lllCHAPTER 8THE QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAMWhen you have read and understood this chapter, you should be able to answer thefollowing learning objectives:Define the quality assurance program.lExplain the quality assurance organization.Identify the levels of responsibility for qualitylassurance.lExplain the quality assurance training requiredfor personnel.Define the terms used in quality assurance.Identify the various quality assurance forms andrecords.The quality assurance (QA) program provides auniform policy of maintenance and repair on ships andsubmarines. It improves discipline in the repair ofequipment, safety of personnel, and configurationcontrol. It is essentially a program to ensure that all workmeets specifications or that any departure fromspecifications is approved and documented. You, thesupervisor, are expected to carry out the QA program.This chapter will give you the broad knowledge youneed to understand how it works.CONCEPTS OF QUALITY ASSURANCEThe ever-increasing technical complexity ofpresent-day surface ships and submarines has pointed toa need for special administrative and technicalprocedures known collectively as the QA program. Thefundamental QA concept is that all maintenancepersonnel have the responsibility to prevent defectsfrom the beginning to the end of each maintenanceoperation. You must consider QA requirementswhenever you plan maintenance, and you must applythe fundamental rule, MEET TECHNICALSPECIFICATIONS AT ALL TIMES.Quality control (QC) means you regulate eventsrather than being regulated by them. It means you traincompetent sailors and supervise them so they work withproper methods, material, and tools. In other words,knowledge is the key, and knowledge comes fromfactual information. The QA program provides away todocument and maintain information on the keycharacteristics of equipment. It helps you base decisionson facts rather than intuition or memory. It providescomparative data that will be useful long after you haveforgotten the details of a particular time or event. Youcan get knowledge from data, ship’s drawings, technicalmanuals, material references such as APLs, and manyother sources. As you use these sources, you willdevelop the special skills you need to analyzeinformation and supervise QA programs. A good QAprogram provides enough information so you canchange the workplace or procedures to accomplish thefollowing goals:llllllImprove the quality, uniformity, and reliability ofthe total maintenance effort.Improve the work environment, tools, andequipment used in maintenance.Eliminate unnecessary man-hour and dollarexpenses.Improve the training, work habits, andprocedures of maintenance personnel.Store, locate and distribute required technicalinformation more effectively.Plan realistic material and equipment/maintenance tasks.THE QA MANUALSThe Navy’s fleet commanders in chief (CINC)publish and update QA manuals that set forth minimumQA requirements for both the surface fleets and thesubmarine force. The type commanders (TYCOMs)then publish QA manuals that apply to their forces but8-1
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