WCU-Construction Quality Management COTM 5th Year 2014E.

Chapter-1
1. Introduction to Quality Management
Management: - is the art of
✓ Arranging and/or organizing various activities,

✓ Operating equipment and group of people in a suitable manner to create

systematic operation with continuity to achieve a common goal.

Construction Management: -
✓ Is the management in which groups of people of different categories work
together?

✓ Is to execute the project economically without affecting the quality in a well-

planned and organized manner.

Why Construction Management is needed?

✓ To control over the contract agreed upon and specification,

✓ For motivation of people to work to their best and creating an organization that
works as a team,

✓ in taking of sound decisions at the lowest practical management level through

delegation of authorities,

✓ For proper communication and reporting of the works executed,

✓ For provisions of safe and satisfactory working conditions for all workers,

✓ In monitoring of the works to be executed against planning,

✓ For proper sequence of flow of construction, and

✓ For proper coordination of the resources to create an organization that works as

wholesome to fulfill the objectives.

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Construction Projects Require: -

➢ Managing Time and Progress; Cost and Cash Flow; Quality and Performance:
and Organizational Behaviour with Organization Resources by Planning,
Organizing, Coordinating, Monitoring and Controlling Resources Within Quality,
Time, Cost and Environmental Constraints.
Project Management
➢ Project management is the process of planning, organizing, and managing tasks and
resources to accomplish a defined objective, within limitations on time, cost and
quality.

➢ It is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities

to meet Project requirements,

Construction Project Constraints

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Project Processes (Phases)
Roll. No. Phases
1 Initiation
2 Planning
3 Construction
4 Controlling
5 Closing
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Processes
➢ Need identification
➢ Feasibility study
➢ Investment appraisal
➢ Project scope definition
✓ Designs and drawings planning
✓ Recourse and Time planning
✓ Cost planning and budgeting
✓ Organizational and Communications planning
✓ Quality planning
✓ Risk management planning
✓ Construction contracts procurement planning
➢ Project site organization
➢ Resources mobilization
➢ Scope quality assurance organization
➢ Team development
➢ Information distributions
➢ Contract administration
➢ Safety management
✓ Overall scope change control
✓ Resources control
✓ Schedule control
✓ Cost control
✓ Quality control
✓ Risk response control
✓ Performance reporting
➢ Administrative close
➢ Contract close-out
➢ Lessons learnt
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What Is Quality...?
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) formally defines quality as the “totality
of characteristics of an entity that bear on its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs” [ISO,
1994a].

American Society for Quality (ASQ) glossary defines quality as:

• A subjective term for which, each person has his or her own definition. In technical usage,
quality can have two meanings:
✓ The characteristics of a product or service that bear on its ability to satisfy stated
or implied needs.
✓ A product or service free of deficiencies.
Common definition of quality, mainly related to the manufacturing, processes, and service
industries are as follows:

➢ Meeting the customer's need or customer satisfaction,

➢ Fitness for use
➢ Conforming to requirements or compliance with contractual requirements, or Attainment
of prescribed standards.
➢ Customer’s perception of value, or
➢ Satisfaction from the work we do.

What is the attitude toward quality in our country, Ethiopia and why?

Two words that prevent us from achieving quality in Ethiopia are “Chiger Yellem”

The key to quality management is adapting the right attitude by understanding the implications
of quality for an organization.

We must change our attitude to do: -

• Better work (Higher quality)

• More efficiently (Lower cost)

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• Quickly & (Shorter time)

• Today’s competitive world requires: better, faster and cheaper solutions

In Ethiopia, the focus is often on giving excuses for why the desired results are not achieved rather
than on achieving the results. We must move away from excuses if we are to achieve quality.

To satisfy customers we must first know their needs, i.e., know the voice of the customer and
understand what is critical to quality.

