Quality Assurance

Module “1”

Basic Concepts and

Definitions
Introduction
Businesses have focused on quality in the
last 20-30 years.
As markets have become much more
competitive - quality has become widely
regarded as a key ingredient for success
in business.
Introduction

Today's business climate requires an

exact interpretation of customer
requirements coupled with effective and
efficient processes to meet those
requirements.
Defining 'Quality'
In its broadest sense,
Quality is a degree of excellence
In the narrow sense,
Product or service quality is “conformance
with requirement, freedom from defects or
contamination, or simply a degree of
customer satisfaction.”
Defining 'Quality'
To reach the definition of “Quality”, some
concepts may be discussed:
Meeting requirements
• Specifications are an imprecise means of
conveying subjective aspects. Conformance to
requirements is not necessarily all there is to
achieving quality.
Defining 'Quality'
Quality is a result
• Quality is the result of a comparison between what
was required and what was provided. It is judged
not by the producer but by the receiver.
Defining 'Quality'
Customer satisfaction
• The only true measure of acceptable quality is
customer satisfaction, which takes into account
both objective and subjective interpretations of the
needs and expectations of customers.
Defining 'Quality'
Changing customer perceptions
• Customer needs and expectations are constantly
changing. Awareness of new technology,
legislation, problems, competitor products or
services creates new wants for customers.
Defining 'Quality'
Definition
Quality has many meanings:
• a degree of excellence,
• conformance with requirements,
• the totality of characteristics of an entity that bear
on its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs,
• fitness for use,
• freedom from defects, imperfections or
• contamination and delighting customers.
Defining 'Quality'
Quality is about:
A standard which can be accepted by both the supplier and the
customer.
Giving complete satisfaction to the customer;
Complying consistently to an agreed level of specification;
Providing an acceptable product at an acceptable cost;
Providing a product which is 'fit for the purpose';
The totality of features or characteristics of a product that bear
on its ability to satisfy a given need.
Defining 'Quality'
Quality is not about:
Complying with a specification;
Being the best;
Only producing a product that is 'fit for the
purpose
Defining 'Quality'

Quality is all about

Customer Satisfaction!
Defining 'Quality'
Differences between a 'Grade' and a 'Class' of a
product or service
Example
• A Rolls Royce motor car is in a different class to a family car.
They were each designed for a totally different purpose. A
Rolls Royce that constantly fails to start would be of poor
quality whereas the family car that starts every time would be
of good quality, assuming all other features to be equal.
Defining 'Quality'
“Grade”
Differences in product or service performance
and degrees of refinement are differences in
grade.
“Class”
Differences in purpose are differences in
class.
Quality characteristics
Features of a product or service needed to
satisfy customer needs are quality
characteristic.
When dealing with products the
characteristics are almost always technical
characteristics, whereas service quality
characteristics have a human dimension.
Quality characteristics
Product quality dimension
Performance
• Refers to the efficiency with a product achieves its intended
purpose.
Features
• Are attributes of a product that supplement the product's
basic performance.
Reliability
• Refers to the propensity for product to perform consistently
over its useful design life.
Conformance
• When a product is designed, certain numeric dimensions for
the product's performance will be established, such as
capacity, speed, size, durability.
Quality Characteristics
Durability
• Is the degree to which a product tolerates stress or
trauma without failing.
Serviceability
• Is the ease of repair for a product.
Aesthetics
• Are subjective sensory characteristics such as
taste, feel, sound, look and smell.
Perceived quality
• Is based on customer opinion.
Quality Characteristics
Service quality dimensions
Tangibles
• Include the physical appearance of the service facility, the
equipment, the personnel, and the communication materials.
Service Reliability
• It relates to the ability of the service provider to perform the
promised service dependably and accurately.
Responsiveness
• Is the willingness of the service provider to be helpful and
prompt in providing service.
Assurance
• Refers to the knowledge and courtesy of employees and their
ability to inspire trust and confidence.
Quality Characteristics
David Garvin found that most definitions of
quality were either:
Transcendent
• Quality is something that is intuitively understood
but nearly impossible to communicate such as
beauty or love
Product-Based
• Quality is found in the components and attributes
of a product
Quality Characteristics
User-Based
• If the customer is satisfied, the product has good
quality
Manufacturing-Based
• If the product conforms to design specifications, it
has a good quality
Value-Based
• If the product is perceived as providing good value
for the price, it has a good quality.
Quality and Price
Most of us are attracted to certain products
and services by their price.
If the price is outside our reach then we don't
even consider quality, except perhaps to
admire it.
Price is not a feature or characteristic of the
product but is a feature of the service.
Quality and Cost
There is the cost of doing the right things right
first time and the cost of not doing the right
things right first time.
The latter are quality costs or the cost
incurred because failure is possible.
Quality Control
What is Quality Control 'QC'?
Is a set of measures taken to ensure that
defective products or services are not
produced, and that the design meets
performance requirements.
Quality Control
What is detection?
It is about getting rid of the bad things after
they have taken place.
Defining ‘Quality
Assurance’
Defining “Assurance”
Freedom from doubt
Defining “Quality Assurance Systems”
Prevention-based systems which improve
product and service quality, and increases
productivity by placing the emphasis on
product, service and process design.
Defining ‘Quality
Assurance’
The purpose of QA is:
To provide assurance to a customer
To ensure that manufacturing and/or service
standards are uniform
Defining ‘Quality
Assurance’
QA is concerned with:
An agreed level of quality
A commitment:
• within an organization to the fundamental principle
of consistently supplying the right quality product;
• from a customer to the fundamental principle of
only accepting the right quality product;
A commitment to the basic principles of QA
and QC.
Quality Management
Systems
Definition of QMS
Is a proven technique to guarantee survival in
world class competition. Only by changing the
actions of management will the culture.
Is the art managing the whole to achieve
excellence.
Quality Management
Systems
Quality Management and culture
QM requires a cultural change. This change is substantial and
will not be accomplished in short period of time.
Quality Previous Quality
Element State Management
Definition Product-oriented Customer-oriented
Priorities Second to service and cost First among equals of service and cost
Decisions Short- term Long-term
Emphasis Detection prevention
Errors Operations System
Responsibility Quality control Everyone
Problem solving Managers Teams

