Chapter 1: Quality Definition and quality concepts

The word quality in popular usage often means different things to different people that may create considerable confusion and mis-understandings. Quality is explained as degree of goodness in the Oxford Advanced Learner Dictionary, whereas Crosby defines it as conformance to requirements. Quality and grade should be understood differently. Grade is a category or a rank given to entity having the same functional use but different requirements. A high-grade service may be of low quality if it does not meet requirements and conversely, a low-grade service may be of high quality. Arguably, the best definition of quality is found in BS4778 and in the International Standard: Quality is the totality of characteristics of an entity that bear on its ability to satisfy stated and implied needs. Quality definition could be understood with the following phrases Degree of goodness - oxford Dictionary Conformance to requirements Zero defects Fitness for purpose Consistent conformance to expectation Doing things right first time Doing right things Quality is the totality of characteristics of an entity that bear on its ability to satisfy stated and implied needs. Development of quality concepts The theoretical and practical aspects of todays quality management have evolved through several stages since the beginning of the industrial revolution. This is illustrated in the figure below.
1990 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1900 Before 1900

Wider acceptance of Total Quality Management

Era of Quality Slogans, Quality Management and Quality Assurance Company wide Quality Control / Quality Systems

Total Quality Control

Modification of Quality Control Standards, Control Charts

Statistical Quality Control

Sampling Techniques

Inspection Quality Control

Supervision

Workmanship Era

Figure:

Evolution of modern quality management (with slight modification)

Quality perception being different to different people, misunderstanding and confusions exist in understanding quality. Misconception about quality is common in the developed countries, but its extent and consequences are more alarming in developing countries than in developed ones. Quality misconceptions can be broadly put as follows. Quality is not grade A plastic tap and brass tap both may be of excellent quality if they dont leak. A golden tap may be of poor quality if that leaks and doesnt meet with the requirement. A light duty tap is fit for light duty and less water pressure job and a heavy duty tap is fit for frequent, rough and high water pressure job. Quality costs more but lack of quality costs even more mahanga roya yek bar, sastha roya bar bar and Sasto Besaai pet lagi mar phrases indicate the idea laying behind it. General understanding about quality that it costs more, in most of the cases, is not right. Implementation of well-structured quality systems proves to be economical resulting in best value for money. Cheaper construction without taking care of quality may reduce the initial investment but tends to have higher operating and maintenance cost. At the end of the day the total cost will be high as well as one has to face a number of headaches and obstacles in exploiting the product. Qual-cost - high quality should be achieved at low cost and not high quality at high cost or low quality at low cost. Quality is means of achieving project success. It is not the goal in itself. Process quality is more than product quality Product quality may contain many defects that are latent and would surface at extreme adverse conditions, whereas process quality eliminates those. Quality standards does not demand the best quality, they establish the minimum requirements to be achieved. Hence quality effort should aim to achieve better than what is stated in quality standard. Accreditation to ISO 9000 or other equivalent systems does not guarantees the best quality of the products, they certify only the quality assurance system that produces the product. Quality does not happen by accident, it has to be properly planned and implemented. Quality Control, Quality Assurance and Total Quality Management Confusion exists in understanding the terms Quality Control (QC), Quality Assurance (QA), Quality Management (QM), and Total Quality Management (TQM). The perception of what is meant by quality, QA, QM and quality systems contribute to the confusion over these terms. In general terms QC concerns the operational means to fulfil the quality requirements while QA aims at providing confidence in fulfilling the requirements both within the organisation and externally to customers and authorities. QM includes QA and QC as well as other concepts of quality planning, quality policy and

quality improvement. TQM develops these concepts as a long-term global management strategy and the participation of all members of the organisation for the benefits of the organisation itself, its members, its customers and society as a whole. Quality Management embraces following three quality approaches Quality Control Quality Assurance Total Quality management

1.

