Different types of needs

Different types of needs

The Japanese have developed the concept of Quality Function Deployment (QFD). The Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is a TQM tool which ensures that customer’s requirements are met throughout the design process and also in the production systems.

QFD is basically a philosophy and a set planning and communication tool that focuses on customer requirements in coordinating the design, manufacturing and marketing of goods

1.Dissatisfiers : are the needs that are expected in a product (or) service. In a car, safety measures and cushioning seats are known as

dissatisfiers

These features are generally not stated by customers but assumed as a given. If they are not present, then the customer will be dissatisfied.

2. Satisfiers : are the needs that customers say they want. Air –conditioning and Compact Disc player in a car are the examples of satisfiers. Fulfilling these needs creates satisfaction.

3. Exciters/delighters: are new (or) innovative features that customers do not expect . Antilock brakes and collision avoidance systems are known as examples of exciters /delighters. The pressure such unexpected features lead to high perceptions of quality.

Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is a way of making the 'voice of the customer' heard throughout an organization. It is a systematic process for capturing customer requirements and translating these into requirements that must be met throughout the 'supply chain'. The result is a new set of target values for designers, production people, and even suppliers to aim at in order to produce the output desired by customers.

QFD is particularly valuable when design trade-offs are necessary to achieve the best overall solution, e.g. because some requirements conflict with others. QFD also enables a great deal of information to be summarized in the form of one or more charts. These charts capture customer and product data gleaned from many sources, as well as the design parameters chosen for the new product. In this way they provide a solid foundation for further improvement in subsequent design cycles.