This paper examines the quality control practices of GE Appliances, a Louisville-based home appliance manufacturer acquired by Haier in 2016. It begins with a company overview, including its product mix, size, and key competitors such as LG, Whirlpool, Samsung, Electrolux, and Viking Range. The paper then identifies the conditions that led GE Appliances to adopt formal quality control measures and details its five-stage inspection process: initial production check, during-production check, pre-shipping inspection, container loading check, and product monitoring. Finally, it discusses measurable outcomes — including an assembly plant of the year award and a 60 percent reduction in production defect losses — and outlines the company's forward-looking investment plans.
GE Appliances is renowned for designing and building high-quality appliances across the globe. Ranging from the design process to production and on through to service, the central mission of GE Appliances is to help people improve their lives at home. From self-cleaning ovens to ice and water dispensers, speed-cook rotisseries, and refrigerators that brew coffee, GE Appliances has electrified and simplified home life for over 12 decades through a heritage of innovation (GE Appliances, 2020).
GE Appliances has its main center of operations in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. The company also has manufacturing facilities in Decatur, Alabama, as well as wholly-owned subsidiaries in Georgia and Tennessee (GE Appliances, 2020). Notably, GE Appliances owns FirstBuild, a multinational co-creation community and an ultramodern micro-factory located at its headquarters. The company established its second FirstBuild location in South Korea, and a third high-tech micro-factory is situated in India. These platforms ensure that the company's most innovative concepts and new products for the modern home reach consumers more quickly (GE Appliances, 2020).
Up until the 2016 fiscal year, GE Appliances was owned by General Electric and was known as GE Appliances & Lighting and GE Consumer & Industrial. In 2016, Haier took majority ownership of the company, acquiring a 90 percent share. As part of the deal, Haier obtained the right to use the General Electric brand name until 2056 (Flannery, 2016). Becoming part of this large multinational organization provides GE Appliances with additional resources to continue pursuing innovation and selling products globally (GE Appliances, 2020).
GE Appliances generates annual revenue of $7 billion and employs approximately 12,000 people. Its parent company, General Electric, operates in more than 170 countries worldwide and employs 205,000 people in total. General Electric's revenues declined 2 percent in the prior year, falling from $97,012 million in 2018 to $95,214 million in 2019 (General Electric, 2019).
General Electric operates several appliance brands, including Monogram, Café, Haier, Profile, and Hotpoint. The products manufactured and sold by GE Appliances include refrigerators, ranges, microwaves, dishwashers, washers, room air conditioners, wall ovens, water filtration systems, ice makers, trash compactors, laundry units, water softeners, and several others (GE Appliances, 2020).
GE Appliances faces intense competition from several other players in the home appliance market.
LG is a multinational electronics corporation headquartered in South Korea. LG manufactures home appliances including refrigerators, washing machines, tumble dryers, vacuum cleaners, air conditioners, and microwave ovens. In recent years, LG has intensified its market rivalry through the launch of smart appliances that allow users to communicate with, control, monitor, and share information with their devices.
Whirlpool is a multinational manufacturer, marketer, and retailer of home appliances headquartered in Michigan, United States. The company generates annual revenue of just over $21 billion, employs more than 90,000 people, and operates over 70 manufacturing and technology research facilities worldwide. Its major brands include Hotpoint, Acros, Amana, Royalstar, Whirlpool, and Hefei Sanyo.
Samsung Electronics is a multinational corporation headquartered in South Korea. It operates numerous assembly plants around the world and has sales operations in more than 70 countries, employing approximately 300,000 people. Samsung is the largest manufacturer of consumer electronics in the world by revenue and is considered the second-largest technology company globally by revenue.
Electrolux is a multinational home appliance manufacturer headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. In terms of competitive standing, Electrolux is consistently ranked as the second-largest appliance manufacturer in the world by units sold, behind Whirlpool Corporation. Electrolux products are sold under a wide range of brand names, including its own, and span major appliances and vacuum cleaners for consumer use. The company also manufactures appliances for professional use.
Viking Range Corporation is a U.S.-based appliance company that manufactures kitchen appliances for both residential and commercial use. The corporation currently offers three complete product lines of premium appliances covering cooking, ventilation, kitchen clean-up, and refrigeration, in addition to a range of outdoor appliances.
Quality control refers to a practice through which a business seeks to ensure that product quality is maintained or improved. It requires the organization to create an environment in which both managers and employees strive for perfection. This is achieved through trained and competent personnel, the establishment of product quality standards, and testing products to identify any statistically significant deviations (Hayes, 2020). A fundamental element of quality control is the institution of clearly defined controls, which help standardize both manufacturing processes and responses to quality issues. Limiting the risk of error by specifying which production activities are to be completed by which employees reduces the likelihood that personnel will be assigned tasks for which they lack sufficient training and expertise (Hayes, 2020).
As a manufacturing company, GE Appliances is driven by several conditions to implement quality control. In today's globalized marketplace, there are many significant opportunities for organizations, but also substantial risks. The key conditions leading GE Appliances to implement quality control include:
"Five-stage on-site inspection framework"
"Award recognition and defect loss reductions"
"Investment plans and expansion goals"
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