Quality Control Detection of non-conformity Verification of conformity

Stages of Quality Control Quality control shall be carried out at different stages of activities. a. Quality control for incoming goods, services and information b. Quality control in-process c. Quality control for end product a) Receiving inspection and testing To ensure that incoming product is not used or processed until it has been inspected or otherwise verified as confirming to specified requirements. b) In-process inspection or testing

Inspect, test and identify in accordance with quality plan/procedures Establish conformance to specified requirements Hold until test results have been verified Identify non-confirming product

c) Final Inspection and testing Quality plan/procedures shall require that all specified inspections and tests are carried out Final inspection and testing to complete evidence of conformance to specified requirements No product dispatch until quality plan/procedure activities are complete and documentation is available and authorized 2. Quality Assurance in construction

There are always, and will be, misconceptions about quality assurance. Quality Assurance (QA) is a management tool whose main aim is to ensure required communication in a structured and systematic manner. The communication may be in house or between client and consultant, designer and constructor, contractor and supplier, or subcontractor. The aim is to ensure that damage arising from inadequate, misunderstood or missing information is minimized, responsibilities are transparently clear, and decisions made are systematically recorded to facilitate corrective action rather than allocate blame. However, QA only provides support when applied with understanding. QA can make the complex process of design and construction more effective with works completed to the required specification. It is a systematic way of ensuring those organized activities happen in a way that they are planned. QA is concerned with anticipating problems and with creating the attitudes and controls that prevent problems arising. It is a logical extension of good management practice. Quality Assurance is defined in BS 4778 as all those planned systematic actions necessary to provide adequate confidence that a product or service will satisfy given requirements for quality. QA in this definition indicates two basic things. Firstly, it aims to impart confidence to the client assuring that his needs will be consistently met (external quality assurance). Secondly, it aims to achieve quality through systematic and planned actions avoiding fire-fighting or crisis management (internal quality assurance). 3. Total Quality Management in construction

TQM emphasizes quality at the source. Each employee should be responsible for the quality of his or her work and should be in-charge of inspecting that work i.e. quality inspection should not be delegated to an inspector who is not directly involved with production. Every employee should view the other employee receiving his outputs as a customer - internal customer.

Total Quality is an umbrella phrase covering continuous improvement, quality systems and standards, culture change and staff development. The principles of Total Quality, which have been so successful in manufacturing, are equally applicable to the construction industry. The European Construction Institute (ECI) TQM task force reported that the main difficulty to getting commitment to TQM is changing peoples behavior and attitudes. Companies expect TQM to provide cost savings within a short time and there is very little operating experience of TQM in construction and quality costing is not widely practiced. Regarding the TQM, relating it to construction ECI has stated: TQM and project management disciplines are mutually compatible the tools and techniques used in TQM are applicable in construction the need for emphasis in building trust and the use of the concept of partnering between the client and the contractor. Even in the industrialized world more has to be done to achieve continuous improvement of quality in construction, as the emphasis on QA certification does not reflect wholly quality to be an important objective and the construction industry lacks maturity in TQM. It is likely that training and seminars, which should include sessions on teamwork, basic TQM principles, quality tools and facilitation skills, for senior and quality improvement members, are needed to spread TQM awareness in construction. The advantage that a TQM approach can bring are, however, enormous; many firms seek to build on their QMS and incorporate the human development aspects of the TQM approach. Difference between TQ and QA Quality Assurance QA is only part of TQ. It is a system approach which gives adequate confidence and satisfies given requirements Part of quality improvement process A systematic approach, influences attitudes and working environment Aims to ensure costume's requirements every time Provides the baseline for measuring the cost of quality Provides confidence to customers on quality Provides the means to reduce the waste Enhances publicity and image Total Quality TQ is a process to give continuous improvement in the performance of all activities A process for continuous improvement Changes attitudes and working environment and provides tools, techniques and systems for continuous improvement Creates a right first time attitude to delight customers Cost of quality is recognized as vital, and provides measurement for continuous improvement Customers and employees find the company as quality company Seeks to eliminate waste Attracts publicity and company becomes a

Provides procedures for doing things right Improvement is by eliminating recurring problems Directive and provides procedures Provides quality records of all activities Regular monitoring and audit to identify non-conformance and improve procedures Regular management reviews for improvement Insures that people are trained and experienced

role model for quality Provides for doing the right things right Improvement is by cultural change and elimination of root cause and constraints Focuses on full understanding of all concerned Uses quality records for measurement and for continuous improvement Gathers ideas and suggestions for improvements from everyone Meets the requirement at every stage Everyone trained to do their job effectively and have personal satisfaction

A typical organization and Total Quality organization have following differences. Quality elements Quality is Quality priorities are The business focus is towards Correction emphasis Cost are Errors result from Responsibility for quality belongs to Organization culture tends towards Organizational structure Problem solving is left to Usual organization Product oriented Less important than cost and schedule Short terms goals Detection of errors Raised when quality is emphasized Special causes - workers make individual mistake QA and QC departments Finger pointing, blame finding and punishing risk takers Hierarchical and bureaucratic Authority, top of pyramid TQ organization Customer oriented First among the equals 'the driver' Medium to long terms goals Prevention of errors Lowered when quality is emphasized Common causes - ineffective systems and management practices Everyone Continuous improvement and rewarding initiatives Flat and integrated Teams, all employee levels

Quality Awareness
Quality is all about client needs. Appropriate quality - intrinsic element of appropriate quality is best value for money. Fredrick Taylor, known as father of scientific management, emphasized on the productivity. Management was for the sake of increasing productivity.

