Quality management

CIVIL 703 PROJECT MANAGEMENT 1AUCKLAND UNIVERISTY

Quality Management

By KHALED EID

Quality management

AbstractQuality management in construction becoming a demanding requirement by clients especially when building large and complex projects , the ISO 9000 serious was been introduced as measuring scale for quality .

This study will analysis the problems that likely face project engineering in medium size construction company as a result of implanting quality management process on there organization. The methodology used based on literature review and surveys results to sample of construction firms in US .

1 IntroductionConstruction related firms recognize the need for providing a quality product that will both satisfy the customer and maintain there competitiveness in an ever –changing and demanding market. In this context, quality is considered on of the key transformation elements of project management techniques, deemed necessary for success in the 21st century market place (Kini 2000).

1.1 Quality managementQuality in the construction industry is typically understood in terms of “fitness for purpose” (Ho, 1995, p. 5) or “quality of workmanship” (Bennett, 1991, p. 5).ISO defines quality as the totality of characteristics on an entity that bear on its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs (ISO 2000).

1.2 What is QMSQMS is quality management system defined according to Brain and Peter (2004 p3) "A formal statement of an origination 's business policy , management responsibilities , process and there control, that reflects the most effective ways to meet the expectation of those it serves whilst achieving its own prime business objectives".

1.3 ISO 9000 SeriousISO 9000, the series of quality management standards issued by the International Organization for Standardization based in Geneva ,is being used by organizations involved in construction all over the world.

1.3.1 ISO 9000 Is a guideline for selection and use of quality system standards. It provides insight for various situations and conditions as well as definitions and explanations.

1.3.2 ISO 9001 Defines minimum quality system requirements for design/development, production, installation and servicing. It is the most complete standard. It applies to manufacturing and service businesses engaged in all these activities.

1.3.3 ISO 9002 Ds essentially a subset of 9001. It applies only to production and installation activities.

Quality management

1.3.4 ISO 9003 Applies to final inspection and test.

1.3.5 ISO 9004 Is a guideline for quality system elements. It is like a textbook which describes, explains and recommends

2 Implementation processThe ISO 9000 standards have actively been promoted in the construction industry in many countries as a means to assuring quality by building contractors. Some countries (for example, Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore) have gone as far as to require all contractors to be certified to ISO 9000 requirements before they qualify to bid for public sector building projects. This means that quality management systems (QMS) certified to ISO 9000 standards are now an ubiquitous feature in the construction industry in many countries.The 14 essential steps to be followed through in order to implement ISO 9000 quality management system successfully.

Step 1: Top management commitment Step 2: Establish implementation team Step 3. Start ISO 9000 awareness programs Step 4: Provide Training Step 5. Conduct initial status survey Step 6: Create a documented implementation plan Step 7. Develop quality management system documentation Step 8: Document control Step 9. Implementation Step 10. Internal quality audit Step 11. Management review Step 12. Pre-assessment audit Step 13. Certification and registration Step 14: Continual Improvement

2.1 Reasons for implementing ISO 9000 Deming (1986) argued that business contracts should not be awarded on the basis of price alone .For most organization, the primary motivation for implementing ISO 9000 as a QMS is either management need or customer demand.

2.1.1 Management demandManagement requirement for implementing ISO 9000 usually to increase productivity and product quality and use it as a marketing thus gaining competitive advantage, some time only competitive pressure where organization's competitors have established or in the process of establishing.

2.1.2 Customer demandCustomer demands on an existing supplier to implement ISO 9000 is driven by the customer's need of an assurance that the supplier is capable of meeting the customer's quality requirement.

