Quality Assurance

EM is committed to achieving quality in all of its mission work in accordance with the “Quality Assurance Rule” (10 CFR 830, Subpart A ) and DOE Order 414.1C, Quality Assurance . The DOE Order establishes roles and responsibilities for Secretarial Officers, Field Elements and contractors. Specifically the Order calls for Secretarial Officers to “Ensure that Headquarters, field elements and contractors implement requirements of this Order (DOE O 414.1C) in an integrated manner and coordinate the resolution of quality issues among these organizations.”

EM is committed to quality of all mission results and the elimination of errors. The EM Quality Assurance Program Plan (QAPP) describes the method by which quality assurance is implemented into Integrated Safety Management System and the overall work processes. The EM QAPP identifies those requirements and actions which are implemented in EM to achieve quality results and is applicable to everyone in the organization.

EM's QAPP places accountability for quality with each and every employee. In addition, it emphasizes the creation of an environment for resolving quality problems rapidly and an attitude of constant improvement. EM has ten criteria for quality assurance:

1. Establish an organizational structure, functional responsibilities, levels of authority, and interfaces for management, performance, and assessment of work. Establish management systems for planning work and resource allocation.
2. Train and qualify personnel to be capable of performing assigned work.
3. Establish and implement processes to detect and prevent quality problems. Identify the causes of problems and include prevention of recurrence as a part of corrective action planning.
4. Prepare, review, approve, issue, use, and revise documents to prescribe processes, specify requirements, or establish design. Specify, prepare, review, approve, and maintain records.
5. Perform work consistent with technical standards, administrative controls, and hazard controls adopted to meet regulatory or contract requirements using approved instructions and procedures.
6. Design items and processes using sound engineering/scientific principles and appropriate standards. Verify/validate work before approval and implementation of the design.
7. Procure items and services which meet established requirements and perform as specified. Evaluate and select prospective suppliers on the basis of specified criteria.
8. Inspect and test specified items, services, and processes using established acceptance and performance criteria.
9. Managers assess their management processes to identify and correct problems which hinder the organization from achieving its objectives.
10. Plan and conduct independent assessments to measure item and service quality and the adequacy of work performance and to promote improvement.