Urban Planning is a technical process concerned with the control of the use of land and design of urban environment to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities. Outcomes from the urban planning process are detailed plans. In Bahrain the detailed plans are developed through a lengthy two-stage process, namely, design and implementation. During this lengthy process the documented design variations were found to be the main cause for implementation delay. In addition, it was discovered that land owners exclusion from the urban planning process caused major disagreements, between the urban planning authorities and the land owners. Accordingly, this paper presents an investigation into the applied urban planning process in Bahrain, and proposes a solution that incorporates Quality Function Deployment (QFD) technique. The study is based on face-to-face interviews, questionnaire, Delphi method, and a case study (North Tubli). The results of this study concluded that using participatory planning and QFD within the urban planning process enables evaluation of the different alternative plans, based on scientific and systematic procedures. In addition, it ensures that land owners and community members requirements are satisfied.

Despite the importance of quality management systems in the manufacturing industry, few studies are directed to gauge their comparative effectiveness whether in Bahrain or worldwide. In addition, there has been a limited examination of the common and unique practices associated with these programs worldwide, but none for Bahrain. Accordingly, the main purpose of this paper is to study and evaluate the effects of the application of Total Quality Management (TQM), Total Productive Maintenance (TPM), and Just in Time (JIT) on the performance of industry in Bahrain. The paper presents the common, unique success factors, and the performance indicators associated with each program. In addition, the paper examines the relationships between these quality programs initiatives and their effects on the industry in Bahrain. The paper concludes that the implementation of TQM, TPM, and JIT has positive effect, and that the TQM quality program is the most effective and beneficial program to improve the performance of industry in Bahrain.

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