Applying QFD to assess quality of short sea shipping: an empirical study on Cross-Strait high-speed ferry service between Taiwan and Mainland China

The aim of this paper is to improve the quality of high-speed ferry service between Mainland China and Taiwan. Since 2014, a shipping company in Taiwan has formally served the Taipei-Pingtan route connecting the Cross-Strait passengers and cargo. Compared with air transportation, the high-speed vessel industry is particularly characterised by its relatively cheaper prices and convenience. Tourist passengers are now the main users of high-speed ferry service, and the number of business passengers still has the potential to grow. This research applies quality function deployment (QFD) to transform the voice of passengers to prioritise key technical measures for quality improvement. An empirical study is performed to evaluate the service quality of an anonymous entity in Taiwan. Through completing the house of quality (HoQ), important technical measures such as 'professional crew and staff training in etiquette', 'no. of internal seminars and meetings for customer service', and 'ISO certificate and quality manual' are the main findings to improve the high-speed ferry service quality and its implications are revealed for practitioners, policy-makers and other stakeholders in relation to the high-speed ferry industry.