1. 15
57086
Contract and Project Management
David Sowden, The University of Hull

2. 15
57086
Contract and Project Management
Quality in a project environment
David Sowden, The University of Hull

3. Overview
• Quality in a project environment
– Purpose
– What is Quality?
– Quality Management
– The quality path
– Making project quality work
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4. Purpose
• Meet business expectations
• Enable the desired benefits to be achieved
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5. What is Quality?
• Quality defined in ISO 8402 as:
‘Totality of characteristics of an entity which bear on its
ability to satisfy stated and implied needs.’
(also see ISO 9000 )
• Alternative definition: ‘fit for purpose’
• Project approach:
• Quality System: form both customer /supplier
• Quality Assurance: setting up of project quality system
• Quality Planning: part of project planning process
• Quality Control: product QA
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6. Quality Management
• Quality management is defined as the coordinated
activities to direct and control an organisation with
regard to quality.
• A quality management system is the complete set
of quality standards, procedures and
responsibilities for a site or organisation. These
include:
– Quality planning
– Quality control (QC)
– Quality assurance (QA)
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7. Quality planning
To control anything, including quality, there must be a plan.
– define the product(s) required for the project
• quality criteria for each product(s)
• quality methods used
• quality control
• product(s) acceptance
• responsibilities.
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8. The Quality audit trail
from customer project response
Customer’s quality
expectations
Acceptance criteria
Quality planning
Project Product Quality Management
Description Strategy
Quality components
Quality criteria and
Product Description tolerances
Quality Methods
Quality responsibilities
Quality Register
PRODUCT
control
Quality
Quality and approval
records
Acceptance records

9. Quality Control
Focuses on the operational techniques and activities used by
those involved in the project
• Fulfil the requirements for quality (for example, by quality
inspections or testing)
• Identify ways of eliminating causes of unsatisfactory
performance.
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10. EXAMPLE
Quality expectations
The quality expectation for a water pump in a remote village is
that it is robust enough to ‘last a lifetime’, whereas because the
oil pump in a racing car needs to be light as possible, it may only
need to last the duration of one race.
© Tony Matthews
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11. EXAMPLE
Acceptance criteria
If a customer’ quality expectation for a water pump is that it
‘lasts a lifetime’, the acceptance criteria should focus on those
measures that provide sufficient indication or confidence that
the pump is capable of lasting a lifetime (defined as a number
of years) This may
include complying with
certain engineering
standards relating to
product durability.
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12. Acceptance criteria
A prioritisation technique - The MoSCoW Method
M Must have requirement
S Should have if at all possible
C Could have but not critical
W Would be good to have... (Won’t have the time
to do it now, but maybe later)
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13. Project Product Description
The Project Product(s) Description(s) includes:
• The overall purpose of the product(s)
• its composition
• The customer’s quality expectations
• Acceptance criteria, methods and responsibilities
• Project level quality tolerances.
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14. The relationship between Project Assurance and QA
Project Assurance Quality Assurance
What they Provide assurance to the Provide assurance to the wider
do project’s stakeholders that the corporate or programme
project is being conducted organisation that the project is
appropriately and properly. being conducted appropriately and
properly and complies to relevant
standards and policies.
How they Must be independent of the Performed by personnel who are
differ Project Manager, support and independent of the project.
project teams.
Responsibility of the Project Responsibility of the corporate or
Board, therefore undertaken programme management
from within the project. organisation, therefore external
to the project.
How they Quality assurance as a corporate Quality assurance would look for
relate or programme management (or require) effective Project
function could be used by the Assurance as one of the indicators
Project Board as part of its that the project is being conducted
Project Assurance regime. properly.

15. TASK
Review your Quality plans