EG7069 Quality Management and Reliability Coursework Portfolio 2026: Total Quality and Risk Strategy for NovaTech Electronics, Singapore

The EG7069 portfolio is built around one case company, NovaTech Electronics, a fast-growing UK maker of smart industrial control systems whose quality performance has slipped while output rose. You are asked to diagnose why, and to design a total quality and risk improvement strategy that a Master’s-level engineering manager could defend in front of senior management.

Case Study: Total Quality and Risk Management at NovaTech Electronics

Annual production grew from about 180,000 to 310,000 units in three years. Over 18 months the internal defect rate rose from 4.8% to 8.7%, first-pass yield fell from 94.5% to 88.2%, customer complaints rose by around 32%, warranty costs climbed from £1.4 million to £2.3 million a year and customer satisfaction dropped from 87% to 74%. The quality review found that the company relied on end-of-line inspection instead of controlling quality at the source.

• Six Sigma and SPC: a cross-functional DMAIC team found that about 70% of defects came from five categories (PCB/component assembly 24%, software/firmware configuration 18%, supplier component quality 14%, soldering and connection failures 9%, final testing/calibration 5%). Control charts showed large variation between shifts in soldering temperature, placement accuracy and calibration.
• FMEA: high-priority failure modes sat in PCB assembly, supplier components, firmware configuration and final calibration, and several risks were only caught at final inspection or by customers.
• Inconsistent practices: about 22% of reviewed SOPs were outdated, some critical processes had no work instructions and training for new staff was uneven.
• Supplier quality: more than 40 suppliers in Europe and Asia, chosen mainly on price; the top ten account for about 78% of component spend, and corrective actions and audits are weak.
• Digital quality: AOI, automated testing, IoT monitoring, predictive maintenance and ERP/QMS integration are proposed at an initial cost of about £1.8 million, which the CFO questions.
• ISO 9001 and culture: the QMS is applied inconsistently, 46% of surveyed employees think production targets matter more than quality, and some staff hide defects because of individual performance measures. Poor quality is estimated to cost about £4.6 million a year.

Portfolio Tasks

1. Comprehensive Total Quality Implementation

Using the NovaTech Electronics case study, critically evaluate the organisation’s existing approach to quality management and risk management. Develop a comprehensive Total Quality Improvement Strategy that applies appropriate quality management theories, tools and engineering management principles. Identify the root causes of quality failures, evaluate relevant quality and risk management methodologies, and recommend an implementation roadmap supported by appropriate performance measures.

2. Role of Management and Stakeholders in Transforming Quality

Critically analyse the role of managers in improving the quality and reliability of products in the electronics company. How can managers foster a culture of quality ownership within the organisation? What roles do the various stakeholders, particularly the employees, play in quality improvement? Support your discussion with relevant literature and industrial case studies.

3. Impact of Quality and Reliability Measures on Operations

Propose a comprehensive set of KPIs/metrics that the organisation can track to assess the performance of its manufacturing processes and product quality and reliability. Propose a structured approach or framework the organisation can use to drive continuous improvement based on these KPIs, and explain its limitations. Recommend how quality and reliability can be designed into the product while balancing cost and manufacturability.

4. Best Practices and Sustainability in Quality Engineering

Evaluate the role of benchmarking and best practices in quality engineering and management within organisational constraints such as economics, time and resource availability, supported by literature and industrial examples. Critically evaluate how environmental and sustainability considerations can be integrated into the strategy, including the long-term impact on financial and operational performance, and suggest practical sustainability initiatives.

5. Ethical and Managerial Decision-Making in Quality Management

Critically discuss the ethical dilemmas managers face when implementing quality and reliability measures. Using the case study, critically evaluate how managers can navigate the intersection between corporate responsibility, regulatory compliance and business profitability.

Presentation

Prepare an 8-minute PowerPoint presentation with speaker notes that summarises the key findings and recommendations of the portfolio.

Learning Outcomes Assessed

• Explain and implement quality management and reliability principles for real-world industrial issues.
• Identify best practices in quality engineering and management within organisational constraints.
• Establish best industrial practices in quality management and reliability engineering.
• Implement quality-related solutions and assess their impact on sustainability.
• Critically assess the impact of quality and reliability measures on engineering projects.
• Understand how managers interact with organisational and technical complexity using quality tools.
• Apply ethical judgement at the interface between society and technology.