Quality Assurance
Introduction
In the contemporary world, quality is a very important factor to consider in maintaining competitive advantage in ever changing and intensively competitive global industry. Thus, it is vital to focus on the process of ensuring that high quality and high standards are always implemented in all of the procedures and processes within the organization. Assurance is equal to insurance. Quality assurance means ensuring the quality of the final products. The main purpose of quality assurance is to make sure that the product is fit for use. The concept of quality assurance is most common in the concept and aspect of financial assurance. This is particularly due to the different scandals which shocked the world in the past, due to the fall of largest organizations (Rajput, 2008).
It is important to take note that quality assurance is different from that of quality control, this is because quality control because it does focus on the entire process, not just the final product or service. Quality control is designed and implemented in order to detect problems regarding the product or service, while quality assurance focuses on head off problems at the pass by tweaking a production process until it can create a high quality product (Weber and Wallace, 2006).
Functions of Quality Assurance
Right from the raw materials up to the finished product, it is important and required to implement and carry out the process of quality assurance. The following are the functions of quality assurance:
· Quality assurance of raw materials;
· Process quality assurance in the manufacturing process;
· Metallurgical and metallographic quality assurance;
· Quality assurance of purchased parts;
· Quality assurance of finished goods or quality; and
· Tool quality assurance (Rajput, 2008).
Importance of Quality Assurance
Quality assurance is very important because it focus on the quality of all important factors inside the organization, thus it can help greatly on ensuring that the quality of the final products will be ensured. According to Rajput (2008) quality assurance is being felt because of the different reasons, which include:
· It separates the defective components and parts from other components of the required and needed quality;
· Quality assurance helps to find out defects in raw materials and tools, only good quality materials, proper tools and materials should be used in the production process;
· Quality assurance helps to prevent further and future work being spoiled which have been already detected to be defective during the process of inspection;
· Quality assurance of finished products and services helps to make sure that the operation of the product will be safe, thus its usage is guaranteed;
· Quality assurance helps to detect sources of weaknesses as well as trouble in the finished products, therefore, it helps to check the work of designer;
· Quality assurance helps that the quality of goods are supplied towards the consumers and is up to the mark; and
· Inspected product sent towards the market are of high quality and this enables to establish the reputation of the industry, at the same time, earns goodwill of the consumers, because of the fact that the quality assurance concept is being implemented (Rajput, 2008).
Quality Assurance in Analytical Measurement Laboratory
It is accepted in general manner that the application of well established and described analytical methods in a context of sound laboratory practice is equivalent to good quality assurance. Those analytical methods that have been assessed by recognized collaborative inter-laboratory study and internationally accepted as valid or efficient methods should be used were possible in order to offer analytical services. Thus, thorough and methodically sound protocols and standards for implementing collaborative studies have been developed as well as published by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). The application of these protocols for the design and assessment of the data on the inter-laboratory study will help to offer assurance that the methods applied are systematically sound and will perform based on what have planned. An alternative approach is the extensive in house validation. It is conducted with accordance to the guidelines created and recognized as suitable for in house validation of analytical procedures. Preferably, to the degree that is possible and practical in house validation should pertain on the standard operation practices that are dependent on the officially accepted or internationally accepted scientific requirements. This will significantly smooth the process of the reliability of the analytical measurements as well as the acceptance of the conclusion (Rangers and Leendert, n.d.).
References
O’Rangers, J. and van Ginkel, L. Quality assurance in analytical measurements. Retrieved on 7th December, 2010 from http://www.euroresidue.nl/ER_IV/Contributions%20I-Z/O’Rangers%20809-821.pdf
Rajput, R. K. (2008). A textbook of manufacturing technology: (manufacturing processes). Firewall Media.
Webber, L. and Wallace, M. (2006). Quality control for dummies. For Dummies.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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