Zero defects or extremely low probability of defects during manufacturing processes was one of the primary goals for Zero Defects. Zero defects or extremely low probability of defects (ZD) in any process involves the use of quality control, reduction of wastes, and the use of on time inventory (OTI). The importance of zero defects or low probability of defects or a high level of quality is dependent on the type of product involved. For example, if it is an aircraft manufacturing process, then a high level of quality is necessary to ensure that the aircraft are produced on time and to a particular specification.
Zero defects or low probability of defects were only part of Zero Defects concept though. The idea was to make the production process as smooth and least disruptive as possible. This is where concepts like add value, customer requirements, and good manufacturing practices came in. Zero defects also mean that you do not have to make add-on changes to the process to improve on the quality of the product or process. The concept was to first reduce all possible defects before introducing add-ons that enhance the quality of the product or process.
As mentioned earlier, the aim of Zero Defects concept was to provide manufacturers and other process or product users with maximum assurance of product and process quality. In order to achieve zero defects or extremely low probabilities of defects, designers and engineers used several concepts and approaches. These include but are not limited to theories like optimalimal scheduling, conjunctive scheduling, incremental scheduling, and so on. There was a need for speed, cost effectiveness, reliability and availability of resources throughout the life cycle of the project. Zero defects or extremely low probability of defects is achievable only when the application and the processes and applications are designed, implemented and tested to achieve quality standards.