Academic literature on the topic 'Engineering consultants – Quality control'

For more than 20 years, the FHWA has required that underwater inspection of bridges be performed at least every 5 years. Over that period, departments of transportation and other bridge owners have either developed in-house underwater inspection teams or hired outside consultants to perform this work. Ensuring that the inspections are conducted properly and accurately is critical. To this end, several policies and procedures can be implemented as quality control measures in an underwater inspection program. Selecting a properly trained inspection team, ensuring proper preparation before diving operations, conducting independent inspections, and looking at deterioration trends are several ways to ensure quality in underwater inspections.

This paper discusses the strategy and methods used at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard to apply Dr. W. E. Deming's 14 management principles to the complex world of ship overhaul and repair. The purpose of Total Quality Management is to improve quality, and thereby reduce costs, and increase productivity, thus improving Pearl Harbor's competitive position in the market. A brief, general history of process control is given as well as a close examination of the current management and overall conditions at Pearl Harbor. The interdependent roles of top management, middle management, the union, and consultants are evaluated, and areas for improvement are examined.

This paper presents a methodology for analyzing engineering-related delays in construction projects using Quality Function Deployment (QFD). The steps of the QFD technique are combined in the quality and control policy. A reference matrix based on the literature review is constructed with engineering delays and a survey of all parties involved in construction projects. The QFD matrix aids in identifying the most significant reasons for delays and claims in the construction projects. For the identified reasons, solutions have been developed to limit or reduce them. The mean sources of construction delays include engineering, construction, financial/economic, management/administrative, and force majeure. This paper presents a knowledge-based QFD technique dedicated to engineering-related delays. Three categories of Engineering-related delays are considered in the proposed system. These categories are 1) design development, 2) workshop drawings, and 3) project party’s changes delays. The knowledge of the QFD matrix is acquired from literature, Federation International des Ingenious - Conseils (FIDIC) contract forms, domain experts, as well as a questionnaire survey. Three classes of participants (i.e., consultants, contractors, and Employers) have been approached to get their feedback on the cases of engineering-related delays. The proposed approach helps to limit or reduce delays in construction projects caused by the engineer. Accordingly, it was concluded to the most important reasons that led to the delay of construction projects related to the engineer, using QFD.

The variations in time and quality are vital to the projects' success. Though the cost variation is the most impacting variation, the objective of this study is to recognise the significance of the cost controls in the construction projects in Jordan. Moreover, it aims to determine the factors that lead to reduce these costs. For the methodology, the study used the questionnaire instrument for the data collection. The study sample entailed 154 respondents who hold the responsibility in relevance positions with experiences in contracting and consultants engineering field in Jordan under first and second-grade classification. The study results revealed that there is a significant relationship between cost reduction and all investigated factors, namely, the demographic variables, the pre-execution conditions and specification, and managerial, technical, or financial dimensions. Further, the results showed a significant impact of proper resource planning. In summary, the key factors affecting the project cost during the pre-execution stage involves the appropriate resources planning (i.e., workforce, funds, data). In details, the most critical factors affecting the project cost from managerial dimension are the project manager assignment and integrity of consultant. For the technical dimension, the elements are the skilled workers, the applied methods, the statements and specifications. Lastly, for the fund allocation dimension, the most critical factors that affect the project cost from a financial point of view. Lastly, a set of recommendations are proposed to the project managers to reduce the cost.

The South Florida Water Management District, in partnership with other agencies and stakeholders, is undertaking one of the world's largest ecosystem restoration programs. The foundation of the nutrient control program for the Everglades is a set of six large constructed wetlands, referred to as Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs). The initial treatment goal is to reduce phosphorus entering the Everglades to 50 parts per billion. The STAs comprise almost 17,000 hectares, with a capital cost of approximately $700 million. Approximately 4,720 hectares are currently operational, another 2,600 hectares are in the start-up phase, and construction is just getting under way on the remaining areas. Throughout the design process, engineers and scientists collaborated to capture the best available information on wetland treatment systems, and to develop the most appropriate design criteria. Some of the more challenging issues included characterizing stormwater inflows and phosphorus loads, determining appropriate nutrient removal performance characteristics, and estimating hydraulic design parameters relating to densely vegetated systems. The design process combined in-house staff with engineering consultants, construction contractors, external review groups and independent peer-review. This paper summarizes major design aspects and key assumptions, and sets the stage for addressing future challenges associated with achieving long-term water quality goals of Everglades restoration.

Reliable data on the condition of bridge networks are critical for successful bridge management. However, little attention has been paid to the quality of the data gathered in bridge inspections. This paper reviews the most important areas of bridge inspection that cause variation in bridge condition data and presents possible misjudgments made as a result of poor inspection data quality. The main elements of the inspection quality management system adopted in the Finnish Road Administration are presented, and the development of the quality of inspection data in 2002 and 2003 is briefly summarized. The evidence shows that the quality of inspection data has improved considerably but that the current quality level is not yet sufficient. The quality control system could be improved by increasing inspector interaction during control inspections, using an independent consultant in inspection quality measurements and inspector training, increasing the number of quality measurements, and introducing quality targets.

