Odfjell nr 3 - 2006.indd

QM Corner
Elements of Quality Management
By Jan Didrik Lorentz
Quality Assurance and
continuous improvements
are essential
elements of quality
management. A good
Quality Management
System is based on the
following dynamic elements:
Audits – where system deficiencies are
revealed through interviews and review
of evidence.
Experience feedback – where incidents
and near misses are registered and analysed
to determine causes and suggest
corrective actions.
Management reviews – where management
teams regularly evaluate the relevance
and compliance of systems and
suggest improvements.
Active use of the dynamic elements is a
typical feature of a learning organization.
In Odfjell we will use the Docmap
observation module to share experience
and systematically follow up on corrective
actions.
When an incident is recorded it will
typically have the following phases:
Information
The observer will gather and register
relevant information about the incident;
such as what happened, when,
where, etc.
Consequence(s)
Here the consequences; such as injury,
damage, cost or claims will be registered.
Cause(s)
In this important phase the immediate
but also root cause must be determined
based on the evidence available.
Corrective action(s)
If we know why an incident took place, we
can take preventive measures to reduce
the possibility of reoccurrence, and/or
protective measures that will reduce
possible consequences.
In corporate quality management the
HSE/QA section is now strengthened
with a qualified lead auditor, Roy Håre,
and a person to assist with DocMap implementation
and user support, Anne
Berit Birkeland. Roy has long experience
from the auditing of service and
hardware suppliers, and Anne Berit has
worked with case handling and quality
assurance both in the private and public
sector.
CORPORATE QUALITY
MANAGEMENT MANUAL
Table of Contents
Definitions
Introduction
Mission and policies
Organisational structures
Responsibilities
Human resources management
Common directives
Processes and elements of Quality
Management
Quality Management system
Quality Assurance and
improvement
Event analysis
HSE Management
Risk Management
The HSE/QA section. From left: Anne Berit Birkeland, Bjørn Ydse and Roy Håre
26 ODFJELL Quarterly September 2006