Quality Management Systems for Design Firm

Innovation Design Company (IDC) was founded in 2009. The main field of IDC is consultancy in architecture and construction design especially in small and medium project such as luxury low-rise building and villas. Customers that IDC have been focused are high-income customers and foreign. IDC's initial goal is providing high quality products with competitive prices compared to other consulting firms in the country as well as foreign companies in Vietnam.

However, after more than two years, IDC does not achieve the goals. In IDC, the design process is mainly based on the experience of principal engineers and architects, and almost has had no specific design process that is applied to the entire system. In fact, there are many projects that spent cost, time and manpower to redesign which affected IDC’s irrevocable capital and credibility with clients.

Facing the requirements to meet their own quality policy as well as pressure from domestic competitors and foreign, IDC found that the establishment of a quality management system process design is not lack. These projects have to propose quality management system in design for IDC.

Mr. Dinh Trung Thanh made a case study aimed to: (i) Design QMS for design firm; (ii) Establish the design procedure and quality management system that meet the quality policy of IDC and the standards of Vietnam as well as international; and (iii) Evaluate the quality management system after applied in IDC.

Conclusion

The proposed QMS basically meets the requirements to control the quality of design in IDC. The QMS clearly identify the responsibilities of all members of the system as well as individual responsibility in each period of design in ensuring that the design meets the requirements of the customer and the current standards of Vietnam.

Besides, the proposed QMS also ensure that the information in the system is communicated clearly and unalterable through input design system, manage and storage documents, and document control. In Design Company, the communication is consistent and clearly is a very important factor to ensure the correct design with the requirements of the clients as well as the construction standards.

With proposed QMS, the most important factors to ensure the success of the system include:

1. Accurate evaluation of customer requirements

2. Input data application to project (specification)

3. Internal audit.

4. The process of check and review of the principal architects and engineers.

5. Connectivity of the members and awareness of quality in design.

The QMS system proposed is consistent with the scale and the current goals of the IDC. With the successful application of QMS in the future, IDC may require the organization to evaluate and receive ISO certification. With ISO certification achieved, the quality of the design of the IDC is as good as international quality; on the other hand the reputation in the market is better as well as the credibility with customers.

Limitations of the proposed QMS are not creating more value for consulting services as well as product design. However, with current and potential target of the IDC, the application of TQM is beyond. IDC can improve and develop on the basis elements of ISO then apply the elements of TQM to develop the new stage.

His thesis abstract is copied and pasted below.

Abstract

In construction industry, a project is known to be successful when it meets three fundamental criteria such as finishing on time within the budget, the prescribed quality requirements such as satisfying customer’s demand and adapt safety in operation stage. However, most of construction project in Vietnam have had problems with the quality therefore, the time is often delay and the cost is out of control. So, solving these problems has become more and more important in project management in Vietnam.

In fact, there are many reasons cause the quality problems in construction project. Follow the informal investigations, there are:

- Goal and vision of investor.

- Quality of consultant and design.

- Check and review design.

- Quality control in Tender activity

- Quality control in Construction phase.

- Quality of human resource.

- Quality in consultant and design is very important in a project from start to the end.

However in Vietnam, there are a lot of consultant and design firm have no Quality management system (QMS), or QMS is not effective, especially the medium and small firms.

This report will assess and analyze quality factor in Consultant and design, and propose a quality management system for medium and small architecture firm.