Concrete repair with polymer modified materials has become an integral part of the civil construction industry. Often, under-performance or even failure of such repairs can be attributed to the incorrect selection, preparation, application or care of the repair process. The root cause of this is basically the lack of adequate knowledge and understanding of the repair material and the repair process by the applicator, the supplier, the consultant and the client. Unfortunately, it seems that there is very little done in terms of the training of these four stakeholders. Decisions regarding repair materials and processes are often based on personal preferences, an elementary cost analysis and convincing sales pitches by some snake-oil salesmen.By using questionnaires designed specifically for each of the four different sectors of the concrete repair industry, a survey was done with regards to the state of training in South Africa in this specialized field. The results indicate that, although there is agreement that polymer-modified concrete patch repair is a highly specialized field; there is an unacceptably low level of training in each of these sectors with regards to the correct selection, application and care of such repair materials. Incorrect specification, inappropriate material selection, misunderstanding of the material properties and inadequate quality control are outcomes of this lack of knowledge and understanding which subsequently may lead to premature failures and/or under-performance of the repair. In addition, the survey results also indicate that the workforce performing the physical repair work, is mainly unskilled and some serious intervention is required to correct this situation.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a road map to implement Lean-Kaizen concept using value stream mapping (VSM) to identify hidden continuous improvement opportunities in a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) located at the non-capital region of India. Design/methodology/approach From the collected data, a current state map was prepared that indicated the current operating situation of selected SME. The takt time was calculated and those processes which attained higher cycle time (C/T) than takt time were identified. The continuous flow processing was achieved by adjusting C/T of each process and supermarket pull system was developed to control the production at the workstations. Finally, a future state map was developed that served as a guide for future lean activities. Few problems were identified to realize the future state. The “5-why” analysis was used for identifying root causes of these problems and Kaizen events were proposed as solutions. In this case study, one Kaizen event was identified in which brainstorming technique was used to control the variation caused by unorthodox fixture design for clamping and de-clamping of case product and thus eliminated non-value-added activities performed by the operator on a milling machine. Findings Before and after implementation of value stream map, the data obtained were analyzed and eliminated rework time, reduced inventory level, reduced lead time and C/T, improved productivity and product quality are presented as finding. Lean-Kaizen provides a better chance for every individual of the industry to have a hand in achieving organization’s goals to attain continuous progress in productivity and quality of the product. Even good understanding of the concept of lean tools and techniques by SMEs, the employee willingness and motivation to identify and eliminate wastes are found feeble. Originality/value This study is among best practices to identify hidden improvement opportunities in the regular production of the product to increase productivity and improve quality using value stream map. The research paper gives useful understandings to the lean implementers, Kaizen identifiers, consultants and researchers.

This paper is based on the authors' experiences of the development and implementation of ISO 9000 Quality Management Systems (QMS) and Total Quality Management (TQM) programs in U.K. shipbuilding, as quality manager of a larger U.K. shipyard and an independent consultant, respectively. Implementing ISO 9000 will have the greatest beneficial impact on a company's operations if, at the outset, it is clearly established as the first step towards changing the culture of the company to one of "continuous improvement." This must be part of the overall process of getting the business processes of the company under control as a prelude to improving their efficiency and then effectiveness. The reality of implementing both ISO 9000 and TQM, including conversion from AQAP-1 to BS 5750, is illustrated. The place of TQM in the context of transformational change programs is highlighted. The factors that influence the success of an effective change management program are described.

Background: Residential buildings are an essential and significant satisfaction pillar for the human’s life to ensure a safe and durable residence. In addition, due to the rapid development and population growth in the Gaza Strip, many residential buildings and housing projects are being implemented in a short period of time especially after Gaza conflict during the year 2014. Therefore, various errors and defects are anticipated to rise during the design stage. Objectives: The aim of this paper is to identify and rank the factors affecting the occurrence of the defects in the structural design stage of residential buildings in the Gaza Strip. Methods: A survey was conducted for 134 respondents randomly selected as engineers, working for engineering consultant offices as designers, supervisors and projects managers in Gaza Strip. Results: The study reveals that the three most effective groups of factors are; the consultant administration and staff group, the drawings preparation group and the structural design group respectively. The most important factors were; ignoring soil investigation or poor soil investigation, poor or lack of engineering supervision or unqualified supervision and conflicts between architectural and structural drawings. These are the most common issues overlooked by the engineers and the contractors in the Gaza Strip. Conclusion: The study recommends to apply a strict quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) program during design phases, providing simple and readable drawings with sufficient details for contractors, raising the awareness of owners towards conducting soil inspections prior to the design process and paying more attention to the informal buildings sector from the related authorities.