PLSO The Oregon Surveyor May/June 2021

11 Professional Land Surveyors of Oregon | www.plso.org Featured Article Quality control: Verify the station and monitor the data collection during the survey. accepting or rejecting results at the end of the project. This assures a total quali- ty approach thus saving time and money and meeting the expectations of the cli- ent. In order to assure the accuracy and completeness of project deliverables and documents, specific quality assurance re - view and checking procedures should be established. These review and checking procedures may require modifications for specific projects and will require pe - riodic updating, primarily by the project or survey manager. 5 Steps to Quality Assurance In accordance with Deming’s 14 points (see previous article) I believe there are five basic steps to ensure quality and out - standing client service in surveying and mapping. These steps may be defined as: • Project Delivery Planning • Adherence to Established Standards • Clear Assignments of Tasks and Responsibilities • Tracking and Documentation • The Use of Qualified Staff Project Delivery Planning Quality assurance begins with Project Delivery Planning. Technical standards and specifications, defining of deliver - able items, and milestone schedules will be identified at the project planning stage. A written quality assurance plan is an element of all work plans. These plans vary widely by service and tasks being performed. The following guide- lines can be used as a general checklist for themain elements of any project work plan. Unless a specific plan is required by the contract, at a minimum the follow- ing should be considered as appropriate quality assurance measures: • Detailed statement of work and scope of required services • Schedules, budgets, and milestone points • Precise definition of required deliv - erables, contract standards, client imposed standards, and/or industry standards to be used • The use of advanced technology • Tasks and responsibilities • Adherence to established industry and professional standards • Forms and reporting documents that will be required • Compliance with client- mandated standards and deliverable requirements • Statements of safety procedures for fieldwork The Project Delivery Plan should include time and budget allowances for reviews and checking—Quality Control, or QC— that are a part of the QA program. A few examples of your QC plan might include the following: • Survey or mapping criteria • Definition of standards and/or agency or client manuals to be used • Survey or mapping criteria review and checking forms • Drafting and CAD standards to be used • Computer calculation review forms • Field survey forms required for the project • Internal review forms and checklists Adherence to Standards Three types of established standards should be considered for each project: industry or discipline standards, client- imposed standards, and your firm’s standards. Industry standardsmay be con- sidered the minimum level of standards for a given project. These are the com- mon standards used throughout the industry or discipline and are general- ly based on liability and protection of the public. Client standards are those unique standards required by the client for the project. They may include CADD standards, drafting styles, and the level of confidence (sigma) required for the data. Your firm’s standards are those de - veloped by you for your local conditions or in-house operations. These standards focus on client service, communication, reporting, documentation, and the use of advanced technology, such as GPS, LIDAR, Ground Penetrating Radar and safety. When preparing a work plan you will need to consider all three types of standards and communicate these eval- uations and decisions to the client prior to approval of the plan or acceptance of the assignment. Tasks and Responsibilities During the project planning and start- up phase, you will need to work with the technical managers and office staff to select the checking program and review forms applicable to a particular project. They may add additional review forms and checking program items that are unique for that project. On a specific project, the project manager takes responsibility for the implementation continues T