Introduction

“Quality remains when the price is long forgotten!” This statement is attributed to Henry Royce, the co-founder of the highly reputable British company Rolls Royce. An analysis of the purchasing behavior of the consumers in the current climate of cut-throat competition and systematic customer-orientation shows that the corporate strategy of “Quality” holds out more promise than ever before, to manufacturing companies [prf]. It is hardly surprising therefore that the competitive element of “Quality” has come to rival the traditional competitive factors “Cost” and “Time” in recent years.