Through the manufacture of electronic components, its core business, TDK wants to continue responding to the expectations of customers. Therefore, it has positioned quality as an important management axis in manufacturing.
TDK believes that building the number-one product quality and continuing to supply customer-satisfying products through management that places top priority on quality is its contribution to society and its mission.
TDK conducts the following important measures to achieve its quality targets.
"Advance to Zero Defect" requires a change of attitude toward quality. As well as tenaciously disseminating the basic philosophy and policy among employees, TDK is creating new quality activities aimed at stimulating a change of attitude.
In FY 2011, with the aim of boosting quality awareness, TDK solicited essays on quality from employees in the TDK Group as a whole. Many entries were received from employees working in various jobs involving quality, such as quality assurance, sales, engineering, and manufacturing. Among other things, the essays revealed their passion for quality driven by experiences in the workplace and also contained some epoch-making suggestions for the improvement of quality. The strong quality awareness of the essay writers was shared throughout the TDK Group via internal newsletters and other media.
"Manufacturing with an attitude of producing quality"
Motivated by a bitter experience when I was involved in manufacturing, I wrote my essay out of a feeling that individual changes of attitude are the starting point of quality and that I want to see the restoration of TDK from now on. The most important thing, I think, is to raise the awareness of quality among individual employees, thoroughly imbue quality, and realize the corporate principles of "vision, courage, and trust" as quality. From now on also, my strong desire is to endeavor to raise quality in related departments and to build a TDK of which I am so proud that my own children want to join as well.
TDK-EPC Corporation "Challenging the target of zero defects with a positive approach"
I think the most important thing for us is to have a positive approach, believing that we can definitely achieve the target of zero defects, and to tackle our work with a passion for quality. Work control is important for raising quality, but we must also spread the idea that "quality cannot be assured in a final test" throughout the entire plant and make efforts so that there are no returned products and no defective products.
TDK Xiamen Co., Ltd."Passion for quality will lead to better manufacturing"
My awareness was changed when a female operator in my manufacturing workplace taught me about "attitudes and efforts for improving quality." Naturally, the building of a system for quality improvement is important, but I wrote my essay out of a belief that raising the awareness of employees actually engaged in manufacturing products will lead to even better quality. From now on also, I would like all employees to come together and march forward with passion toward the goal of zero defects.
Magnecomp Precision Technology Public Co.,Ltd. In design screening to detect risks and problems hidden in new products and new technologies, TDK is involved in the building of a system that can realize technology-backed better design and better processes. By building quality from the design stage, it will be possible to supply customers with high-quality new products.
With the aim of supplying highly reliable products to customers, TDK is involved in the building of fine structure observation technology, ultrahigh-precision analysis technology, and nondestructive product evaluation technology that can anticipate the next generation, as well as the development of new technologies.
Through continuous quality improvement activities, TDK is promoting the upgrading of people, systems, and technologies and endeavoring to boost quality capability.
By developing the visualization of quality information via TDK's original information technology, it will be possible to convey quality information in a timely manner and ensure the stable supply of high-quality products to customers.
In order to realize the target of zero defects, there must be zero defects in the quality of purchased components as well. For this purpose, TDK builds solid relations of trust not only within the TDK Group itself but also with suppliers, strengthens quality improvement activities for globally purchased parts, and promotes the visualization of purchased parts quality information using information technology. These efforts lead to the elimination of latent defects and the strengthening of quality.
TDK supplies electronic components as a flagship product line not only to electronic device set manufacturers directly linked to end consumers, but also to electronic assembly manufacturers and component manufacturers. In doing so, TDK makes every effort to ensure customer satisfaction (CS), through the three avenues as follows, and strives to achieve general satisfaction, encompassing quality, cost, delivery, environmental efforts and services, in order to become the company of choice for potential customers.
TDK obtains the results of supplier evaluations as completed by its customers. The evaluation ranks the different levels of customer satisfaction, with an "A" indicating that the customer is fully satisfied. TDK keeps track of changes in the percentage regarding the A rank, and passes this information to the relevant division responsible to improve CS.
TDK maintains a database of product-related complaints filed by customers both in Japan and overseas. Information is sent online to the involved departments without delay, so that swift action can be taken to improve CS.
In addition, this system is designed to automatically send significant complaints to top management.
In order to become the supplier of choice for our customers, our sales staff members make sure that they understand the needs of our customers. TDK makes every effort to improve CS by quickly understanding the details of customer complaints, and providing feedback to the relevant divisions so that they may take necessary remedial action.
I am in charge of business with a leading European mobile phone manufacturer. Although the practice is commonplace now, this client was quick to introduce supplier evaluation from the perspectives of technology (T), quality (Q), response (R), delivery (D), and cost (C). Recently it has also been focusing attention on the environment (E). It was the first company to participate in the Save Our Species (SOS) international fund for the conservation of biological diversity. On the basis of TDK's corporate motto of "contribute to culture and industry through creativity," while focusing on environment-conscious products, we propose solutions that go as far as creating added value for the client.
From now on also, through daily communication, regular business review meetings, and so on, I will position the voices of our clients as the starting point of our activities and promote the confirmation and improvement of activities. Furthermore, with reference to customer satisfaction surveys and so on, I will pursue customer satisfaction through total TQRDCE and continue our marketing activities as a trusted leading supplier.
TDK-EPC Corporation
