Which practice involves inspecting materials during manufacturing to confirm they meet specifications?

• A. Quality Control
• B. Quality Assurance
• C. Process Improvement
• D. Inventory Management

Answer: (A)

Quality control is about verifying materials and products meet specific standards by inspecting and testing them during production. This hands-on checking catches defects while the process is running, so issues can be corrected or materials rejected before final goods are produced. Quality assurance, on the other hand, focuses on the overall system—designing processes, standards, and audits to prevent defects from occurring in the first place. Process improvement looks at how the production steps themselves can be made more capable and efficient to reduce defects, but isn’t defined by in-process inspection alone. Inventory management deals with stock levels, flow, and storage, not with verifying that materials meet specifications. So the practice described is quality control.