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Fuel Quality Management Systems

 

Quality Assurance Procedures:  Handling procedures during the transport and storage of fuels is critical in maintaining the fuel’s key properties and providing acceptable performance in vehicles.  Use of proper procedures can guard against the risk of fuel contamination claims.

Total Quality Management: TQM is a term that’s been around for a number of decades.  It refers to the management of quality, from product design, manufacture, distribution and use.  It requires high level management commitment to quality in all its forms, going well beyond the product quality to the quality of the relationships with customers and vendors and the systems put in place to continually improve.

Failure Modes and Risk Mitigation: There are numerous ways a fuel can fail to provide acceptable performance.  Some relate to critical specifications.  Others can cause serious issues without the fuel being out of spec.  It is critical to put in place internal processes and quality checks which will prevent releasing fuel which isn’t fit for purpose.

Product Quality Oversight Programs: The presence of a quality assurance program is one of nine defense elements defined by the EPA, elements which must be in place to defend against a Notice of Violation (NOV).  More importantly, oversight programs provide feedback on the effectiveness of the quality assurance practices in place and can provide early warning of issues occurring in the marketplace.

Assessments: Once a quality management system is in place , it is important to assess how the organization is performing against the system.  It’s also important to have an outside expert evaluate the system and bring suggestions for improvement.

Statistical Quality Control: The use of SQC can identify potential issues very early, often well before field issues become apparent.  Alternatively, the same statistical methods can prevent taking actions which are unwarranted.  Statistics can also be used to find the sweet spot between a specification limit, maximizing production profitability and avoiding regulatory or fit-for-purpose issues downstream of the manufacturing facility.