Problems of implementing TQM principles in Lithuanian chemical engineering enterprises

Abstract

Besides democracy and a market economy, new ideas, products, complicated machinery and concepts have been introduced and created in Lithuania since 1991. In order to move forward and attain higher levels of quality, the principles of Total WQuality Management (TQM) have been applied, especially in the education of technical tertiary students that do not always gain business knowledge in their courses and because there is a global crisis in many areas of tertiary technical education. This paper concerns an investigation of the attitudes of chemical engineering specialists towards the main principles of TQM and the results of a questionnaire that shows some problems and the need to change educational directions. The authors agree with similar goverment policy guidelines that education and economic ministries should work together to stimulate students activities related to the unctioning of market economy behavior and include the basic principles of TQM at secondary and tertiary levels [1]. According to some specialists TQM has gone out of fashion and reengineering came in Lithuania is still dealing with TQM and hopefully an understanding of the application of TQM will lead universities and companies to understand the need to go back to the drawing board look at all their processes and redesign them [2].