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Training Courses on Quality Assurance and Quality Control Activities

The Quality Staff develops a variety of traditional training courses on quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) activities and the EPA quality system. For each course, there is a facilitator guide with slides and speaker notes, suggested activities, and supplementary materials for student handouts. Instructors should have an applied knowledge in quality system management, as well as quality assurance and quality control activities. Since these courses are generic in nature, instructors should supplement these courses with program-specific activities or material to give context, emphasis, and relevance to your training event.

Course files have been zipped into a self-extracting file. For directions on unzipping these files, the types of files for each course, and links to free viewers, see Information About Downloadable Files.

ASSESSING QUALITY SYSTEMS

This one-day course is designed to prepare those who will either assess or be assessed as part of an EPA or EPA-supporting quality system. The focus of the course is to improve quality systems and conserve resources through careful planning. Knowledge of the principles and documentation of the quality system is a prerequisite for the course.

Download the "Assessing Quality Systems " Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, qsa-fl.exe (EXE 265K), will place 1 Freelance and 1 WordPerfect files into the directory "c:\qs-train\qsas\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, qsa-ppt.exe (EXE 270K), will place 1 Powerpoint and 1 Word files into the directory "c:\qs-train\qsas\powerpt".

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DETECTING IMPROPER LABORATORY PRACTICES

This one and a half day course presents tools and techniques for identifying improper practices in environmental laboratories during routine technical assessments. The course identifies "red flags" in each step of the assessment process which can indicate improper practices in the laboratory.

Download the "Detecting Improper Laboratory Practices" Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, lab-fl.exe (EXE 2.8MB), will place 8 WordPerfect, 1 Acrobat PDF, and 2 Freelance files into the directory "c:\qs-train\labpract\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, lab-ppt.exe (EXE 2.9MB), will place 8 Word, 1 Acrobat PDF, and 2 Powerpoint files into the directory "c:\qs-train\labpract\powerpt".

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INTERPRETING MONITORING DATA

This half day course teaches partipants how to deal with monitoring data using statistics. At the end of the course the participants will understand the need to incorporate systematic planning into monitoring activities, realize the importance of representativeness, be able to graphically view the data, and gain an insight into the complexities of statistical analyses of monitoring data.

Download the "Interpreting Monitoring Data" Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, monitor-fl.exe (EXE 324K), will place 1 Freelance file into the directory "c:\qs-train\monitoring\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, monitor-ppt.exe (EXE 581K), will place 1 Powerpoint file into the directory "c:\qs-train\monitoring\powerpt".

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INTERPRETING MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS

This half day course covers multivariate analysis technques to explore relationships among several variables in an effort to understanding an environmental problem. A prerequisite of the course is a general understanding of data collection and elementary statistical analysis.

Download the "Interpreting Multivariate Analysis " Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, multi-fl.exe (EXE 308K), will place 1 Freelance file into the directory "c:\qs-train\multivariate\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, multi-ppt.exe (EXE 816K), will place 1 Powerpoint file into the directory "c:\qs-train\multivariate\powerpt".

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INTRODUCTION TO DATA QUALITY ASSESSMENT

This one-day course demonstrates how to perform a data quality assessment (DQA) to evaluate data and provides detailed information on graphical and statistical tools. This course will familiarize participants with the process for performing a data quality assessments. It does not involve detailed instructions on the statistics involved in the process. The course is intended for managers or analysts that either use (analyze) data themselves or review the use of data by others.

Download the "Introduction to Data Quality Assessment" Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, dqa-fl.exe (EXE 262K), will place 1 Freelance and 2 WordPerfect files into the directory "c:\qs-train\dqaintro\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, dqa-ppt.exe (EXE 668K), will place 1 Powerpoint and 2 Word files into the directory "c:\qs-train\dqaintro\powerpt".

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INTRODUCTION TO DATA QUALITY INDICATORS

This one-day course discusses the principal data quality indicators (DQIs): precision, bias (accuracy), representativeness, comparability, completeness, and sensitivity. It also includes information on verification, validation, and integrity which, although not classified as indicators, directly influence data quality. This course may also be taught in a half-day by following the instructions in the speakers guide.

Download the "Introduction to Data Quality Indicators" Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, dqi-fl.exe (EXE 834K), will place 1 Freelance file and 1 WordPerfect file into the directory "c:\qs-train\dqi-intro\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, dqi-ppt.exe (EXE 994K), will place 1 Powerpoint file and 1 Word file into the directory "c:\qs-train\dqi-intro\powerpt".

