Quality Control

Quality control refers to the activities that are carried out on the production line to prevent /
eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance.
In the manufacturing industry including production of ready mixed concrete & fabrication of
pre-
cast units, the major functions of quality control are control of incoming materials , monitoring of
production process & testing of finished product.
For ex. during production, the strength of concrete is continuously monitored via routine
testing
& statistical analysis of test results so as to detect when the mean strength or the variability of
strength shows a significant change.
The control mechanism then goes on to rectify the detected change , thereby preventing a
potential problem from developing into a real one.
In the building industry, it is the traditional practice to have separate contracts for design &
construction with the designer lso taking up the role of supervision of construction.
The quality of finished works is controlled by way of inspection & testing as construction
proceeds
For ex. the quality of concrete & other materials on site is judged by random sampling &
testing,
& thorough inspection of finished works is performed without exception before final acceptance.
The major drawback of this „inspectorial system‟ is that it identifies the mistakes after the event.
Even high strength concrete can be defective if it is not properly compacted & cured & the
potential hazards of steel corrosion will not surface until some years later on.
Unlike consumer goods, defective building work is very difficult , if not impossible to
replace.
To show commitment to quality, senior management of the company must provide adequate
resources on the site to avoid poor quality workmanship & also should have comprehensive
record of in-process inspection which is essential to ensure that the intended verification is
actually done
QUALITY ASSURANCE
A survey conducted by building research establishment in UK indicates that 40% of the
building
defects occur during the construction phase. In most cases the defects are found to be the
result of
Misinterpretation of drawings & specifications
Use of superseded drawings & specifications
Poor communication with architect/engineer, subcontractors & material suppliers
Poor coordination of sub-contracted work
Unqualified operators
Inadequate supervision & verification on site
It is obvious that the defects arising in construction are mostly caused by poor management &
communication
It is wrong to assume that the mistakes appearing on site are actually made @ site.
These mistakes may be traced to purchase of incorrect or incompatible materials & the
failure to
retrieve the out-dated drawings
Quality can be achieved only when such avoidable mistakes are avoided in the first instance.
S.R.P** 3RD TERM CONSTRUCTION QUALITY MANAGEMENT
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Preventive measures must be taken to minimise the risk of managerial & communication
problems
This is the basic concept of Quality assurance
If consistent quality is to be assured, then all the staff in the organisation, both @ head office
&
site must :
Must have appropriate organisation structure, clear lines of responsibility &
communication
Must have correct specifications & drawings
Must have proper training, appropriate procedures & ready access to necessary
instructions
Must have appropriate checking, measurement & testing of products
Must keep proper records & specified certificates
Must have right resources, plant & materials
To practise quality assurance, an organisation has to establish & maintain a quality
management system ( qms) in its day to day operation
A quality system contains a st of documented procedures for various processes carried out by
the organisation.
Implementing a quality system ensures that the appropriate type & amount of verification is
performed when & where it is planned to be done.
A quality system is also referred to as QA/ QC programme.
It is unfortunate that that the adoption of quality assurance in construction industry has been
mainly led by client.
Of course, it costs to implement & maintain a quality system.
Significant investment in terms of money & staff are needed for QA especially for document
preparation & staff training.
Even though some people see this as an overhead for the company, the overall quality relate
costs dcreases rapidly as awareness among the staff increases.
A questionnaire survey of contractors in Hongkong has indicated that setting up of cost
ranges
from US 1,28,000 dollars to 3,85,000 dollars with a running cost of 0.2% of contract value
An analysis of seven building projects of various sizes in Australia has indicated that though
the
implementation of quality system is about 1% of the project value ( prevention cost), the
expenditure as a result of failure/repair has dropped from 10% to 2% resulting in savings
of 8%.
For a contracting company, a well established quality system is a marketing tool which helps
them in promoting the image of the company, provides the much needed edge in the
competitive market & the improved market share will pay more than the investment.
Perceived outcomes of quality system
Strengths:
Less rework or repair
Stronger client focus
 Higher efficiency in operation
Improved
external
/
internal
communication
Systematic record keeping
Opportunities
More business locally, inter-state &
overseas
Returned business from satisfied clients

