M.Sc. / The Vaal Dam (South Africa) and its tributaries have been extensively affected by domestic, mining, agricultural and industrial activities, as well as the release of effluents. These practices have contributed to large-scale algal blooms that have caused serious ecological, aesthetic, water purification and water distribution problems. This study addresses the need to develop a system that enables forecasts to be made regarding potential changes in the water quality ofthe Vaal Dam, especially with regards to predicting algal blooms. The primary aim was to develop a simple spreadsheet based model to predict the occurrence of algal blooms and other water quality changes in the Vaal Dam, making use of environmental parameters recorded at several sites located upstream of the Rand Water intake point at the Vaal Dam wall. Accurately forecasting sudden changes in water quality would enable proactive resource management, ensuring that Rand Water maintains a high standard of potable water delivered to its customers. Statistical model equations, to predict the concentrations of various water quality constituents, were obtained by step-wise regression analysis. These equations were then entered into MS-Excel spreadsheets. This allowed the input of environmental data and the subsequent calculation of the predicted value. This also allowed for the manipulation of various parameters to forecast the effects any changing values will have on the water quality. These "if-then'' scenarios would be of considerable use in implementing management measures to achieve the desired water quality. The performance of the model was statistically tested to determine if it adequately represents the study system. The models to determine chlorophyll-a concentration and several other water quality constituents proved to be fairly accurate in representing the study system. However, the model to predict nitrate concentrations did not perform satisfactorily. The limitations in model performance were attributed to the low frequency of water quality sampling and the effects of undetermined variables not represented by the water quality parameters selected for model development. The model is compact, does not require specialised software, and is applicable in practice. The predictive and scenario forecasting abilities make this model useful for the identification, monitoring and prediction of changes or trends in water quality over time. The benefits arising from this model will thus contribute to more cost efficient water treatment, improved response times to algal blooms, improved decision-making and proactive water resource management.

The research question addressed in this research concerned the extent to which internally developed quality assurance processes are effective in the promotion and enhancement of quality in education and training programmes in business with special reference to adult literacy. The aim of the research was to explore the presence of and the need for a possible implementation of effective quality assurance processes in education and training in business. It also aimed at seeking for answers to the following questions: -- Do education and training programmes in business have effective quality assurance processes in place for the promotion and enhancement of quality? -- Do education and training programmes in business embrace best practice principles for continuous quality improvement? A literature review, interviews and questionnaires were the instruments employed for the collection of data. Through these research instruments, better insight into the concepts of ‘quality’ and ‘quality assurance’ was obtained. From the literature review, it emerged that the implementation of best practice principles borrowed from industry in education and training programmes can play a crucial role in continuous improvement. In contrast, it emerged from the empirical investigation results that no effective quality assurance processes are applied in education and training in business in South Africa. Business appeared not to be taking a holistic approach to quality assurance and management was found to be ignoring important aspects, such as human resources development, partnership and/or similar issues that need attention if quality is to be holistically promoted and enhanced. In conclusion, a few recommendations that could contribute to quality promotion and enhancement in education and training were made. These were the implementation of a market-related remuneration strategy or competency-based pay, a retention strategy, a quality assurance training programme, Total Quality Management, a Balanced Scorecard, recognition and incentive scheme, a performance appraisal system and the involvement of line managers and union representatives in the management of education and training programmes in business. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

This master thesis put its focus on analysis that is based on the creation of complaints in the filed of the construction company that has been used for this research. The researched company core business activities lie in the construction and reconstruction of the roofs. This analysis is based on the comparison of already established procedures and consequently their actual execution. The shortcomings that were found in the analytical part of this research papers, will be used as suggestions that ought to improve the current situation of the researched company.

No description available.

