Quality Management in

Welding
 Definition of Quality

Fitness for purpose or use

Conformance to specified requirements
The totality of features & characteristics of a
product or service that bears on its ability to
satisfy the stated and/or implied needs
 New Definition of Quality
Meeting and anticipating customers requirements,
stated or implied
At a given time and over a period of time
At a price the customer can afford and is willing to pay
Introducing new and better products into the
market faster than competitor
Continuously bringing down the cost of
manufacturing
 Thus Quality is termed as
simply the price of entering the market and no
more conformance to specification or competitive
edge
and re-defined as
Value perceived by the customers
Customer Delight if Value / Price is much greater
than 1
 Quality is better defined as.

Error Free OR Defect Free performance

Do the right things right the first time and

every time

OPERATIONAL
 The changing trend...

Six Sigma Quality

Total Quality Management

Quality Assurance Management - ISO 9000

Company wide Quality Control Management

Quality Control Management

Inspection Management
 CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT

Plan Do
Performance

Act Check

Assurance

Time
 Quality Systems
Foundation of Total Quality Management
Network for integration of all business processes in the
organisation
documented company wide operating structure effectively
integrating the technical and managerial actions to produce
consistent quality products and services
ISO 9000 - benchmark for formal quality systems
 ISO 9000 Standards...
Quality Management Standards
Promotes uniformity in approach
Delivers consistency in output
Aids improvement in Quality and Productivity
Defines Documentation and Records
Focus on Corrective / Preventive actions
Thrust on Measurement, Analysis and Improvement
 Quality Assurance Plan

Market needs, Code requirements for design, materials & manufacture,

Performance requirements for Product
Design Quality Assurance for performance, assembly and Code compliance -
Design Review, Verification & Validation
Procurement Quality Assurance - Qualified Suppliers, Agreement on Specification,
Inspection & Testing covering Type and Routine tests
Manufacturing Quality Assurance - Process Qualification, Process Sheets, Process
Capability, Handling-Storage-Painting-Preservation-Despatch & qualified
Personnel
Inspection & Test programme - Incoming, In-process & Final
Inspection/Examination/Testing requirements, Calibration of Instruments,
qualified Inspection & Test personnel and Data Folder - Customer & Statutory
liaison
 Codes and Standards
Code: Mandatory requirements specified and regulated by the Law to ensure
Safety
Standards: Basis of Agreement to avoid communication mismatch. Also aids
in promoting interchangeability. Standards include specified requirements for
Product, Design, Manufacture/Process, Inspection & Testing, Calibration, Audit,
Materials etc.
Specifications: These include the mandatory requirements of the Code and
the agreed requirements of the relevant Standards and forms part of the
contract.
 Quality Management
Quality Assurance: comprises of all the planned and systematic actions
necessary to provide adequate confidence that a product or service will satisfy
the requirements of Quality
Quality Control: comprises of all the operational techniques and activities
that are used to fulfill requirements of Quality
Quality Management: All activities of the overall management function
that determine the quality policy, objectives and responsibilities, and
implementing through structured Quality Systems by means of quality
planning, quality control and quality improvement.
 Welding Quality Management
Welding and Heat Treatment are defined as Special Processes,
where subsequent inspection cannot validate the conformance to
requirements completely. Need for Quality Assurance and process controls is
thus stressed.
Inspection, Examination and Testing shall be planned, structured
and built in the relevant stages to prevent defects and rejections
Quality Management in welding would thus become a total program
covering the materials control, consumable controls, qualification of
procedures and personnel, calibration of equipment and defining Inspection
methodologies to suit the application of the final product
 Aspects of QM in Welding

Material Requirements
o Selection, Specification, Impact, Chemistry control
Welding Procedure Specification
o Procedure Qualification, Range and applicability, Preheat & Post weld heat treatment
requirements
Welding Personnel
o Welder Qualification, Range, Position and applicability, Skill requirements
Quality Control
o Preheat, fit up, Interpass temperature, Test coupons, Process Sheets for techniques,
Equipment calibration
NDE
o Qualified procedures, personnel, technique sheet, Volumetric and surface examination
 Aspects of QM in Heat Treatment

Minimum Requirements
o Furnace or Local
o Qualification of Furnaces/Calibration of Instruments
o Locating of jobs avoid direct flame impingement Ensure test coupon
loading
o Location of Thermocouples covering thickest and thinnest part, distance
between thermocouples
o Determination of soaking period
o Control of Rate of Heating/Cooling
o Clear actions when there is a power breakdown during heat treatment
o Temperature optimisation when there are different grades of materials
Quality Costs
 Quality is Free

Many think that quality costs money and adversely

effects profits. But these costs are the costs of doing
it wrong first time .
Quality in the long run results in increased
profitability.
For example if we design the product right first time,
build it right first time - we save all the costs of
redesign, rework, scrap, resetting, repair, warranty
work etc.
 Quality and Profit
IfIf the
the organization
organization does
does not offer high quality
product
product or or service,
service, itit will
will soon
soon go
go out
out ofof High
business.
business. ButBut just
just having
having high
high quality
quality will
will not Quality
be
be enough,
enough, because
because youryour competitors
competitors will
will
also
also have
have the high
high quality.
quality. To
To win,
win, companies
companies
will
will need to offer high quality for a lower
price
price than
than their
their competitors.
competitors. This
This requires
requires
organizations
organizations to to identify
identify and
and reduce
reduce their
their
quality
quality costs
costs Lower
price
 Quality Costs
Quality costs are all those costs that arise
from not performing a task the right way the
first time.
1. Prevention Costs
2. Appraisal Costs
3. Internal Failure Costs
4. External Failure Costs
 Prevention Costs

Prevention costs are associated with design,

implementation, maintenance and planning prior to
actual operation in order to avoid defects from
happening.

The emphasis is on the prevention of defects in order

to reduce the probability of producing defective
products. Prevention activities lead to reduction of
appraisal costs and both type of failures (internal and
external). The motto is Prevention rather than
appraisal .