QUALITY SYSTEM STANDARD

A quality system has to cover all the activities leading to the finished product/service/facility
Depending upon the scope of operation of the organisation, these activities encompass
planning, design development, purchasing, production, inspection, storage, delivery & after-
sales service.
A reference base is required against which the adequacy of the quality system can be judged.
Such a reference base is called “ Quality System Standard”.
The ISO 9000( International Organisation for Standardization) family of standards provides
the foundation for quality management
It is simply collection of principles of sound management that have proven their value over
many
years.
The quality system that is portrayed is based on international consensus & is capable of being
tailored to fit any enterprise in the world.
The following are the various standards:
ISO 9000:2000 = Quality management Systems ( Concepts & Vocabularies)
ISO 9001 2000= Quality management systems ( requirements for design development,
production, installation & servicing)
ISO 9004: 2000 = Quality management systems ( guidelines)
ISO 10011: 2000 = Guidelines for auditing quality systems
In the evolution of ISO 9000, there has been general shift towards Total quality management
(TQM) which is a management philosophy emphasizing on quality, teamwork & decisions based
on data.
To attain high quality in construction, all parties involved namely client, architect, engineer,
contractor, subcontractor, material supplier must work together as a team.
TQM promotes good relation ships both within the individual organisations & between
organisations
The pursuit of quality is gradually progressing from quality control to quality assurance to
total
quality management
Implementing ISO 9000 is an important part of quality journey
Whoever is still @ the cross roads, should not hesitate any longer & should march towards
the goal.
QUALITY SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
To cover the full range of activities, pertaining to quality assurance, the ISO 9000 family of
standards has identiifed twenty elements of the quality system & sets out definitive
requirements appropriate to each.
For each element, the required control is prescribed & it is upto the management to establish
& maintain documented procedures to ensure that these requirements are consistently met with.
ISO 9001 Clause No Quality System element
Quality Functions required

4.1 Management responsibility

Define, document, Publicise quality policy

Define & document responsbility, authority &
interrelation of staff
Identify & provide adequate resources
Appoint quality manager
Review quality system @ regular intervals.
4.2 Quality System

Establish , document & maintain quality system

Prepare & effectively implement documented
procedures
Define & document how quality planning is
conducted for a project including preparation of
quality plan
4.3 Contract review
Review tender before submission
Review contract before signing
Review variation order before acceptance & transfer
the amended requirements to functions concerned

4.4 Design Control

Plan Design activities
Identify & review design input
Review, verify & validate design output

4.5 Document & data control

Review & approve documents prior to issue
Review & approve document changes prior to issue
4.6 Purchasing
Evaluate & select contractors on the basis of
capabilities for quality
Exercise appropriate control over sub-contractors
Review & approve purchase documents prior to
release of funds
Allow the client or his representative to verify sub-
contracted work @ the contractor‟s/ sub-contractor‟s
premises where ever specified in contract

4.7 Control of customer

supplied product
Verification, storage & maintenance of the product
Quality may be defined as the sum total of
features of a product which influence its ability to
satisfy a given demand

The quality of product or service is a customer s perception of the degree to

which the product or service meet his or her
expectations

Dimensions of Product Quality:

►Performance
►Features
►Reliability
►Serviceability
►Appearance
►Safety
Inspection
A function whose purposes are to interpret
specifications verify conformance to these specifications and communicate the
information obtained to those responsible for making necessary
corrections in the manufacturing

Inspection
Inspection is primarily a comparison with stablished standards
Inspection is a postporem operation carried out after the product ismanufactured
Inspection segregates the good from the bad and the defective items
Inspection ensures that defective items are not sent to further stages of
manufacture and finished products with defects are not despatched
to customers
Quality Control
Quality control is concerned with function which
contributes to the quality of goods produced
Quality control refers to all those functions or
activities that must be performed to fill the
company s quality objectives
Quality control include establishment of criteria
for the selection of production equipment tooling
and personnel
Quality control aims at investigating the root
cause for defects identified by inspection and
take corrective action
Quality control helps to minimise the costs of
,
.
inspection and rejection
Effective system for integrating the quality
,
development
quality maintenance and quality
.
improvement effort