M.Tech. (Operations Management) / It has become a trend for organisations to implement and certify quality systems. The most common quality system that organisations currently implement is ISO 9001. Certification to ISO 9001 has in recent times been used as a marketing tool to enter new markets. Nowadays, customers expect their suppliers and potential suppliers to be certified to ISO 9001. It has become a primary requirement for doing business, and customers now demand it. There have been various studies conducted to establish the advantages of ISO 9001 and its impact on organisational performance. Laboratories are no exception to this developing trend. They are implementing laboratory quality standards like ISO 17025 and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Good Laboratory Practice (OECD GLP). Some laboratories are now applying for certification of compliance to laboratory standards. Implementing and certifying laboratory systems is an exercise that comes at a cost. The exercise is demanding in terms of human resources, time and capital. There has not been a study conducted to evaluate the impact of these systems on the operational performance of laboratories. This is the reason that resulted in identification of the need to conduct the study. A qualitative research approach was pursued in conducting the study, where the researcher investigated the impact of laboratory quality standards on the operational performance of commercial and non-commercial laboratories. Operational performance in this study is defined as health and safety; supplier selection and performance; human resources; customer satisfaction and profitability. Data was collected through interviews, and was then summarised, and analysed in order to address the research problem. Based on the data collected, it was concluded there is no notable difference in the performance of laboratories with or without quality assurance systems such as ISO 17025 and OECD GLP.

Research Purpose: This study aims to build a new model of quality for education based on a Saudi-British consensus regarding the major factors contributing to education quality and after considering other models (such as EFQM) and other authors’ perspectives. Research Methodology: The research relies on realism philosophy and as a multiple case study with 15 cases, it utilises a mainly qualitative research design that employs semi-structured interview as its research instruments. This study has adopted an ‘Inductive’ approach to build a new model. Primary data in this study was collected by interviewing 33 Saudi and 30 British academics and higher education authorities from six Saudi and nine British universities. Content Analysis was used for analysis. Research Findings: While the degree of agreement with each of the 11 propositions was varied (a range from totally agree to totally disagree), all of the Saudi and British participants believe that eleven pillars/criteria of quality education are: Leadership and Strategic Management; Students, Academics and Staff Recruitment; Syllabus/ Curriculum; Research/Teaching; Pedagogy; Learning & research support; Knowledge management; Academics’ achievements; Students’ progress, success & satisfaction; Universities/Schools’ achievements; and Innovation and Change Management. Recommendations: Decision makers in education sector are recommended to consider all eleven identified factors and their connection to each other while developing policies for quality of education. Universities and other educational institutes should plan and allocate required budgets for implementation and maintenance of all aspects of quality in education. Research Contributions: The main contribution of this research is developing the 'Education Quality Model’. Although there has been some research regarding the quality of education, seemingly they have not led to the development of a research-based customised model such as the Education Quality Model. Another contribution is preparing a new and broad ‘Taxonomy of Quality’. In previous taxonomies, either the only focus is on education or in contrast, education is missing in these taxonomies. Furthermore, possibly for the first time, perspectives of Saudi academics are presented alongside their British counterparts regarding quality of education.

Objective. Analyze quality improvement (QI) education across US pharmacy programs. Methods. This was a two stage cross-sectional study that inspected each accredited school website for published QI curriculum or related content, and e-mailed a questionnaire to each school asking about QI curriculum or content. T-test and chi square were used for analysis with an alpha a priori set at .05. Results. Sixty responses (47% response rate) revealed the least-covered QI topics: quality dashboards /sentinel systems (30%); six-sigma or other QI methodologies (45%); safety and quality measures (57%); Medicare Star measures and payment incentives (58%); and how to implement changes to improve quality (60%). More private institutions covered Adverse Drug Events than public institutions and required a dedicated QI class; however, required QI projects were more often reported by public institutions. Conclusion. Despite the need for pharmacists to understand QI, it is not covered well in school curricula.

M.Ing. / The management of quality in companies has become more and more strategically important over recent years. The emphasis on quality is vital to managing projects and achieving excellence in today’s global economy. Modern petrochemical construction project management has incorporated quality management principles and initiatives in their activities. The Quality Management System is used to ensure that the project will satisfy the requirements for which it was undertaken. Improving project quality in construction requires consideration of culture within the project environment that is often associated with miscommunication and fragmentation. The focus of the thesis is to examine how quality culture can improve the quality in organisation and influence the implementation of Quality Management System in construction industry. The dissertation will comprise of extensive survey of the local academic literature and South African press reports concerning state of construction industry. A questionnaire conducted amongst professionals working in petrochemical industry is aimed to determine the impact of organisational culture on the successful implementation of quality management systems. The objective of this dissertation is to identify inefficiencies and possible improvements that can be achieved in current quality management systems. The dissertation concluded that an improvement in the quality management and quality of construction can only be achieved if quality is embedded in the entire operational and managerial processes of its organizations. The thesis recommends that the South African construction industry would benefit from the development of quality culture that fosters deeper human relationships to improve quality management.

