Impact of implementing quality control systems in laboratories associated with teaching and research institutions − The case study of the laboratory for macromolecules and colloids in the petroleum industry

Abstract

The competitiveness between institutions and companies generates the need to cheapen products and services and facilitate their production. Thus, several companies establish partnerships with specialized university laboratories in order to promote the optimization of their processes. These laboratories, in order to guarantee their reliability, often resort to the application of technical standards and the obtaining of international certifications. This paper aims to discuss the relevance of international certifications by research laboratories by report a case study from a laboratory of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. The results of the implementation of the quality management system of Laboratory for Macromolecules and Colloids in the Petroleum Industry (LMCP) are presented, where excellent satisfaction results were obtained, as well as a very small number of failures, demonstrating that the system is effective, which generates more and more customers and carry out increasingly sophisticated research. As perspectives it is expected that the quality management system can increase the number of collaborations and high-quality service delivery between industry and the LMCP.