Abstract
The objective of this study was to examine the development of quality management in Rautaruukki Plc’s Production division. The idea is to describe critical incidents in the development of quality management in the light of the historical development, current state and theoretical framework, as well as analyse whether this description follows the development process described in the literature. The theoretical framework — development through the literature — describes the historical development of quality management, the development and assessment models of quality management as well as some essential sectors, tools and techniques of quality management presented in the literature. The case study is based on ten interviews made in four production sites of the case organisation. The interviews were used to create a description of the historical development and the applications of different sectors of quality management. We have also created three alternative scenarios to outline the future of the organisation.