Mazda's mission statement with regard to quality is, "We will do our work faithfully and unceasingly, so that we may offer products and services that will please our customers." Our slogan is "Self-initiated change and significant quality improvement." These two maxims direct the Company in its Group-wide quality measures, which include Mazda Quality activities and a measure titled "A Revolution in Product Development Quality."
Committed to delivering products that fully satisfy our customers, Mazda Motor Corporation focuses relentlessly on quality. After launching our first QC circle activities in 1962, we broadened these initiatives in 1978 to encompass the quality of all products, services and daily work. Today, these Company-wide quality improvement activities have evolved into what is known as Mazda Quality activities.
In recent years, Mazda redefined Mazda Quality activities as "activities to enhance the quality of everything we deliver to our customers." By incorporating world-renowned methods and approaches, including quality engineering and Six Sigma*1, and by retooling its business processes, Mazda is constantly improving the quality of its products and services while paring costs. Guided by the seven principles of the Mazda Way *2 set out in April 2008, Mazda implements continuous activities to improve quality, focusing not only on the quality of operations but also on quality in management, the work environment, work procedures and the actions of all Mazda personnel.
Best practices of quality improvements play a vital role in inspiring all Mazda personnel to share the same perspectives and values. Mazda holds Company-wide presentations of these best practices and related poster sessions on an ongoing basis.
Mazda continues to advance effective quality improvement activities while encouraging the full participation of all employees.
- *1A method of improving processes to eliminate variance in quality. From the statistical term "sigma," for standard deviation.
- *2Mazda Way
Mazda also deploys small-group activities at its affiliated plants in the United States, Thailand and elsewhere, raising quality worldwide.
To improve quality at business partners' locations, Mazda formed the Mazda Group QC Circle Committee for the Hiroshima area and the Mazda Group QC Circle Liaison Group for the Hofu area. These organizations convene study groups to address numerous quality-control issues, such as problem-solving processes, statistical methods and FMEA*3 . To stimulate small-group activities and move them forward, Mazda is strengthening lines of communication between these partners and the relevant departments within Mazda.
- *3 Failure Mode and Effects Analysis. An analytical approach for preventing failures and accidents.
convention in Thailand
- Deploys VQT, a small-group activity approach, based on DMAIC, a Six Sigma concept.
- Local staff members attend training at Ford Motor Company, among other activities.
- Deploys SGA, a type of small-group activity. SGA circles gather outstanding results from in-house assemblies and present them at national-level gatherings in Thailand.
- Carries out in-house training for QC promoters as well as circle members.
- Presents commendations every year to outstanding QC circles and promoters.
Production Control &
Logistics Planning Department
At the Production Control & Logistics Division, we carry out small-group activities focusing on two themes per half-year for each group, and the results are presented at assemblies. Each group works hard at these activities, driving the PDCA cycle forward. In addition to the basics of quality improvement, we incorporate daily improvements to work processes as well, in a wide range of activities aimed at delivering products that delight our customers. Through continuous activities, we get a real sense of accomplishing steady, tangible results. In the future, we plan to link these efforts with programs such as personnel training, to discover even more effective approaches to our activities.
In 1994, Mazda received ISO 9002 certification for all its business functions except design and R&D. In 1996, Mazda became the first Japanese automobile manufacturer to receive Company-wide ISO 9001 certification, which applies more broadly than ISO 9002 and extends from design and R&D to purchasing, production, sales and after-sales service in automotive manufacturing.
We carry out internal quality inspections to maintain and improve the quality management system we built on the ISO 9001 foundation. By implementing a plan-do-check-act (PDCA) cycle, we ensure successive improvements on our achievements. In FY2008, we carried out a total of 185 internal quality inspections.
Moving forward, Mazda is considering setting fresh targets, based on details and numbers of incidents from a series of indications and improvement recommendations gained from internal quality inspections.
In its drive for uniform global quality standards, Mazda supports the swift and decisive start-up of quality management activities in overseas business facilities as well, including those that are newly established.
In the interim between establishment and full-scale production start-up at its overseas facilities, Mazda participates in building local quality management systems, helps them to gain accreditation, and assists with training, development and inspections. This support extends beyond quality systems to include technological aspects of production, quality assessment and quality control. Moreover, even after full-scale local production begins, Mazda takes steps, such as proposing additional process improvements, to prevent the occurrence and recurrence of quality problems with locally produced cars.
To deliver the highest levels of quality in car manufacturing, Mazda thoroughly examines its design drawings at the development stage in terms of quality, productivity, cost and many other factors, in order to identify and solve problems early. This process, called design review, calls on the knowledge of every department, from design, research and production engineering to manufacturing and inspection.
By reviewing all aspects of each design, from individual parts to entire systems, Mazda achieves steady improvements in quality.
- *4TPM: Total Productive Maintenance. TPM is a series of activities in which production plants strive to prevent production line losses of every type, achieving zero accidents, zero defects, zero failures, etc.
At the January 2008 North American International Auto Show, Mazda's CX-9 gained the North American Truck of The Year prize. This award, which has been running since 1994, is one of the most prestigious accolades for automobiles in North America. The CX-9 was selected for this honor due to its outstanding performance in a variety of categories, including design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and cost performance.
On March 20, 2008, the Mazda2 (Demio) was named the 2008 World Car of the Year. This award is established by automobile industry journalists from countries around the world. Each year, models that have been marketed from the start of January on at least two continents are rigorously assessed in 20 areas, such as styling, performance and safety. A single winner is finally selected by ballot.
