ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses Deming's third point: cease dependence on inspection to achieve quality and eliminate the need for inspection on a mass basis by building quality into the product in the first place. In any multistage production process poor quality from earlier stages is detrimental to the quality achievable at a later stage. The three rules of systematic quality control are: no inspection or measurement without recording; no recording without analysis; and no analysis without action. Furthermore, since the raw materials of one conversion process are the finished goods of a previous conversion process, the same condition prevails. The chapter looks at the technology of canisters manufacturing, in order to appreciate the powerful way in which statistical methodology tackles quality problems. It describes the concepts of folly and futility by presenting a story about a tribe of fools.