Juran states that the twentieth century has been the century of productivity, but 21 st century will be of quality - and he is right. 'Leadership through quality' - a common slogan of quality organization. Quality does not happen by accident, it has to be properly planned and implemented. Doing things right Doing things right first time Doing right things Need of the day - quality improvement Demand quality Raise quality awareness Evaluate cost of quality Plan for quality/ Quality objectives Form quality teams Obtain management commitment Institution of training program Need for quality assurance in construction Sources of errors in construction Inadequate training of designers Inadequate or incorrect specification at tender Inadequate definition of responsibility at office and on site Poor communication between principal parties of contract Inadequate management technicians and labors at site Inadequate verification routines The art of communication is vital - instruction must be clearly given and understood, calculation must be accurate, documents clear and unambiguous in their interpretation. Error in construction - our inability to communicate effectively is our biggest enemy. Hence, the need of formalized communication. QA requires that training policies for all staff are developed and implemented. Very often decisions are made by individuals who are entirely unqualified to make them. QA demands that all levels of staff associated with the construction process have a clear definition and understanding of their own limits of responsibility. Time is the biggest thief of quality. Pre-thought of what is to be done in terms of planning, resourcing including time will have to be based upon real understanding and to be reflected in Quality plans.

Building quality organization

Company mission Getting organized, establishing quality steering group Determining customers requirements Quality policy Overall company's quality goals and objectives Critical success factor Strategic plans for implementation of the continuos quality improvement system -technical, social Analysis of role and responsibilities
Fast track project

Implementation of plan Education and training Awareness Tools and techniques Cultural change Specialized needs

cultural change track

Managing the improvement process Review and evaluation

Differences between the construction and manufacturing industry Most construction projects are unique in size, complexity, and they are one-off products in most of the cases. The construction site for every project is unique and not sheltered as in the case of manufacturing. Construction workers move from site to site changing employers from one job to the next. Consequences of the defective design, materials selection, and construction may remain latent for many years. Trouble follows some exceptional overload situation, e.g. earthquake. Site testing of work in progress is rarely undertaken and therefore, if the substandard work is discovered, it is costly to repair and time demanding to rectify. Moreover, remedial work will be difficult to organise if the structure is in use. Many uncertainties exist as compared to the relatively stable manufacturing mass production process. The construction product normally has a significantly longer life than the products MAINTENANCE produced by the manufacturing industry. Hence, require varying degrees of care, maintenance, and repair during their life. The client has a direct influence in a construction project because it is a single ordered design product and hence changes to design are common. Each construction project involves different sets of participants each with their own objectives. There may be conflicting financial objectives which lead to quality related problems. The contractor installs his personal control system to monitor cost in a construction project. It is unlikely or perhaps not feasible to reject the whole of a constructed facility when there is a partial defect. WITH REQUIREMENT If the offices MEETING with technical and professional staff possess below- average skill, serious troubles mayOF result even when products of good quality are used. In addition, it is not CLIENTS always easy for a client who builds infrequently to identify which firms are experienced or possess above-average skill for a particular task. Designing and building are, usually, undertaken with separate contractual responsibility to the client. Materials and equipment of even good brands, after bringing to site are likely to be handled under adverse conditions and may become a latent source of trouble. Responsibilities of parties concerned being complex and ill defined in the contract, litigation, and claims are more common, resulting in restriction of comments to other designers and contractors. Construction activity heavily relies on labor-oriented works at site by subcontractors. It is necessary to develop a new construction plan and to organize a new construction team for each project.

 It is comparatively difficult to establish quality criteria due to the very long life of engineering structures. The above mentioned points require consideration when developing a quality system for construction projects. Strengths - Weaknesses - Opportunities - Threats (SWOT) analysis, which considers the above deviations, might be helpful to analyze the applicability and appropriateness of the quality systems and techniques in question.