What is Quality Control? A Definition of Quality Control for Projects
What is Quality Control?
Let’s start with a definition of quality control from the American Society for Quality (ASQ)…
“Quality Control consists of the observation techniques and activities used to fulfill requirements for quality.”
– American Society for Quality (ASQ)
You can think of quality control as the activities that are used to evaluate whether your
product or service meets the quality requirements specified for your project. It’s important to note that project
quality control is performed throughout the project.
The quality requirements are defined during the quality planning process. They include both project processes
and product goals.
Quality Control Tools & Techniques
Some of the tools and techniques you can use to perform quality control include…
- Cause and Effect Diagram (Fishbone Diagram)
- Control Chart
- Flow Chart
- Pareto Chart
- Histogram
- Run Chart
- Scatter Diagram
- Statistical Sampling
- Inspection
For some of these tools, it is helpful to have a basic understanding of sampling and probability.
These quality control tools and techniques can help you in three ways…
- Confirm that your project is meeting the quality standards
- Provide a basis for corrective action
- Provide feedback about your quality assurance process
Quality Control vs Quality Assurance
What is Quality Control?
Many people get confused between quality control and quality assurance.
To differentiate between the two, remember that quality control is about evaluating whether
the product of your project meets the quality standards.
Quality assurance, on the other hand, is about ensuring that the product is produced in the
right way. It is proactive and concerned about the processes and activities during the products development.
Hopefully you can now answer the question, “What is Quality Control?” as well as distinguish between quality
control and quality assurance.