Quality: - In history
Historically Quality has been a concern for many civilizations:

• Hammurabi, the king of Babylonia (1792-1750) BC codified the law, according to which,
during the Mesopotamian era, builders were responsible for maintaining the quality of
buildings and were given the death penalty if any of their construction collapsed and their
occupants were killed. (Roumane, 2011)

• China's recorded quality history can be traced back to earlier than 200 BC. China had
instituted quality control in its handicrafts during the Zhou dynasty between 1100 and 250
BC. During this period, the handicraft industry was mainly engaged in producing
ceremonial artifacts – (A History of Managing for Quality (J. M. Juran, editor-in chief))
• The Industrial Revolution began in Europe in the mid-19th century. It gave birth to
factories, and the goals of the factories were to increase productivity and reduce costs. Prior
to the Industrial Revolution, items were produced by individual craftsman for individual
customers, and it was possible for workers to control the quality of their products. Under
the factory system, the tasks needed to produce a product were divided among several or
many factory workers. Under this system, large groups of work men were performing
similar types of work, and each group was working under the supervision of a foreman
who also took on the responsibility of controlling the quality of the work performed.
Quality in the factory system was ensured by means of skilled workers, and the quality
audit was done by inspectors.

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• The beginning of the 20th century marked the inclusion of process in quality practices.
During World War I, the manufacturing process became more complex. Production quality
was the responsibility of quality control departments. The introduction of mass production
and piecework created quality problems as work men were interested in earning more
money by the production of extra products, which in turn led to bad workmanship. This
situation made factories introduce full-time quality inspectors, which marked the real
beginning of inspection quality control and thus the introduction of quality control
departments headed by superintendents.
• Walter Shewhart introduced statistical quality control in the process. His concept was that
quality is not relevant to the finished product but to the process that created the product.
His approach to quality was based on continuous monitoring of process variation. The
statistical quality control concept freed manufacturers from the time-consuming 100%
quality control system because it accepted that variation is tolerable up to certain control
limits. Thus, the quality control focus shifted from the end of line to the process.
• The systematic approach to quality in industrial manufacturing started during the 1930s
when some attention was given to the cost of scrap and rework. With the impact of mass
production, which was required during World War II, it became necessary to introduce a
more stringent form of quality control. This was instituted by manufacturing units and was
identified as Statistical Quality Control (SQC). SQC made a significant contribution in that
it provided a sampling rather than 100% product inspection.
• Harold Kerzner (2001) has given the quality history of the past 100 years: During the past
100 years, the views of quality have changed dramatically. Prior to World War I, quality
was viewed predominantly as inspection, sorting out the good items from the bad.
Emphasis was on problem identification.
• Following World War, I and up to the early 1950s, emphasis was still on sorting good items
from bad. However, quality control principles were now emerging in the form of: -
✓ Statistical and mathematical techniques.
✓ Sampling tables.
✓ Process control charts.

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• He further states that, from the early 1950s to the late 1960s, quality control evolved into
quality assurance, with its emphasis on problem avoidance rather than problem detection.
Additional quality assurance principles emerged, such as: -
✓ The cost of quality
✓ Zero-defect programs
✓ Reliability engineering
✓ Total quality control
• Kerzner (2001) has gone further, saying that: - Today, emphasis is being placed on strategic
quality management, including such topics as: -
✓ Quality is defined by the customer
✓ Quality is linked with profitability on both the market and cost sides.
✓ Quality has become a competitive weapon.
✓ Quality is now an integral part of the strategic planning process.
✓ Quality requires an organization wide commitment.
• Thomas Pyzdek (1999) has stated that, in the last century, quality has moved through four
distinct "quality eras":
✓ Inspection,
✓ statistical quality control,
✓ Quality assurance and
✓ Strategic quality management.
✓ A fifth era is emerging: - complete integration of quality into the overall business
system
• However, quality actually emerged as a dominant thinking only since World War II,
becoming an integral part of overall business system focused on customer satisfaction, and
becoming known in recent times as "Total Quality Management," with its three constitutive
elements:
✓ Total: Organization wide
✓ Quality: Customer satisfaction
✓ Management: Systems of managing
• Quality system therefore went through the following stages:

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✓ Quality inspection
✓ Quality control
✓ Quality assurance
✓ Total quality

Quality in Construction
The management of quality and safety in Construction is of paramount importance. This is so
because lack of quality or safety would result in serious consequences. Due to the unique nature
of construction industry and because the product is usually not a repetitive setting a uniform quality
standard is a challenge.

