Quality improvement practices adopted by industrial companies in Portugal

Abstract

Abstract— In an increasingly competitive market, companies have the need to seek and implement best practices to continuously improve their processes. Recently, several quality management tools and quality improvement methodologies have emerged in literature. However, there is a gap between theory and practice. This study aims to assess to what extent the methodologies and tools cited in literature are used by industrial companies in Portugal. A questionnaire was developed to investigate both the importance, perceived by respondents, to each tool and methodology, and its level of use. The motivational factors and barriers to their implementation were also investigated. The questionnaire was sent to industrial companies of different sectors and 83 answers were analyzed based on descriptive statistics and statistical tests. Results show evidence about the perceived importance and implementation level of quality improvement practices in industries in Portugal. It also contributes to understand the factors that influence the use of such quality improvement techniques.