QFD – Quality Function Deployment

1. Definition
Quality function deployment (QFD) is a method developed in Japan
beginning in 1966 to help transform the voice of the customer into engineering
characteristics for a product.
Yoji Akao, the original developer, described QFD as a "method to transform
qualitative user demands into quantitative parameters, to deploy the functions
forming quality, and to deploy methods for achieving the design quality into
subsystems and component parts, and ultimately to specific elements of the
manufacturing process." The author combined his work in quality assurance and
quality control points with function deployment used in value engineering.1
Quality function deployment (QFD) is used in a growing number of product
development organizations to provide assistance with the planning process. QFD is
often cited as a key to the total transformation of the Japanese automotive industry.
However, in the last 15 years, QFD has become a standard tool in requirements
gathering, analysis and prioritization across all development organizations.2
When would you use this tool?
As soon as there is a well understood customer and their challenges and desires have
been quantifiably captured, QFD can be incorporated into the product development
process. It is most effective when it is used throughout the entire product lifecycle,
as its main purpose is to ensure a constant focus on the voice of the customer. You
can’t “check it off” as completed since it is an ever-present ingredient every step of
the way.
QFD is most appropriate when companies are focused on relatively iterative
innovation versus something completely new, since there is a large base of customer
feedback and input to drive the process. When a product is creating a completely
new category it’s more difficult to fully articulate the voice of the customer since
they don’t necessarily have a frame of reference, but even in these cases carrying
forward what is known about customer needs and preferences can provide value.

1
Akao, Yoji (1994). "Development History of Quality Function Deployment". The Customer Driven Approach to
Quality Planning and Deployment. Minato, Tokyo: Asian Productivity Organization. ISBN 92-833-1121-3.
Larson et al. (2009). p. 117.
2
https://www.isixsigma.com/tools-templates/qfd-house-of-quality/qfd-good-tool-use-avoiding-product-failure/
Why Implement Quality Function Deployment
Effective communication is one of the most important and impactful aspects of any
organization’s success. QFD methodology effectively communicates customer
needs to multiple business operations throughout the organization including design,
quality, manufacturing, production, marketing and sales. This effective
communication of the Voice of the Customer allows the entire organization to work
together and produce products with high levels of customer perceived value. There
are several additional benefits to using Quality Function Deployment:

Customer Focused: QFD methodology places the emphasis on the wants and needs
of the customer, not on what the company may believe the customer wants. The
Voice of the Customer is translated into technical design specifications. During the
QFD process, design specifications are driven down from machine level to system,
sub-system and component level requirements. Finally, the design specifications are
controlled throughout the production and assembly processes to assure the customer
needs are met.
VOC Competitor Analysis: The QFD “House of Quality” tool allows for direct
comparison of how your design or product stacks up to the competition in meeting
the VOC. This quick analysis can be beneficial in making design decisions that could
place you ahead of the pack.
Shorter Development Time and Lower Cost: QFD reduces the likelihood of late
design changes by focusing on product features and improvements based on
customer requirements. Effective QFD methodology prevents valuable project time
and resources from being wasted on development of non-value added features or
functions.
Structure and Documentation: QFD provides a structured method and tools for
recording decisions made and lessons learned during the product development
process. This knowledge base can serve as a historical record that can be utilized to
aid future projects.
Companies must bring new and improved products to market that meet the
customer’s actual wants and needs while reducing development time. QFD
methodology is for organizations committed to listening to the Voice of the
Customer and meeting their needs.3

Here maybe are some tips

QFD Requires the Right Organizational Environment
According to Fiorenzo Franceschini, author of “Advanced Quality Function
Deployment,” QFD doesn’t work well with the divisional or departmental
organizational structures and environments seen in many large businesses. This is
because an effective QFD environment requires innovation, initiative, teamwork and
information sharing. Organizational structures that don’t provide this environment
often perceive QFD processes as additional work rather than a way to produce
products that suit target customer’s needs. To get the right environment, a business
might need to first undergo a complete reorganization.
Customer-Focused Risks
Effective QFD requires accurate data analysis. Although surveys, focus groups and
polls are ways to get information directly from customers, they don’t always reflect
your customer’s true feelings. This can make it difficult to create a true relationship
between customer needs and a product’s features and characteristics. In addition,
incorrect analysis can result in acquiring too much information, which in turn makes
for excessively long decision tables that make prioritizing customer requirements
much more difficult.
Less Adaptable to Changing Demand
A QFD system and way of thinking can make adapting to changing customer needs
more costly, difficult and complex. The process of capturing, documenting and
incorporating customer needs into products is time-consuming, and once production
starts, it isn’t easy to change. However, because customer needs can change quickly
and with little warning, QFD has the potential to leave a business with products that
don’t meet these new requirements and that it can’t sell.

3
https://quality-one.com/qfd/
Limited Focus
QFD focuses solely on what a business needs to do to satisfy its customers. A major
disadvantage is that it ignores other factors such as cost, the length of the product
life cycle, long-term strategy and growth objectives and available resources. Relying
too heavily on QFD at the expense of these other factors can potentially lead to
negative financial and operational consequences that could put the business at risk.
Tips>
The QFD technique is based on the analysis of the clients’ requirements, which
normally are expressed in qualitative terms, such as: “easy to use”, “safe”,
“comfortable” or “luxurious”. In order to develop a service, it is necessary to
“translate” these fuzzy requirements into quantitative service design requirements;
QFD makes this translation possible. Quality Function Deployment is also a system
for design of a product or service based on customer demands, a system that moves
methodically from customer requirements to specifications for the product or
service. QFD involves the entire company in the design and control activity. Finally,
QFD provides documentation for the decision-making process