Quality in construction also requires satisfying the needs of the various stakeholder.

Construction project quality is the fulfillment of the owner's needs per defined scope of works
within a budget and specified schedule to satisfy the owner’s/user's requirements. The
phenomenon of these three components can be called the "construction project trilogy".

Quality of construction is even more difficult to define: -

✓ First of all, the product is usually not a repetitive unit but a unique piece of work with
specific characteristics. Taking building construction as an example, the product can be an
entire building, a section of a building or just a pre-fabricated component that ultimately
forms part of a building.
✓ Secondly, the needs to be satisfied include not only those of the client but also the
expectations of the community into which the completed building will integrate.
The construction cost and time of delivery are also important characteristics of quality. All these
should be properly addressed in designing the building, bridge, tunnel, road etc, and the outcome
should be expressed unequivocally in drawings and specifications.

Therefore, Quality becomes ..."the fulfillment of project responsibilities in the delivery of products
and services in a manner that meets or exceeds the stated requirements and expectations of the
owner, design professional, and constructor" according to the contract documents.

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Responsibilities refer to the tasks that a participant is expected to perform to accomplish the project
activities as specified by contractual agreement and applicable laws and licensing requirements,
codes, prevailing industry standards, and regulatory guidelines. Requirements are what a team
member expects or needs to receive during and after his or her participation in a project.

Hence, Quality Planning in Construction must take into consideration the following: -

✓ Contractual agreements
✓ Applicable laws and licensing requirements,
✓ Codes,
✓ Prevailing industry standards,
✓ Regulatory guidelines and
✓ Specifications
Quality planning in construction includes: -

✓ Design stages
✓ Construction stage
✓ Post construction stage...
In addition, includes areas of; -
➢ Architectural and structural design & analysis
➢ Sanitary,
➢ Electro mechanical designs
➢ structural specifications
➢ materials
➢ construction practices
➢ Inspection processes
➢ special products and processes
Therefore, construction quality must be planned and managed to address various challenges and
requirements of all stakeholder. The project must be managed in terms of Quality... By setting a
Project Quality Management process.

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What is Quality Management?

It is a tool or system for achieving customer satisfaction and continual measurable
improvement.

It is the process of optimization of quality activities, and includes problem prevention and
quality appraisal activities and it involves both quality assurance and quality control.

Project quality management ensures that the project will satisfy the needs for which it was
undertaken.

Project quality processes include:

➢ Quality planning: Identifying which quality standards are relevant to the project
and how to satisfy them.
➢ Quality assurance: Periodically evaluating overall project performance to ensure
the project will satisfy the relevant quality standards.
➢ Quality control: Monitoring specific project results to ensure that they comply with
the relevant quality standards.
Quality management in construction projects is different from that in manufacturing.

Quality in construction projects encompasses not only the quality of products and
equipment used in the construction, but the total management approach to completing the
project per the scope of works to customer/owner satisfaction within the budget and in
accordance with the specified schedule to meet the owner's defined purpose.

The nature of the contracts between the parties plays a dominant part in the quality system
required from the project, and the responsibility for fulfilling them must therefore be
specified in the project documents.

The documents include plans, specifications, schedules, bill of quantities, and so on.
Quality control in construction typically involves ensuring compliance with minimum
standards of material and workmanship in order to ensure the performance of the facility

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according to the design. These minimum standards are contained in the specification
documents. For the purpose of ensuring compliance, random samples and statistical
methods are commonly used as the basis for accepting or rejecting work completed and
batches of materials.

