To visit basics and ask what is the difference between Quality Assurance and Quality Control.
This question is not as simple as it first sounds because there is a difference depending on which side of the Atlantic you are sitting.
The Term Quality Assurance in the FAA system may in fact relate to the performance of inspection tasks for example Required Inspection Items RII may be considered as a QA task.
QA by contrast in the EASA system is an independent function, not part of the specific delivery process. EASA and the GCAA (which of course follow the EASA model), take the following view.
Quality Assurance is a process whereby we assess the situation, product process or procedure for compliance with either the regulatory requirement, the organizational requirement or both.
Any gaps will be identified as deficiencies of Corrective Action Requests, the process of Quality Assurance will typically be managed via the Quality Assurance Audit plan.
Quality Control on the other hand in simple terms is the ability of the organization to follow the requirements at each step in the correct manner.
Many of the elements we perform without actually realizing are in fact Quality Control elements, checking documentation for validity is QC, checking and validating AD or SB status is QC, checking configuration is QC.
When we want to manage the effectiveness of a particular process we may elect to include a specific element of QC activity as a functional part of the process delivery.
In essence when we implement a QC check we are performing a validation against a set of criteria, which we need to establish
The whole point is to have a structured and repeatable activity
To ask someone for example to check your work is of course QC of course (but without structure it is off less value than more formal processes.
The challenge
a) To “add value” to the process – If we load up the Quality Control process it may make is feel good but does not necessary make what we are doing better
b) To make sure that the Quality Control check process delivers results to
i) Identify deficiencies
ii) Identify why we have a deficiency – a most critical element is to understand the root cause of any deficiency which is noted, and to act on this, simply fixing the issue does not improve the overall system, rather it acts as a sticking plaster over the potential for repeat occurrences.
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Aviation Quality Assurance, aviation quality control, aviation safety, Maintenance Planning and Reliability Training, Sofema Aviation Services
