IQAI has been offering ASQ services and promoting ASQ certification exams in Japan since 1990, through Akio Miura’s articles in such magazines as “Standardization and Quality Control” published by Japan Standards Association (JSA) and IQAI’s own Newsletter “Management News”.

In 1996, IQAI was authorized to volunteer to proctor the ASQ exams in Japan and recognized as one of the International Organizations of the ASQ in its exam brochures.

After 2000, IQAI started to recommend the e-learning courses (“ASQ Foundation” for Quality Engineer, Quality Manager, etc. since they were published), and other ASQ books as well as the ASQ certification exams to many international people in various countries, including non-members, by e-mails, through IQAI’s URL, internet discussion boards such as the ASQ Discussion Board and jeannejohnlist (ISO Listserve), where Akio Miura, Chairman of IQAI, is one of the main responders, and international conferences of IATCA (International Auditors and Training Courses Accreditation Organization, key members of which were RAB from USA, QSA and JAS-ANZ from Australia, IQA from UK and other accreditation bodies of various countries).

Forums and Divisions of ASQ

ASQ has Forums and Divisions that cover several industries and topics. Currently, there are 25 groups of common interests, and they include quality professionals in each field. Each group provides networking opportunities for members to share the knowledge and needs and establish a bond of common experience and challenges around a specific area of interest.

You can visit their websites for more detailed information by clicking
http://www.asq.org/forums-divisions/index.html

Activities and events of each group are to be mailed from each Division and Forum directly to each individual member.

World Conference on Quality and Improvement

ASQ is holding a three-day annual event “World Conference on Quality and Improvement” in May every year. There are 2 or 3 days Pre-conference Tutorials and Post-Conference Tutorials, Meetings of each Division and Forum, Key Note Addresses of Special Speakers, Concurrent Sessions by member speakers on various topics, Workshops, and Networking Meetings of each interest group. Registration can be made by the application form inserted in “Quality Progress” or online through ASQ’s website (www.asq.org)

ASQ Certification Exams in Japan

IQAI has been promoting the ASQ certification exams in various countries outside the US, and has started to conduct them in Japan in December 1996. Since 1996, IQAI has been nominated by ASQ as one of its “International Organizations” for the exam (currently, ASQ International Certification Examination Contacts), as listed in its exam brochures.

In Japan, IQAI is introducing and promoting the ASQ exams as well as its other activities through the guidance articles in its semiannual Newsletter “Management News” since April 1997. Until 1999, IQAI Officers published articles introducing the ASQ certification exams in a well-selling magazine “ISOS” a couple of times. Also IQAI used to put an advertisement in the leading newspaper 4 ? 5 times a year until 2000. After 2001, IQAI started to do it by means of its website after being approved by the Officers of the Quality Audit Division and Certification Manager of ASQ Headquarters.

The exams in Japan (ASQ Section 2536) are the genuine and original ones in English language, the same as those in the USA on the same date, and being proctored by the ASQ certified IQAI Members, mostly in Tokyo, four times a year.

CQA/CQE/CSQE/CPGP Exams – – – First Saturday of June and December, every year
CMQOE/CRE/CSSBB/CBA/CHA Exams – – – First Saturday of March and Third Saturday of October

The exam site is mostly in Meguro area in Tokyo. The exam proctor will notify each examinee of the site location with other guidance each time.

You can see the list of ASQ Certified people in Japan. Most of them are the members of IQAI.

For the brief description of each certification, please visit:
http://www.asq.org/certification/right-for-you.html
and for the dates of each exam: http://www.asq.org/certification/dates.html

You can apply for any certification online from there. If you want to take the exam in Tokyo, Japan, you just enter the name of city and country with Section No. 2536 at the column for the exam site in the application form, and submit the form direct to ASQ.

Besides the promotion of ASQ certification exams in Japan, Akio Miura, Chairman of IQAI has promoted the exams in many countries since 1997, when he was nominated to be the International Regional Councilor of the Quality Audit Division (Audit Division now) of ASQ. Mostly through the email communication with international members of the Audit Division, the FD&C Division, the Quality Management Division, etc. of ASQ, he recommended the exams to many friends in Europe, Africa, Australia and Asia.

Moreover, Akio Miura has been attending the plenary meetings of International Auditor and Training Course Accreditation (IATCA), consisting of registrar accreditation bodies in its member countries, as an Associate Member voluntarily representing the Quality Audit Division of ASQ. At the meeting of IATCA held in Durban, South Africa in the summer of 1998, Akio introduced the CQA exam to the delegates from many member countries by distributing the ASQ exam brochures, in the presence of George Lofgren, the then President of RAB and Chairman of IATCA.

Activities of the Audit Division in Japan

IQAI has been acting as the international representative of the Audit Division of ASQ since 1995. At the time of its annual meeting (in June or July every year) and extraordinary meeting (called as necessary), IQAI is holding the Japan Section Meeting of the Audit Division. The agenda covers also the activities and events of ASQ and a number of its Divisions, as well as the results and schedule of ASQ certification exams at Tokyo.

For promotion of the activities of the Audit Division and ASQ outside Japan, IQAI members are communicating with the international members of ASQ by means of email.

Standard Committee of the Audit Division

Akio Miura (Chair of IQAI) and Mitsuko Nishihara (Deputy Chair of IQAI) are volunteering for the Standard Committee of the Audit Division as the International Regional Councilors of that Division. They have submitted comments on the revision of ISO 9001 Standard at its stages of CD (Committee Draft) and DIS (Draft International Standard) of ISO 9001: 2000 to ISO through the Standard Committee of the Audit Division. About 70% of IQAI’s proposal for correction was adopted by ISO.

In the period from 1996 through 2000, when IQAI was the Associate Member of International Auditor Training and Certification Association (I ATCA), IQAI submitted numbers of proposals and suggestions for the qualification and its criteria for improvement of international auditor qualification program at the International Meetings and by emails, and many of them were adopted by the Executive Committee consisting of RAB, IQA, IRCA and QSA.

Since Akio Miura, Chairman of IQAI, was nominated as one of the responders to the questions of the ASQ Discussion Forum in January 2005, he has been replying to various questions about quality assurance, management, and production control. He replied to about 300 questions per year in average, and attracted interest from all over the world. ASQ members can make access to all parts of the Discussion Forum any time. Non-members can look at the part “Public” at:
http://www.asq.org/discussionBoards/category.jspa?categoryID=5.