Gestão da qualidade em pequenas e médias empresas do setor industrial gráfico: diagnóstico da maturidade organizacional

Abstract

This study presents a diagnosis made with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) of the printing sector located in the state of Paraná, which had the objective of evaluating their level of organizational maturity regarding the implementation of Quality Management (QM) practices, and Its development respected the following stages: research and analysis of the panorama of the academic studies related to the subject, accompanied by an interview in a microenterprise of the sector (stage 1); Application of a maturity level diagnostic model for QM practices in the same company, with the proposition of improvements (step 2) and replication of the diagnostic model, validated by a factorial analysis, in three large regions of Paraná, through a survey (step 3), in order to, through the factors, compare results among regions, size, age and area of coverage of companies. The results revealed that, in an academic context, research can still be advanced, with few papers about it, despite the unanimity regarding the importance of Quality Management for SMEs. The lack of skilled labor in the sector was the main difficulty pointed out by the manager of a microenterprise during stage 2. The five factors formed through the factorial analysis in step 3 were the following: Training and employee participation (Factor 1); Quality of manufacturing (Factor 2); Ability to detect and analyze defects in products (Factor 3); Support structure (Factor 4) and Identifying the causes of defects and meeting the needs of consumers (Factor 5). Through the evaluation of these factors, it is verified that companies need adjustments and improvements in their methods of Quality Management. The "Employee training and participation" factor revealed a critical point for this category of companies, both in the survey and in the case study. Also, significant differences were identified among the categories of companies, such as the best results for Factor 1 in microenterprises as well as those in the western and southwestern regions, the best manufacturing quality indices in the younger companies, and a more support structure consisting of companies located in the west and southwest regions and also those with a greater market reach.