Rejection of a batch is based on non-conformance or violation of the relevant design

specifications.

The general requirement of construction quality is therefore described in the contract

documents including

• Contract Documents (FIDIC, PPA etc)

• Codes
• Standards
• Specifications
Typical Quality Management System Documentation

Basic things for Achieving Quality

• Documenting best practices as determined by the organization

• Training employees

• Ensuring that sufficient resources are provided

• Check to see if best practices are followed (Audits)

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• Keeping track of mistakes and customer complaints in order to learn from them and
improve

• Regularly monitor progress and take corrective actions

Quality Outcome
✓ A Quality Outcome is a completed project that Successfully achieves the Owner’s vision
for the project.

✓ A Quality Outcome is significantly more likely when a project is executed using Quality-
Based Principles.

Quality-Based Principles of Construction Project Management

• Informed Purchaser; An Informed Purchaser is an Owner who either has the in-house
technical expertise or engages outside experts necessary to: -

➢ Clearly convey project vision;

➢ Evaluate and select consultants; and

➢ Understand the risks and procedures inherent in project execution.

• Quality-Based Selection of Consulting Engineers; - Quality Outcome is significantly more

obtainable when QBS is employed. This is true for all projects. The QBS decision is not a
matter of which procurement process leads to greater quality; it is a matter of to what degree
quality matters. To achieve a Quality Outcome, Life-Cycle Cost must be considered; QBS
results in lower Life-Cycle Costs.

• Sustainability; - integrates the environmental, economic, and social dimensions of

development, and is therefore fundamental to a Quality Outcome.

• Quality-Based Project Management: - A Quality Management System is a formalized

project management structure that incorporates:

➢ Customer-focused leadership and organization;

➢ Employee involvement;
➢ A process and factual approach to decision making;
➢ Continuous improvement; and

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➢ Mutually beneficial supplier (sub consultant) relationships

• Quality-Based Construction; and

• Monitoring of Outcomes.

Result of Good Quality Outcome

• Quality Based Selection (QBS) produces quality designs.

• Quality designs produce quality projects.

• Quality projects have fewer variation orders during construction.

• Fewer variation orders result in lower construction costs.

• Quality designs and lower construction costs result in lower life-cycle costs.

Result of Poor-Quality Outcome

• High maintenance costs.

• Projects fail, e.g., building, bridge, tunnel, or road pavements collapse.

• Cost and time overruns.

• Disputes.

• Contractor’s default and do not complete projects.

Major problems related to Quality

• It can be easily observed that the quality of the constructed project has been deteriorating
due to negligence of supervisor and contractor.

• Meeting the customer requirement by over working the project team may lead to negative
consequence in employee turnover.

• Meeting project schedules by rushing planned quality inspections may produce negative
consequences when errors go undetected.

Why Quality is deteriorating?

• A major cause is the diminished quality of design.

• Lower quality design results in lower quality construction and increased variation orders,
resulting in increased cost of the project.

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• Other factors contribute as well, including:

❖ Corruption;

❖ Incompetent Contractors;

❖ Poor Project Management;

❖ Lack of Resources to Manage Contractors.

Relative magnitudes of the Cost of Non conformances

Necessary Tools for Improvement

• Audits

– Corrective and preventive actions

– Recommendations for improvement

• Documenting and handling customer complaints

Quality parameters
Quality is a composite of three parameters:

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1. Quality of design is the extent to which the design reflects a product that satisfies customer
needs and expectations. All the necessary characteristics should be designed into the product
at the outset.
2. Quality of conformance is the extent to which the product conforms to the design standard.
The design has to be faithfully reproduced in the product.
3. Quality of use is the extent by which the user is able to secure continuity of use from the
product. Products need to have a low cost of ownership, be safe and reliable, maintainable in
use and easy to use.
Finally, means of implementation of construction project quality managements are quality
planning, quality assurance and quality control.

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