Quality Tale - News on Technology: July 2007

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Angle of QUALITY CONTROL and QUALITY ASSURANCE

It is a common belief that QUALITY ASSURANCE replaces QUALITY CONTROL. In fact, it does not. If we look again at the definition of QUALITY MANAGEMENT it becomes apparent that it uses both QUALITY CONTROL and QUALITY ASSURANCE and in fact some quality QUALITY CONTROL and QUALITY ASSURANCE actions are interrelated.

QUALITY CONTROL (ISO 9000:2000) is defined as :

"part of quality management focused on fulfilling quality requirements"

It involves operational techniques and activities that are aimed both at monitoring processes and eliminating the causes of unsatisfactory performance at all the stages of a quality loop in order to achieve economic effectiveness.

QUALITY CONTROL is of a REACTIVE NATURE.

Techniques such as inspections, monitoring of product characteristics, process monitoring etc. are being used to assess the performance, often using statistical techniques. Should to fall below requirements, corrective actions are implemented to eliminate the causes.

QUALITY ASSURANCE on the contrary is PREVENTIVE in NATURE.

It is a system designed to control the activities at all stages from sales, design, purchasing and production to delivery and service in order to prevent quality problems and ensure that quality will be implemented in the product.

QUALITY ASSURANCE happens upstream of processes , whereas QUALITY CONTROL happens downstream.

Effective quality management however requires a system that will involve both QUALITY ASSURANCE as well as QUALITY CONTROL. It is human to err, and all systems involving the human factor can not be solely based on prevention, and need verification activities and corrective mechanisms. It is human to err, but it is quite unwise to repeat the error.

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Monday, July 16, 2007

QUALITY ASSURANCE : In Detail

Having established the concept of QUALITY we must know "What is meant by QUALITY ASSURANCE?"

It is not as simple as it may sound. It certainly does not mean that it may be taken for granted that the requirements for quality will be met. As long as human factor is involved in any process, the output cannot be a 100% predictable. It is human to err, and we must face it. Therefore QUALITY ASSURANCE may only be perceived as the way to provide reasonable confidence that the requirements will be met.

Careful planning of the processes and providing the evidence that the processes are systematically carried out as per established plans can only attain such confidence. Attaining confidence will also require some sort of verification that what is being done conforms to the plans, and that the plans continue to be suitable for meeting the requirements. Such verifications may, on occasions, lead to the conclusion that the plans have to be updated or changed. This fundamental concept is based on the so-called "DEMING WHEEL".

ISO 9001:2000 defines QUALITY ASSURANCE as:

"part of quality management focused on providing confidence that quality requirements will be fulfilled"

This definition does not refer to the customer's confidence only. It is quite clear that there is an INTERNAL and EXTERNAL purpose for QUALITY ASSURANCE.

The INTERNAL ASPECT : QUALITY ASSURANCE within an organization gives confidence to the management. It is the confidence that we are understanding the requirements of our customers at all times and that we have the established capability to meet these requirements at the lowest possible cost, thus continuously making a profit.

The EXTERNAL ASPECT : QUALITY ASSURANCE within an organization provides confidence to the customer.

Looking at the definition of QUALITY ASSURANCE it becomes apparent that the key issue is to define what our products are and to determine what the requirements for quality are.

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What is QUALITY and GRADE?

Every time QUALITY is very often confused with GRADE.

It is because people very often confuse QUALITY with such aspects as expensiveness, luxury etc. If you compare an expensive, top of the range "MONT BLANC PEN" and the disposable "BIC PEN", many people would say that the "MONT BLANC PEN" is of a better quality. It is a firm belief of many people that "MERCEDES" is a high quality vehicle, which is probably true, but in many countries such belief is so wrong, that people, without thinking say: "MERCEDES IS HIGHER QUALITY THAN TOYOTA".

If you look critically, ask yourself the question "What is the purpose of these two pens or these two cars?" Pens are for writing and cars are there to take you from X to Y. So the functional use is the same. Now, is an expensive "MONT BLANC PEN" suitable for foreman or a lead hand in a heavy production environment? Certainly not, it can easily get damaged, You can drop a BIC PEN on a concrete floor and nothing will happen, it will most likely still be fit for the same. The result may be disastrous. "MONT BLANC" is probably better suited for office staff, especially those, who want to impress their customers with how well off the company is. You may now see that, although these two products top of the range "MERCEDES" will be suitable for those, who look for luxury and a "STATUS" car. Most people cannot however afford such a car and therefore it is unable to meet their needs. On the contrary the "TOYOTA COROLLA" is an affordable means of transportation, offering a reasonable level of safety and comfort. You may know that in the statistics run by specialized, "GERMAN MOTOR JOURNALS", the COROLLA is ranked at the top of the list as far as reliability is concerned.

A similar comparison may be made when considering HOTELS. FIVE STAR HOTELS are often considered to be of the highest quality, but those, who have travelled a lot, know better than that. It is very often the case that you receive a superior quality or service in small countryside establishments ranked as TWO or THREE STAR, where the service will often have that special personal touch. Stars, if you know the system, are awarded for the services and facilities available (like laundry, beauty parlour, barber, gymnasium, sauna, jacuzzi, swimming pool, number of restaurants, bars, etc.), but do not tell you the quality of service really. You can get lousy service in a FIVE STAR HOTEL on occasions.

What differs between these two PENS, CARS and HOTELS is the grade?

ISO 9001:2000 defines GRADE as :

"category or rank given to different quality requirements for products, processes or systems having the same functional use"

Grade reflects a planned or international difference in the requirements for quality. It emphasizes the functional use and cost relationship.

GRADE is inherent in the product, whereas QUALITY is dependent upon how well the product satisfies the needs.

GRADE can be altered by changes in specification.

QUALITY is now often defined as TOTAL CONFORMANCE TO THE REQUIREMENTS; these requirements are total customer requirements and organization requirements, not just conformance to product specification. This far-reaching application of quality to every activity has taken many years to develop and is no long way from where it begun.

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Pediatric Links - Must See

Pediatric Surgery
This blog describes various medical and surgical diseases in children.

Laparoscopic procedures
Laparoscopic surgery though require skill, it is less morbid, less painful, gives good cosmesis and avoids large scars.

Pediatric Cancer
It is an informative blog which describes various types of cancer in children, their clinical presentation,diagnosis and management written by a surgeon.

Atlas of Pediatric Diseases
It includes the exclusive pictures of various diseases in children. This is very useful site to remember the pathology in a glance. Especially for doctors as well as for persons who are interested in pediatric medicine and surgery. Disclaimer :The images in this blog are from real surgeries, and they might not be suitable for all readers.