In this lecture, we give the basic definitions of quality, quality improvement, and other quality engineering terminology. We also discuss the historical development of quality improvement methodology. A brief discussion of some management and business aspects for implementing quality improvement is also given.

In this lecture, the concept of quality cost is presented. The quality cost contains prevention cost, appraisal cost, internal and external failure costs. The links between quality and productivity as well as between quality and cost are also introduced.

This lecture presents two materials that deal with the design and use of sampling plans, schemes, and systems, including attributes- and -variables-sampling plan. The primary focus is on attributes-sampling plan. The successful use of these techniques at the early stages of manufacturing, including the supplier or supplier base, can greatly reduce and in some cases eliminate the need for extensive sampling inspection.