Procurement Price Life-cycle costs, partnership

Manager's role Plan, assign, control, and enforce Delegate, coach, faciliate, and mentor
Quality Management
Systems
Requirements of a Quality Management System
To be successful, an organization must:
• Be able to offer products that satisfy a customer's
expectations;
• Agree with the relevant standards and specifications of a
contract;
• Be available at competitive prices;
• Be able to supply products or services at a cost that will still
bring a profit to that organization.
Importance of “Quality”
Why should an organization be interested
in quality?
A business would have no profits if it failed to
create and retain satisfied customers.
Therefore, quality is vital to the survival of
every enterprise.
Importance of “Quality”
What does quality apply to?
Every product, service, process, task, action,
decision can either be acceptable or
unacceptable.
Hence, there is an intrinsic quality in
everything that an organization does.
Importance of “Quality”
Who is responsible for quality?
Assigning responsibility means:
• Giving a person the right to cause things to
happen and with this right should be delegated the
authority to control the processes which deliver the
output the quality of which the person is
responsible for.
Case study
Fedex
Managing Quality Day and Night

Discussion Questions
What is FedEx's "common language" of quality? Is it important
for a company to establish a "common language" of quality? If
so, why?
There are several different perspective of quality, including the
operations perspective, the strategic perspective, the marketing
perspective, the financial perspective, the human resources
perspective, and the systems perspective, which of these
perspectives are being emphasized by FedEx? Why?
Is FedEx 's level of emphasis on quality appropriate? Why or
why not?
Workshops
Workshop 1
In groups:
a. Choose a product with your team and use the product quality
dimensions mentioned before to give examples about each property.

Product :
Product quality dimensions
Performance
Features
Reliability
Conformance
Durability
Serviceability
Aesthetics
Perceived quality
Workshop 1 (Cont.)

In groups:
b. Choose a service with your team and use the product quality
dimensions mentioned before to give examples about each property.

Service :
Service quality dimensions
Tangibles

Service
Responsiveness

Assurance

Reliability
Workshop 2
In groups:
Choose a type of activity for a company or a
factory that offers a product/service. Assume
that you and your team are the owners of this
company.
List three examples of activities for each of the
following:
• Quality control
• Quality assurance
• Quality management