Glossary A

AFNOR (Association Française de Normalisation) is a French standards organization responsible for developing and publishing standards, guidelines, and certification processes. AFNOR plays a crucial role in establishing and maintaining quality standards across various industries in France and internationally. It is a leading authority in the field of standardization and quality management, facilitating innovation, competitiveness, and safety.

Deutsch: Alterung / Español: Envejecimiento / Português: Envelhecimento / Français: Vieillissement / Italiano: Invecchiamento

Aging in the context of quality management refers to the process through which materials, products, or systems decline in quality and performance over time. This natural progression can result from various factors, including wear and tear, corrosion, fatigue, and environmental conditions. Understanding and managing aging is crucial for maintaining product quality, ensuring safety, and extending the lifespan of goods and services.

Deutsch: Vereinbarung / Español: Acuerdo / Português: Acordo / Français: Accord / Italiano: Accordo /

Agreement in the quality management context refers to a formal understanding or mutual consensus between two or more parties regarding specific terms, conditions, requirements, or standards. It plays a pivotal role in quality management as it defines the expectations, responsibilities, and commitments necessary for ensuring quality and compliance with established standards. Agreements within quality management encompass a wide range of scenarios and are essential for maintaining consistency, transparency, and accountability in various processes.

Deutsch: Landwirtschaft / Español: Agricultura / Português: Agricultura / Français: Agriculture / Italiano: Agricoltura

Agriculture in the quality management context refers to the systematic approach to managing farming practices to ensure that agricultural products meet predefined standards of quality, safety, and sustainability. This encompasses the entire agricultural production process, from seed selection and planting to crop cultivation, harvesting, processing, and distribution. Quality management in agriculture aims to enhance productivity, ensure food safety, minimize environmental impact, and improve the overall efficiency and profitability of agricultural operations.

In the context of quality management,, "air" refers to the environment in which an organization operates, including the conditions and factors that can affect the quality of its products or services.

Deutsch: Ausrichtung / Español: Alineación / Português: Alinhamento / Français: Alignement / Italiano: Allineamento

Alignment in the quality management context refers to the process of ensuring that all elements of an organization’s operations, including its strategies, processes, resources, and goals, are consistently directed towards improving quality and achieving customer satisfaction. It involves harmonizing the organization's objectives with its quality management system (QMS) to ensure that quality is embedded in every aspect of the organization's activities and reflects the needs and expectations of customers.

Deutsch: Mehrdeutigkeit / Español: Ambigüedad / Português: Ambiguidade / Français: Ambiguïté / Italiano: Ambiguità

In the quality management context, ambiguity refers to situations or information that are unclear, uncertain, or open to more than one interpretation, which can lead to misunderstandings, errors, and inconsistencies in quality outcomes. Ambiguity can arise from poorly defined processes, unclear quality standards, or vague communication among team members or between departments. Managing ambiguity effectively is crucial for maintaining high-quality standards and ensuring that all stakeholders have a clear understanding of quality objectives and procedures.

ANSI administers and coordinates the U.S. voluntary standardization and conformity assessment system.