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INTRODUCTION TO DATA QUALITY OBJECTIVES
(Updated November 15, 2000)

This one-day course teaches participants the basic elements of the Data Quality Objectives (DQO) Process. In the first part of the course, the participants learn about the Agency's Quality System and the elements of the DQO Process, how the process applies to a regulatory program at EPA, and how to interpret the consequences of potential decision errors. In the latter half of the course, participants are divided into groups and work together as teams to apply the process to some real-life examples.

Download the "Introduction to Data Quality Objectives" Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, dqo-fl.exe (EXE 135K), will place 1 Freelance file and 1 WordPerfect file into the directory "c:\qs-train\dqointro\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, dqo-ppt.exe (EXE 335K), will place 1 Powerpoint file and 1 Word file into the directory "c:\qs-train\dqointro\powerpt".

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INTRODUCTION TO QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT PLANS
(Updated February 14, 2004)

This one-day course is designed with a "how-to" approach for individuals who write, review, and/or approve QA Project Plans. It provides an overview of QA Project Plan development which stresses the need for systematic planning and EPA's graded approach to project plan development, and describes in detail, the twenty-four elements of the QA Project Plan. Participants are expected to have some basic experience in quality assurance.

Download the "Introduction to Quality Assurance Project Plans" Course (About Downloadable File)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, qapp-fl.exe (EXE 293K), will place 2 Freelance and 3 WordPerfect files into the directory "c:\qs-train\qappintro\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, qapp-ppt.exe (EXE 288K), will place 2 Powerpoint and 3 Word files into the directory "c:\qs-train\qappintro\powerpt".

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INTRODUCTION TO QUALITY MANAGEMENT PLANS AND BRIEFING MATERIALS

This half-day course is intended to introduce the EPA policies and specifications of Quality Management Plans. This course presents information to be used in writing a Quality Management Plan that satisfies EPA CIO 2105.0 and EPA Requirements for Quality Management Plans (QA/R-2). Participants receive instruction in how to address each element of the specifications. Participants are taught how to describe their organization's approach to each element and to identify the documentation required to develop a Quality Management Plan. A 1-hour briefing that contains presentation materials and a factsheet is also available. This briefing can be used to educate managers on EPA's policies for Quality Management Plans.

Download the "Introduction to Quality Management Plans" Course and Briefing Package (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, qmp-fl.exe (EXE 201K), will place 1 Freelance file and 1 WordPerfect file into the directory "c:\qs-train\qmpintro\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, qmp-ppt.exe (EXE 1.0MB), will place 1 Powerpoint file and 1 Word file into the directory "c:\qs-train\qmpintro\powerpt".

Quality Management Plan Briefing
The self-extracting file, qmpbrief.exe (EXE 270K), will place 1 Powerpoint file, 1 Freelance file, and 1 Acrobat PDF file into the directory "c:\qs-train\qmpbrief".

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INTRODUCTION TO EPA QUALITY SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
(Updated November 22, 2000)

This one-day course is intended to introduce the concepts of quality management. The course contains an overview of the Agency's Quality System, an overview of basic QA concepts, and a description of the application of these concepts to environmental programs involving the collection or use of environmental data. Topics covered include terms and nomenclature, roles and responsibilities, and principal QA activities.

Download the "Introduction to EPA Quality System Requirements" Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, qsys-fl.exe (EXE 115K), will place 1 Freelance and 2 WordPerfect files into the directory "c:\qs-train\qs-intro\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, qsys-ppt.exe (EXE 180K), will place 1 Powerpoint and 2 Word files into the directory "c:\qs-train\qs-intro\powerpt".

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OVERVIEW OF THE EPA QUALITY SYSTEM
(Updated March 14, 2001)

This is an abbreviated version of the Introduction to the EPA Quality System Requirements course that focuses on the policies and specifications of the EPA Quality System. This course describes the EPA Quality System and the specific elements that managers and project personnel must address to comply with EPA policy.

 

Download the "Overview of the EPA Quality System" Course (About Downloadable Files)
Freelance/WordPerfect Version The self-extracting file, ovrvw-fl.exe (EXE 83K), will place 1 Freelance and 2 WordPerfect files into the directory "c:\qs-train\overview\freelnc".
Powerpoint/Word Version The self-extracting file, ovrvw-ppt.exe (EXE 115K), will place 1 Powerpoint and 2 Word files into the directory "c:\qs-train\overview\powerpt".

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