The St. Claire Quality Operating System is a systematic, disciplined approach to managing the business and improving customer satisfaction. It accomplishes this by focusing on the following:

• Assembly and analysis of data
• Standardized management practices and standards
• Improvement tools and methodologies
• Communication

The quality operating system is based upon the elements required by the international and customer standards of ISO 9000 and QS-9000. The success of the quality operating system depends upon the interaction between the system principles of interface with the customer, management responsibility, personnel and material resources, and the quality system structure. The diagram in the figure, Quality System Overview, illustrates the way the system operates and its major components.

Implementation of this system is guided throughout the document development process by the User's Guides shown in the following illustration.