American Society for Quality

Formation February 16, 1946 (1946-02-16)
Type Professional association
Purpose To promote the use of techniques to improve organizational quality
Headquarters Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Coordinates 43°02′15″N 87°54′40″W / 43.03740°N 87.91117°W / 43.03740; -87.91117Coordinates: 43°02′15″N 87°54′40″W / 43.03740°N 87.91117°W / 43.03740; -87.91117
Region served
 Worldwide
Services Certification, training, conferences
Membership
 80000 (approximately) (2013)
CEO
 William Troy
Chairman
 Dr. Cecilia Kimberlin
Main organ
 Board of directors
Website asq.org
Formerly called
 American Society for Quality Control, American Society for Quality
ASQ Registration booth at America's Center in St. Louis for the 2010 meeting on 24 May.

ASQ, formerly known as the American Society for Quality and the American Society for Quality Control (ASQC), is a knowledge-based global community of quality professionals, with nearly 80,000 members dedicated to the promotion and advancement of quality tools, principles, and practices in their workplaces and in their communities.

History

ASQ was established in 1946 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as a way for quality experts and manufacturers to sustain quality-improvement techniques used during World War II.

Today, ASQ is a global organization with members in more than 140 countries. ASQ has service centers in Mexico, China and India, and has established strategic alliances with numerous organizations in countries like Brazil and the United Arab Emirates to promote ASQ products and training.

Quality

ASQ provides its members with certification, training, publications, conferences, and other services. Internationally, ASQ has formed relationships with nonprofit organizations that have comparable missions and principles, forming collaborative efforts to meet the quality needs of companies, individuals, and organizations. ASQ is a founding partner of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), a quarterly economic indicator.

Since 1989, ASQ has administered the annual Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The ASQ also gives the Dorian Shainin Medal, which is awarded annually for the "Development and Application of Creative or Unique Statistical Approaches in the Solving of Problems Relative to the Quality of Product or Service".[1]

Certifications

ASQ offers a variety of professional certifications relating to various aspects of the quality profession. Exams are given nationally and, to a limited degree, worldwide several times annually. The body of knowledge for each certification is maintained through peer review every few years on a rotating schedule. The first ASQ certification was offered in 1968.[2]

All certifications listed are from this reference[2] unless noted.

Year created Certification ASQ initials Covers Comments Other reference
1968 Engineer CQE Principle of product and service, quality evaluation, and control. [3]
1970 Technician CQT Quality problem, analysis, inspection sampling plans and statistical process control applications. [4]
1972 Reliability Engineer CRE Principles of performance evaluation for product and system safety, reliability, and maintainability. [5]
1984 Inspector CQI Hardware documentation, lab, and calibration procedures, inspection, process performance, data collection, and reports. Initially known as mechanical inspector. [6]
1987 Auditor CQA Standards and principles of auditing, questions, evaluations and reports for quality system adequacy. [7]
1995 Manager CMQ/OE (CQM: 1995-2005) Champions process improvement initiatives and supports strategic planning and deployment initiatives. Changed to Certified Manager of Quality/ Organizational Excellence in 2006 to reflect the broader scope of the quality manager's position. [8]
1996 Software Quality Engineer CSQE Development of software processes, measurement, verification, and validation, analytical methods, and quality management. [9]
1996 CQA-HACCP CHA since 2004 Developed to test applicants knowledge of the HACCP standards. Changed to Certified HACCP Auditor in 2004. [10]
2000 Improvement Associate CQIA Designed to test basic knowledge of quality tools and their uses, along with involvement in quality improvement projects. [11]
2001 Six Sigma Black Belt CSSBB To demonstrate competency in Six Sigma methods. [12]
2002 CQA-biomedical CBA since 2005. Understands principles of standards, regulations, directives, and guidance for auditing a biomedical system. Changed to Certified Biomedical Auditor in 2005. [13]
2003 Calibration Technician CCT Tests, maintains, and repairs electrical, mechanical, electromechanical, analytical, and electronic measuring/ recording equipment for conformance to established standards. [14]
2005 Process Analyst CQPA Paraprofessional who analyzes and solves quality problems and is quality improvement projects. [15]
2006 Six Sigma Green Belt CSSGB Paraprofessional who works with process development and documentation, collects, and summarizes data, and creates, and intreprets multivar studies. [16]
2009 Pharmaceutical good manufacturing practices professional certification CPGP Tests applicant knowledge of principles as regulated and guided by national and international agencies. [17]
2010 Six Sigma Master Black Belt CMBB To demonstrate master competency in six sigma methodology. [18]

In a 2008 press release for the 40th anniversary of ASQ's certifications, the three most popular were the engineer (CQE), followed closely by the auditor (CQA) and the Six Sigma Black Belt (CSSBB).

See also

References

  1. ↑ Shainin Medal - ASQ
  2. 1 2 Newcomb, Wiiliam O. "ASQ Certification: A Brief History". Quality Progress. January 2010. p. 43.
  3. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Quality Engineer brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  4. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Quality Tehnician borchure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  5. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Reliability Engineer brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  6. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Quality Inspector brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  7. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Quality Auditor brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  8. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Manager of Quality and Organizational Excellence brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  9. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Software Quality Engineer borchure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  10. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified HACCP Auditor brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  11. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Quality Improvement Associate brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  12. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Six Sigma Black Belt brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  13. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Biomedical Auditor brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  14. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Calibration Technician brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  15. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Quality Process Analyst brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  16. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Six Sigma Green Belt brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  17. ↑ American Society for Quality Certified Pharmaceutical GMP Professional brochure. - accessed 9 January 2010.
  18. ↑ Earn a Master Black Belt (MBB) Certification

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, December 10, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.