Newsletter| Vol. 9 No. 1 March 2004

With the establishment of the Quality Assurance Department,we are allocating all our resources into quality management.
	No matter how advanced machines may become, the customer's number one need remains the quality and reliability of a mission critical system. Last year Mori Seiki initiated a new three-point domestic production system at Iga, Nara, and Chiba. This has allowed us to rethink " quality " (the basis for all manufacturing) and thereby begin a new era that will translate into company-wide action.

2003 was the year Mori Seiki brought groundbreaking machines to the world based on our DCG™ innovation, and was thus a major technical turning point for us. In 2004, we are going to bring that technology to multi-axis machines. This will entail not only bringing our customers the benefits of new technologies, but also raising the base level of quality of our machines, in order to deliver machines that will bring greater overall levels of satisfaction.

Machine tools that deliver greater overall quality.

One question which arises is: " what exactly does quality mean in the context of machine tools? " A few years ago the answer would have been " not breaking down. " Today, however,we talk about " total quality, " that includes functionality, performance, price, delivery, eco-friendliness, and more. Indeed, all customer expectations are now judged in the context of quality, and the index for measuring quality is therefore the extent to which a customer feels happy that he chose that particular machine. In fact, customer demand for higher quality has spread to include the quality of service and information, and not just the products themselves, creating a greater recognition of what could be called " process quality " which is the fruit of all these activities together. At Mori Seiki we have implemented plans to turn our manufacturing floors into giant showrooms, and the reason we want to have our customers be able to view our process lies in this. For instance, when you buy a car, a variety of factors play a part in the decision-making process: design (aesthetics), ride and feel (functionality), torque, fuel-economy and/or ruggedness (performance), cost (price), safety, and more. And if you are satisfied in all these areas, you'll probably buy your next car from the same car company. Quality is judged exclusively from the customer's perspective. In this regard, Mori Seiki is working to go beyond the levels of quality desired by the customer, and is bringing to bear the full force of its company strengths to reach this end. And it was this philosophy which brought about the creation of a Quality Assurance Department, established under the direct command and control of the company president in November last year. Before that, the Quality Assurance Group had been a part of the Technical Business Unit of the Development and Manufacturing HQ, and had worked on such things as acquisition of ISO 9001 certification and creation of quality systems. It also centrally managed product inspections, implementing quality improvements by introducing 100-hour running tests, as well as developing and promoting robust design methods based on concepts of quality engineering. The quality systems the group created are now complete, but with the new organization the emphasis will be on managing how they are operated. Naturally, this kind of organizational reshuffling is nothing more than one method, so in order to prevent old habits from dying hard, we are implementing consciousness-raising among all our employees regarding quality, with the goal of forming them into a group whose individual members will actively think about how to perfect quality even further. We have shifted the focus to the process. The following management principles are at work in the Quality Assurance Department.

1. Perfect design quality " Design is the headstream of all waters " – as this saying shows, design is an element of vital importance. Since prototypes are thoroughly evaluated before moving to mass production, the prototypes themselves must be made to perfection. A minimum of three prototypes must be made for more thorough testing and evaluation in each unit. The first one will be for accuracy verification (including tuning), the second will be for verification of endurance under conditions that exceed the specifications, and the third will be for checking oil leaks and ease of operation, system verification, besides undergoing concurrent destruction tests. This will allow us to reduce the time it takes to move a machine from the drawing board to the showroom. Needless to say, if a prototype fails in any of these areas, mass production does not start. Strict first-piece inspections are to be performed from the customer's perspective. If not all options can be included in the prototype, the first piece is generated after going into mass production. We will eliminate a lack of inspection of these first pieces. We will strictly run PPRs (Product Problem Reports) that relate to design quality through the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Action) cycle and follow up until we are definitely able to prevent reoccurrence. We will continue the development of design engineering until we are able to use it as a design tool.

Cutting test. Quality management in all activities. Development Center at the Iga Campus.

The Iga Campus production floor, where neatness and orderliness are the order of the day. (above) Chiba Campus measurement room. (left)

2. Perfect manufacturing quality Needless to say we will achieve 100 % success in the 100-hour running test, but we will also make it obligatory to determine the real cause of any problems that occur. We will establish the practice of meticulously following the PDCA cycle. Training and instruction will emphasize that quality begins with neatness and orderliness. 3. Perfect quality of purchased goods We will audit and give guidance on purchasing operations based on ISO standards. We will establish the practice of putting problem countermeasure reports strictly through the PDCA cycle.

4. Pursuing perfect customer satisfaction measurement

Since we look at all customer demands as demands for greater quality, we always send a member of the Quality Assurance Department to accompany any technicians or engineers visiting a customer's location when something goes wrong with a machine. In this way, we are able to find out with more accuracy what the customer is dissatisfied with and what he wants changed, and take appropriate actions within the company. Compared with the auto and home appliance industries, the machine tool industry still has a long way to go before it can reach their levels of quality. Nevertheless, customer demands for quality will reach the same level in the near future. Our goal this year here at Mori Seiki is not to think of quality in the conventional terms of the machine tool industry, but to improve quality so much that customers feel that there has been a sea change in our approach to building machine tools. It is important to place the customer at the center of all our considerations in order to do this. The people in charge of manufacturing and development ensure the customer receives the best service possible – better, indeed, than what we are used to in the everyday consumer marketplace. Our sales force will strengthen its efforts towards improving the customer's productivity by changing its basic stance from one of negotiation to one of collaboration. We will also create a stronger environment for improving the services and quality we provide our customers with by encouraging competition among our three campuses in Iga, Nara, and Chiba. " Our aim is to become the global number one in CNC lathes, machining centers, multi-axis machines, and grinding machines by providing customers with original, precise, and rugged machine tools which do not break down and with excellent service and price. " This is the first item in Mori Seiki's management philosophy. It is none other than the pursuit of total quality. We want to become a company that our customers will associate with peace of mind, reliability, and – more than anything else – increased profits and to that end, every last one of our employees will work to pursue the highest quality in all our products and services. This year we are planning on announcing a new CNC lathe series and a new multi-axis machine series. Our entire staff has no doubt that we will thus be able to deliver unrivaled quality to our customers through these machines. We hope that you will continue expecting the best from Mori Seiki in 2004. DCG™: Driven at the Center of Gravity

Quality improvement does not stop with the delivery and installation of a machine. Laser measurement. Product inspections.

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