Purpose: Total quality management (TQM) is considered a very important factor for the long-term success of an organization. However, there exist a lot of international quality awards, apart from different versions of national quality awards (NQAs), developed by the governments of many countries based on these well-established awards. In addition to these awards, there are a plethora of frameworks proposed by various researchers and consultants. Hence, many organizations are not in a position to understand clearly the concept of TQM, in terms of knowing what has to be implemented and what area to focus on. To overcome these issues, this paper attempts to present a list of TQM implementation elements for manufacturing excellence. These elements can be undertaken by any manufacturing organization striving for excellence. Design/methodology/approach: A literature review was carried out to provide a brief overview about the 28 models, awards and frameworks given by national, international agencies and individuals. Then a comparative analysis was carried out to identify the list of TQM elements and a framework for TQM implementation elements has been proposed through discussion with experts and domain knowledge. Findings: The outcome of this research is a framework of TQM implementation elements for sustaining manufacturing excellence obtained from the comparative analysis of various TQM models and national/international quality awards. Research limitations/implications - The proposed list of TQM elements and its associated framework are highly conceptual and need to be validated through an empirical approach or by a clinical approach utilizing a case study. Originality/value: The paper identifies the TQM implementation elements which will direct an organization towards manufacturing excellence, as well as ensuring that the elements withstand the test of time, pace of technology, market and customer changes. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.