Enterprises have to think about how to let their customers trade on their websites to gain profits. Therefore¡A good electronic service quality is even more important to the customers now¡A this research is trying to explore the standard of electronic service quality . According to what Zeithaml et al. (2002) proposed as ¡§e-SQ model¡A¡¨ we set up the "e-SQ model¡¨ of the website of Carnews.com.tw¡A and bring up five dimensions as ¡§efficiency and reliability¡A¡¨ ¡§fulfillment and compensation¡A¡¨ ¡§contact and responsiveness ¡A¡¨ ¡§privacy¡A¡¨ and ¡§system availability¡A¡¨ to prove the proposition that ¡§Information Gap¡A¡¨ and ¡§Fulfillment Gap¡¨ do exist during the process of e-service quality delivery¡A especially among the manager¡A and the online-user. Through the method of interview and e-questionnaire¡A we confirm these propositions successfully. The Carnews.com.tw can enhance service quality by improving the listed five dimensions. This study proposes certain suggestions from the dimensions of ¡§efficiency and reliability¡A¡¨ ¡§fulfillment and compensation¡A¡¨ ¡§contact and responsiveness¡A¡¨ and ¡§privacy¡A¡¨ in order to bridge the gap between the manager and online-user. Moreover¡A this thesis hopes to benefit the exercise and service quality of Carnews website and online-user¡¦s satisfaction. The performance of service and customer satisfaction is not significantly affected by ¡§expectation of service¡A¡¨ however¡A online-user¡¦s perceived ¡§performance of service¡¨ and ¡§gap between expectation and performance¡¨ has significant impact on customer satisfaction. Furthermore¡A the performance of service has greater power to interpret the variation of customer satisfaction. Finally¡A we hope to provide suggestions to the enterprises in this field or the ones that want to participate in to upgrade their electronic service quality and gain profits. Besides¡A from the perspective of management¡A this research also hopes that through the questionnaire¡A managers of the E-commerce can understand more about the way of the customers use to evaluate electronic service.

Bakgrund och problematisering: Tjänsteföretag på konkurrensutsatta marknader motiveras att anpassa sina produkter utifrån kundernas efterfrågan där utvärdering och förbättring av en tjänsts kvalitet är ett tillvägagångsätt. Fallföretaget Vindsurfing.se studeras med en problembakgrund baserad på hur företag kan utvärdera kvalitet i sina tjänster och vilka positiva och negativa faktorer i produktionen av tjänsterna som går att identifiera utifrån kundernas uppfattningar. Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka den av konsumenterna upplevda kvaliteten på de nybörjarkurser som företaget Vindsurfing.se erbjuder. Detta för att identifiera olika faktorer med påverkan på kvaliteten som kan ligga till grund för utredning av hur verksamheten kan utvecklas i framtiden. Teori och modell: Litteraturgenomgång med utgångspunkt i begreppet service quality, dess definition, tillämpningar och mätinstrument. Nyckelmodeller är bl.a. Grönroos (1984) ”Service-Quality Model” och Parasuraman et al., (1985) ”Service-Gap-model”. Genomgången leder till en egen modell föreställande studiens teoretiska ramverk anpassad för fallföretaget. Metod: Elektronisk enkätundersökning av fallföretagets befintliga kunder. Enkätundersökningen är kopplad till ett antal hypoteser formulerade med stöd av litteraturgenomgången. Frågor ställdes om kursupplevelsen och i vilken grad förväntningar motsvarats eller ej. Enkätsvaren ligger senare till grund för en analytisk hypotesprövning som därefter diskuteras genom att ställa resultaten i förhållande till teorin. Resultat och slutsatser: Resultaten presenterar upptäckter om hur olika faktorer med påverkan på tjänsternas kvalitet visat sig bidra på olika sätt till det totala omdömet av kvaliteten. Analys av externa faktorer och demografiska uppgifter från enkätrespondenter leder till slutsatser av dess påverkan. Slutsatserna från undersökningen bidrar till en möjlighet till utvärdering av framtida verksamhets-utformning för fallföretaget och en generaliserande slutdiskussion diskuterar det vetenskapliga bidraget av