Eight Dimensions of Quality | Meaning and Definitions

Eight Dimensions of Quality Meaning and Different Definitions

What is Quality?

→ The word Quality has not any specific meaning until we are relating it to any function or object.

→ The definition of quality has changed over the period of time.

→ Some of the most famous interpretations of Quality are mentioned below

Definitions of Quality (Interpretations):

→ It is a degree of excellence or we can say that it is a Conformance to specification.
→ Fit for Purposes
→ Conformance to Requirements (Said by Philip Crosby)
→ It is a Value for Performance
→ It means Freedom from defects

→ Conformance to Specifications (Said by Edward Deming)
→ The quality of a product or service is the fitness of that product or service for meeting its intended use required by the customer (Said by Joseph Juran)

→ Doing the right things at the right time

→ By considering all the above definitions we can conclude that the quality of a product or service refers to the customer's expectations.

Eight Dimensions of Quality:

What is Quality in Manufacturing?

→ In manufacturing the quality has various aspects in terms of the customer's requirement and performance of the product in easy terms we can say the dimensions.
→ It is not only saying the product, process, or service is ok or not ok but also it has eight different dimensions which are given below.

Performance
Feature
Reliability
Conformance
Durability
Serviceability
Aesthetics
Perceived Quality

[1] Performance:

→ Performance is anything that will perform as expected by the user and as specified by the manufacturer.

→ We can understand the performance just by asking the simple question: Will the product do the intended job?
→ If products do not do as buyers expect, users will be disappointed and frustrated.
→ Poor performing things get negative reviews and lose sales and reputation.
→ The performance of a product reflects the profitability or reputation of the business.

[2] Features:

→ What additional benefits will be added to the product?
→ Some features will be present in all things.
→ For example, all cars have wheels, steering wheels, gears, windows, and seats but only some cars have assisted parking and Bluetooth, etc.…

[3] Reliability:

→ Reliability is the ability of anything to consistently perform within specifications
→ Will it perform well over its expected lifetime and perform consistently?

→ In very simple language we can understand the reliability of the product just by asking the question: (how often does the product fail?)

→ Usually, reliability may be closely related to the product's performance.

→ Many brands have developed trust with customers because of their product’s reliability.
→ e.g. Apple, Microsoft, Google…..
→ So reliability is a major contributor to any brand or organization.

Examples of Quality Dimensions

→ The examples are mentioned in the below picture.

[4] Conformance:

→ Does your product meet the specification which was given by the customer or mentioned in the design?

→ In other words, we can just ask: (does the product meets the specifications?)

[5] Durability:

→ Durability is related to how long will the product perform and under what conditions?
→ usually, the durability of the product is closely related to the warranty.
→ Sometimes, the product's durability is mentioned in procurement contracts and specifications.
→ Will it last long with daily use?

[6] Serviceability:

→ Serviceability is the ability of the product that is easy to maintain and repair.
→ Make sure customers are satisfied with the products and services of the organization.

[7] Aesthetics:

→ Aesthetics is the look of the finished goods in simple language.
→ It is related to a product’s look, appearance or beauty e.g. Lamborghini
→ The aesthetic dimension is playing a major role in an organization or brand's identity buildup.

[8] Perceived Quality:

→ Perception is a reality or how the customer thinks about a specific product is called perceived quality.
→ It is a perception or thinking about the brand e.g. Rolls Royce
→ What brand name is going to be used and does this convey any perception?