Cost of Quality in Construction Industry

In quality management, the use of cost as a measure of performance has been recognized and this is usually known as the Cost of Quality (COQ) or Quality Cost. The usefulness and importance of knowing the Cost of Quality in manufacturing are well known. This is not so in the construction industry. Since there are differences in the nature and characteristics of the processes and environments of the two industries, it is difficult to assess whether similar quality cost concepts can be used in construction. One can only speculate that if the manufacturing industries can get benefit from quantifying quality costs then there should also be benefit to construction. Theoretically, it seems easy to apply the quality cost concept into the design and construction phases of a civil engineering project. In practice, it is quite complex and can be difficult. This paper initially presents a methodology for assessing the ‘complete’ COQ for construction projects. It also presents COQ model for determining optimum level of quality cost. Finally, techniques to reduce the COQ in construction industry are investigated.