5.4.2 Quality Planning - What are they looking for here?

[Andy Bassett]

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Top management shall ensure that the resources needed to acheive the quality objectives are identified and planned. The output of the planning shall be documented'.
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What are they looking for here? In a project management environment i would simply explain how Project Planning is done, (although this is likely to be repeated in 6.1 Provision of resources).

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Quality planning shall include
a) the process of the quality management system, considering permissible exclusions
b) the resources needed.
c) continual improvement of the quality management system.
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What do they want to hear at this point, all this seems to be covered in other sections of the manual?

Regards

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Andy B

[Marc]

There is as much (if not more) redundancy as the last version. Revision for clarity is in the eyes of the reader.

5.4.2 QUALITY PLANNING

> Top management shall ensure that the resources needed to achieve the
> quality objectives are identified and planned. The output of the
> planning shall be documented. Quality planning shall include:...

Key words: Identified and Planned.

Planning for quality can take place in many ways. In addition, you may notice that there is some ‘overlap’. Some (much!) planning for quality typically occurs during the design process, for example. Planning for quality includes planned inspection(s) and test(s) defined during the design process but on a larger sense can as easily be seen in an overview of the higher level process which starts with receipt of a request for quote through production and is applicable to multiple products. This higher level view is what must be discussed if not documented.

> (...a) the processes of the quality management system, considering
> permissible exclusions (see 1.2);...

If there is a system in place, you must be ready to ‘show and tell’ how you determine(d) what resources are required and how you ensure (when the system is up and running) that the predictions are correct (that you do indeed have enough resources).

Remember, the minimum required ‘quality management systems’ elements are defined in ISO 9001.

> (b) the resources needed;

Including, but not exclusively, personnel and equipment.

> (...c) continual improvement of the quality management system.
> Planning shall ensure that change is conducted in a controlled manner
> and that the integrity of the quality management system is maintained
> during this change.

Continuous improvement is a strong theme within the revision.

Also consider the Quality Planning and Service aspect of the ISO 9001:2000 standard. Specifically, how you gather information to form a quality plan for a service.

[Andy Bassett]

Quote
Planning for quality can take place in many ways. In addition, you may notice that there is some ‘overlap’. Some (much!) planning for quality typically occurs during the design process, for example. Planning for quality includes planned inspection(s) and test(s) defined during the design process but on a larger sense can as easily be seen in an overview of the higher level process which starts with receipt of a request for quote through production and is applicable to multiple products. This higher level view is what must be discussed if not documented.

Thanks for all that, it gives me some ideas. I still feel like i will have to blah blah a little and cross reference to other sections of the manual.

Why do ISO do this, i just cant think of the necessity, every last little word of blah blah or repetition in a QMS manual is a nail in the coffin of employee acceptability.

Regards


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Andy B

[Marc]

Originally posted by Andy Bassett:

Thanks for all that, it gives me some ideas. I still feel like i will have to blah blah a little and cross reference to other sections of the manual.

Yup - you will. We all have to!

Why do ISO do this, i just cant think of the necessity, every last little word of blah blah or repetition in a QMS manual is a nail in the coffin of employee acceptability.

With all the hoopla about how things have been 'clarified' and such in the 2000 revision, the truth is not much has changed except the focus to (duh) customer satisfaction (a QS-9000 effect). The bottom line is there is a lot of explaination and cross-referencing in ISO. When I started this site 5 years ago I put up the following on the 'old' main page (still there):

> Do You... Understand the Intent?
> Are You... Ready to (Can You) Explain?

This was (and still is) because a lot of this is explaining what you just explained. Look at Process Control. There is a lot there and much is addressed (at least in part) in other sections.