Quality Handbook and the Art of Tractor Design

I first met Mr Chandra Mohan, Vice Chairman, Punjab Tractors, in the mid 1980s. At that point, the company was a quasi government enterprise.  As it turned out, Mohan had personally designed the Swaraj Tractor, and had been struggling to compete with brands that had established  international collaborations. In fact the share price of Punjab Tractors was below par.

His struggle led him to the only source of quality management he could afford – Handbook of Quality Control: Dr J M Juran & Dr Frank Gryna. How do you learn from a handbook? Mohan’s answer : Page by page! What were the lessons that made the greatest difference? Mohan’s answer:

1. Customer defines quality
2. Poor quality costs a huge amount
3. Quality is an integral part of strategic planning
4. Proactively induce beneficial change by selecting strategically relevant quality improvement projects.

Mohan had experienced the power of Juran’s principles. They had helped him turn the tide.

As an example, on actually meeting customers in the Punjab region, Mohan realized that Juran’s definition of quality – Fitness for Use – was very true. In fact he considered it profound. Punjabis use tractors for their wedding ‘barat’ processions and, to put it mildly, overload the body and every part and screw of the tractor. Obviously, the Swaraj model bumpers and mud guards could not tolerate the abuse! With design changes Punjab Tractors effectively turned the tide.

By the mid 1990s, Punjab Tractors enjoyed a national market share close to 20% as a result of the habit of customer-driven improvements. Competitors lost share. Correspondingly, the share price of Punjab Tractors went into orbit.

LESSONS LEARNED

1. Definition of Quality: Fitness for Use (Juran)
2. Field Intelligence is an essential input to all subsequent activities
3. Quality should be integrated into Strategic Planning
4. Quality by Design can shut the hatchery that generates quality problems
5. Leaders must be active learners.