QS 9000 registration for lean manufacturing

The QS 9000 quality system was developed in the United States in 1994 by a team consisting of representatives of General Motors, Ford, and Daimler‐Chrysler as well as the US truck manufacturers. The objective of the system is to standardize the quality system requirements and documentation developed and maintained by US auto‐motive suppliers. In this paper we review the philosophy and the structure of QS 9000 automotive quality standards and examine the relationship between ISO 9001, QS 9000 and TQM. We also analyze the costs and benefits from quality system certification and present practical experiences of selected US automotive suppliers related to the development and implementation of ISO 9001 and QS 9000 requirements.