Quality management

2.2 Benefits of implementing ISO 9000Implement of ISO 9000 as a QMS in an organization offers near terms and long term rewards

1. Defined process and supporting QMS documentation are the basis of repetition.

2. Enable organization to focus on how to execute its business process.3. Fosters continual improvement in the organization productivity.4. Results a higher-quality products and service .5. Improves customer satisfaction level, which helps improve customer loyalty

and costumer retention. 6. Enhance origination to gain competitive advantage due to being perceived as a

"best-in-class".7. Enhance customer confidence in the ability of a supplier products and services

according to specific quality requirements.8. Eliminates an organization dependence on a few individuals for information

regarding critical process.9. Reduces waste of recourses and loss of reputation resulting from rejection and

rework .10. Promotes employee understanding that quality is everyone's responsibility.11. Improve communication both internally and externally, which results in

improvements in efficiency and effectiveness.

3 Problems during implementing ISO 9000According to Seddon, ISO 9000 promotes specification, control, and procedures rather than understanding and improvementA common criticism of ISO 9000 is the amount of money, time and paperwork required for registration.[8] According to Barnes, "Opponents claim that it is only for documentation. Proponents believe that if a company has documented its quality systems, then most of the paperwork has already been completed."[

3.1 Duration and costThe process usually took from one year to two years, which is time consuming and costing about 250,000 $ in average .

3.2 Lack of resourcesLack of available resources to implement and maintain a quality assurance system based on the ISO standards is a major concern barrier in implementation process.

3.3 Increases the documentationMost construction projects already involve large amounts of paperwork. These include voluminous contract documents, records of plans and amendments, architects' instructions, steel bending schedules, change orders, forms to record the requisition, order, delivery and movement of material, plant and labor, and material safety data sheets.

Quality management

3.4 Reduces the productivity of the companySome companies consider that documentation requirements are too stringent and can turn the system unto a controlled bureaucracy limiting its effectiveness Structural changes.

3.5 Restricts the unique creativity of the companyThe most difficulty encountered is related to documentation and the development of the company quality manual, managing and establishing new systems and procedures breed many problems.

3.6 Increases the operating costs of the companyAnother problem is the lack of management staff can be released to do additional work with regards to the quality registration , this might result using outside management consulting firms impacting the operating cost .Measuring sot and benefits of a quality system will require expanding the management accounting system to include measurement and reporting of life cycle coast .

3.7 Increases the amount of unnecessary proceduresDocumentation can bring about new and increases procedures that must be implemented this also generates additional cost .

3.8 Requirement of timely informationDue to the ISO documentation requirement there are fears about speedy flow of information that might lead to a serious consequences.

4 Conclusion Implementing a Quality Management System (QMS) within an organization

needs to be a decision by top management.  The objective of the quality system needs to be clearly defined so that the system can be effective.

An important implementation issue is speed. Most firms require 18 months or longer to achieve certification. Another issue is the current state of quality

ISO 9000 can be considered an applicable tool for construction firms. Most certified companies have experienced some difficulties in implementing

ISO 9000.These are generally related to documentation requirements and internal assessment procedures. ( Abdol & Hector 2003)

The cost and duration of the certification process is a great barrier .

5 RecommendationSome recommendation can be provide to encourage acceptance of ISO 9000 standers among construction companies .

1. The ISO organization and the accredited registrars (auditors) should apply less emphasis on the documentation requirements for the certification.

2. Documentation process must be reviewed to be minimized saving valuable time and source.

Quality management

A further study to local similar size construction company will be of great benefit, local data might be different that US firms.

ReferencesAbdol R. Chini and Hector E. Valdez,(2003),ISO 9000 and U.S construction industry ,Journal of management in engineering April 2003,69-77.Bennett, J. (1991), International Construction Project Management General Theory

and Practice, Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford.Brain Thorpe and Peter Sumner (2004),Quality management in construction, Grower

,London.Kini, D.U. (2000) Global project management-not business as usual. Journal of

management in engineering 16(6),29-33.Low S. Pheng & Peh Ke –Wei U(1996). A frame work for implementing TQM in

construction. The TQM magazine Volume 8 number 5 ,39-46.Leon Korte . The ISO 9000 international quality registration: an empirical analysis of

implication for business firms. International journal of applied qualitymanagement , volume2 , number1,p59-73

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