An empirical model of supplier relation and management for better quality

A company's quality performance is necessarily dependent on its internal quality control and improvement efforts, but also subject to reliable delivery of high quality materials and parts from suppliers. This study identifies four key practices in quality-focused supplier relation and management, and examines how these practices affect quality performance of manufacturing companies in China. It is found that supplier partnership is the foundation for effective supplier quality control and management. And, a company's efforts in applying supplier involvement, quality-oriented supplier selection, and supplier JIT delivery, in general, are positively related to the improvements in its product quality, process quality and inventory performance. The results of this study will provide a better understanding of how to develop an effective supplier quality management system in China.