges and market demands, was validated.

Dissertation submitted in compliance with the requirements for the Masters Degree in Business Administration, Durban University of Technology, 2008. / Increasing competitive pressure from global markets and technological developments has resulted in the continual demand for business improvement philosophies and methodologies to address this challenge. The LSS approach to business improvement has emerged in both the practitioner and academic literature as having a significant role in this area. In 2006, The Valspar Corporation embarked on a LSS initiative as a way to improve the business globally, to achieve sustained profitable growth and to enhance customer value. Valspar (SA) found the implementation of LSS a challenge because the organisation could not afford the appointment of a full-time Black Belt to manage the programme locally. Green Belts were appointed to lead LSS projects part-time. Management wanted to know if they have applied the LSS methodology correctly within the scope of the business, especially since not all organisations were successful in the implementation of LSS. The objective of this study was to determine the critical factors that affect the successful implementation of LSS at Valspar (SA) and to assess the degree to which these critical factors exist at Valspar (SA). In a census, the researcher used the questionnaire to gain information about the current views of employees on the LSS programme at Valspar (SA). The research highlighted the critical success factors for LSS implementation and the results of the evaluation revealed both the positive and negative aspects of the LSS programme at Valspar (SA). / Valspar Corporation

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