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QA/QC

QA/QC — Quality Assurance and Quality Control

The coordinated disciplines used to ensure that products, services and processes consistently meet defined quality requirements.

Definition

Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA/QC) are complementary quality management disciplines used to ensure that products, services and processes consistently satisfy specified requirements. Quality Assurance focuses on establishing systematic processes that prevent defects, while Quality Control verifies that completed work conforms to defined quality standards through inspection, testing and measurement.

Why It Matters

QA/QC combines process-focused quality assurance with product-focused quality control to achieve consistent quality outcomes.

In Practice

Although commonly referred to collectively as QA/QC, Quality Assurance and Quality Control perform distinct roles within a quality management system and should not be considered interchangeable terms.

Common Misuse

Quality Assurance establishes processes that prevent defects, whereas Quality Control verifies that completed work satisfies specified quality requirements.

Term Details
Synonyms:
QA/QC; Quality Assurance; Quality Control; Quality Management
Classification:
Quality Assurance
Concept
Intermediate
Applications

Quality Management; Inspection; Business Management.

Where It's Used

Manufacturing.; Construction.; Oil and gas.; Petrochemical.; Infrastructure.

References

ISO 9001

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