Quality Policy

The Noritake Group has established a Quality Policy for providing quality products and services that satisfy our customers.

Activities to enhance manufacturing

Noritake is a manufacturer that was born from the passionate desires of the founders to “make porcelain with exquisite craftmanship and impeccable whiteness.” Based on this spirit, the Noritake Manufacturing Committee was established in 2011 to improve the quality of our products and services.
In 2011, we started basic development activities under the “Manufacturing 3-1 (M3-1) Activities” started by the manufacturing department. To ensure stable production, we have implemented a system that is the foundation for safety, 2S, and standardization. In addition, we have integrated “quality activities” for the engineering division and we are evolving them into activities that promote manufacturing and technology together. Since 2016, as basic enhancement activities, we have expanded our activities to develop management standards and systems that control the five major missions of our production sites: Safety, Quality, Production, Cost, and Human Resources.
We have expanded our manufacturing activities for sales, engineering, development, management, planning, and administration as “S3-1 activities,” and are currently promoting activities based on the two pillars of “M3-1 activities” and “S3-1 activities.”

M3-1 activity (manufacturing and engineering divisions)

Throughout our M3-1 activities, we stress the concept of “Customer First, Safety First and Quality First” in our manufacturing and engineering departments, and promote activities based on the recognition that achieving these three “Firsts” is important for continuing to contribute to society through our business. In order to further strengthen our manufacturing framework, we advance these efforts based on a two-pronged approach that includes basic enhancement activities and quality activities.

Basic enhancement activities

In our basic enhancement activities, in order to more reliably control Quality (Q), Cost (C), and Delivery (D), we are applying activities to key activities out of the five major missions of our production sites: “Safety,” “Quality,” “Production,” “Cost,” and “Human Resources,” with the aim of improving daily management quality. In FY2020, we added a restructuring of the cost control system. The aim of this will be to operate a plant management system as an ongoing framework, while also promoting existing activities led by department heads (plant managers and manufacturing managers) based on local physical goods.
The Noritake Group’s 12 plants hold activity meetings with real locations and real things, where the activities for the five missions are recognized in the form of mutual study the plant site. At these meetings, participants have discussions and promote good practices across departments.

Plant roles by qualification

Quality activities

From FY2023, the “Quality Committee” was established under the Sustainability Management Committee in order to promptly and reliably provide the “quality products and quality services” that customers demand. This committee develops the quality policy, quality targets and action plans, with the aim of improving quality throughout the entire Group.
Its main activities involve continuing the “Quality Activity Study Group” from FY2021, and promoting “good quality activities” and “production preparation activities.”

Good quality activities

We share information about how we deal with complaints and useful information about measures against defects in manufacturing processes, and strive to make corrections and improvements with “Obeya” activities. In these “Obeya” activities, top administrators such as plant managers gather with stakeholders from manufacturing, production technology, quality assurance, and product development, etc., to hold cross-departmental meetings to promptly carry out activities for making corrections and improvements through factor analysis and discussion of countermeasures.

Production preparation activities /Quality Activity Study Group

During the entire process of new product introduction from product planning through to mass production startup, relevant parties conduct a design review at each step to confirm the appropriateness of the output and prevent defects from occurring during mass production. These activities are called "production preparation activities." We determine what needs to be done at each step, what needs to be confirmed, and who will be responsible for each activity, and establish a standard process through continuous improvement.
In fiscal 2021, we launched the Quality Activity Study Group to make our production preparation activities more effective. The Study Group investigates defects associated with the production preparation process and promotes efforts for resolving fundamental problems by reviewing the conventional process and going back to production preparation activities, while holding discussions between the parties involved in the actual on-site production process.

S3-1 Activities (Sales, technology, development, management, planning, and administration divisions)

The Noritake Group’s manufacturing enhancement activities are not limited to the plants at which we manufacture our products. In the pursuit of customer satisfaction, both the departments that directly face the customers such as Sales and Engineering and the administration and development departments that support these departments are involved in the making of products in one way or another. These manufacturing-enhancement activities carried out by our non-factory staff divisions are "S3-1" activities. S represents the S of service, and 3-1 represents the three "Firsts": Customer First, Quality First and Trust First, which our staff must always observe conscientiously as they carry out their work duties. S3-1 activities are performed based on the awareness of these "Firsts", and are designed to elevate the quality of work.
The aim of S3-1 activities is to be able to “resolve problems and issues related to work autonomously and independently, with an awareness of customer satisfaction,” and thereby increase the individual’s problem-solving skills, as well as the organizational capabilities and competitiveness of the company. All staff divisions are reviewing their operations from the perspective of the “customer” to maintain operations in the way they should be. Small groups are formed to carry out the activities, and by achieving tangible results that enhance precision, quality, and efficiency (customer satisfaction, QCD enhancement, paid leave utilization, work style reform, etc.). We aim to create a workplace that is comfortable to work in while remaining a company that is trusted by customers. Engagement in these activities is also intended to improve employee awareness, leading to human resource development and building stronger organizational structures.