Apply Quality Assurance Techniques NQF 3

The Apply Quality Assurance Techniques NQF 3 skills programme equips learners with the knowledge and practical tools required to support and maintain quality standards within a production environment. It focuses on inspection methods, quality control processes, documentation, and continuous improvement practices to ensure products and processes meet required specifications. This programme helps organisations strengthen compliance, reduce defects, and develop employees who can actively contribute to consistent quality management in manufacturing operations.

Purpose of this programme:

The skills, values and knowledge reflected in this unit standard are required by people in the field of manufacturing and engineering.

The learning outcomes in this unit standard also contribute to the exit level outcomes required for various manufacturing and engineering qualifications.

Qualifying learners can perform quality procedures in their work area. They are able to demonstrate an understanding of quality assurance requirements and relate and apply these in their work.

The following Topic are covered in this module:

Product quality and quality assurance

• Quality assurance objective

Quality: the meaning of quality

• What is quality?
• Primary determinates of quality

Quality of design

• Understand what the customer wants
• Quality of conformance to design
• Quality of service
• Consequences of poor quality

ISO 9001:2008

• Why ISO 9001?
• What are the ISO requirements?
  • Quality management system
  • Management responsibility
  • Resource management
  • Product realisation
  • Measurement, analysis and improvement

Non-conforming products

• What is a nonconforming product?
• Identifying nonconforming products
• Controlling nonconforming products
• What is quality control?
• What is quality assurance?

Inspection and sampling

• What action can the inspectors take?
• Why inspection?
• Different forms of inspection
• Selecting a sample
• Keep records of quality tests
• Types of sampling inspection
• Internal or external inspection
• Defects and defectives
• Acceptable quality level (aql)
• Acceptance and rejection
• Sampling plans

Problem solving

• The plan-do-study-act cycle

Process improvement

• Carry out a systematic approach to improving the process
• Map the process
• Analyse the process
• Redesign the process

Quality tools

• Flowcharts
• Check sheet
• Pareto analysis
• Cause-and-effect diagram

Using and caring for basic measuring instrumentation

• Callipers
• Micrometers