Quality Control

Quality control is checking errors during project implementation. Quality control inspectors are used for checking quality. Statistical quality control techniques are also applied for monitoring quality. Conformity to agreed specifications are monitored. Adjustments are made for deviations. Project outputs not meeting the standards are rejected, scrapped or reworked.

Total Quality Management (TQM)
Total quality management is a management philosophy of continuously improving project quality through everyone's commitment and involvement to satisfy customer needs. It puts quality first. Quality becomes the guiding factor for everything the project organization does.

TQM creates a project culture committed to continuous improvement in all aspects. It seeks incremental improvements.

Components of TQM
Components of Total Quality Management are:
  1. Strategic commitment
  2. Continuous quality improvement
  3. Customer focus
  4. Employee involvement
  5. Accurate measurement
  6. Improved materials, technology and methods
  • Strategic Commitment: The top management should have strategic commitment to total quality management in project. The project culture should be supportive of TQM.
  • Continuous Quality Improvement: TQM believes that quality can always be improved. Quality is a never ending concern. Everything that the project does is subject of quality improvement. It becomes a way of life.
  • Customer Focus: TQM puts intense focus on customer. Satisfaction of customer needs is the top priority. Customers can be outsiders who buy the products. Quality serves as a means to build cordial customer relationships.
  • Employee Involvement: In project, quality is everyone's responsibility for their own work. Employee involvement at all levels is critical to improving quality. Employees are empowered through work teams to find and solve problems. Teamwork is built.
  • Accurate Measurement: TQM uses statistical tools for accurate measurement of critical operations. Performance is compared against standards Causes of deviations are corrected. The important tools are:
    • Flow Chart: Graphic display of a sequence of activities.
    • Control Chart: Visual aid showing variations.
    • Histograms: Bar chart showing deviations from a standard curve.
    • Scatter Diagram: Plots relationship between two variables.
    • Trend Chart: Tracks a variable over time.
    • Fish-bone Diagram: Cause and effect analysis.
    • Pareto Analysis: Bar chart indicating problem needing most attention.
  • Improved Materials, Technology, Methods:
    • Improved quality of materials as a way of improving quality of project outputs are used.
    • New forms of technology, such as robots, computerization, digitalization to boost quality are used.
    • Improved methods, such as flexible manufacturing methods are used.

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