
Manufacturing and Quality
MANUFACTURING AND QUALITY
Defense programs identify and mitigate industrial manufacturing risks to support the DoD mission to transition technology from defense laboratories to the Warfighter. The Deputy Director for Engineering establishes guidance and procedures to promote manufacturing and quality considerations during the earliest stages of basic research through development and production to eventual demilitarization and disposal.
Manufacturing involves the conversion of raw materials into products based upon a detailed design. This conversion requires the harnessing of all related materials, methods, workforce, machines, and measurements through a series of manufacturing and quality processes. It includes such major functions as manufacturing planning, cost estimating and scheduling, production and industrial engineering, fabrication and assembly, installation and checkout, demonstration and testing, and quality assurance.
Quality assurance is an essential element of the manufacturing process, not only to prevent mistakes and defects in the manufactured products from reaching our Warfighters but also to identify risk in achieving a program’s cost, schedule, and performance requirements. One of the major drivers in achieving requirements is addressing and minimizing the impact of poor quality on programs (e.g., poor design, supplier performance, process capability, quality escapes). Addressing manufacturing and quality issues earlier in the research and development process is essential to more quickly, effectively, and affordably transition technology to capability. Thus, manufacturing and quality provide a key element in the USD(R&E) mission to ensure technological superiority and accelerated capabilities to the Warfighter.
Strategic Direction
- Accelerate delivery of key technologies to the Warfighter by identifying manufacturing, quality, and industrial risks and contributing to risk mitigation recommendations.
- Provide manufacturing and quality engineering support to Independent Technical Risk Assessments (ITRAs) and defense acquisition programs.
- Provide support to the DoD workforce by defining and refreshing production, manufacturing, and quality competencies.
- Develop, publish, and sustain manufacturing and quality policy, guidance, and standards.
- Advance manufacturing and quality practices and competencies through representation and leadership in joint working groups and industry associations.
M&Q BoK
right-click to download full M&Q BoK - 13MB
DoD Manufacturing and Quality Body of Knowledge (M&Q BoK)
The Department of Defense (DoD) Manufacturing and Quality (M&Q) Body of Knowledge (BoK) is a compilation of best practices and lessons learned for completing M&Q activities across the DoD system acquisition life cycle.
The office of the Deputy Director for Engineering (DD, ENG) prepared the BoK and will update the work periodically to reflect current policy, guidance, tools, and best practices. This document does not supersede DoD policy, guidance, or law.
The BoK is provided here in six chapters addressing the phases of the Defense Acquisition Life Cycle. Each chapter includes an identical introduction and list of acronyms, references, and tools.

Please click the button below to send comments and questions on the M&Q BoK to the Engineering/Manufacturing Team
Early Manufacturing and Quality Engineering Guide
The Early Manufacturing and Quality Engineering Guide describes best practices and guidance for DoD system developers, project leaders, and manufacturing and quality (M&Q) engineers to consider during early defense system development—the period starting with initial system concept definition before the Materiel Development Decision and culminating with the system Preliminary Design Review.
During early development, a program’s status and leadership roles may be forming. The decisions regarding early activities, including M&Q, may fall to different persons depending on the stage of development. This guide is intended for the relevant decision makers and their associated M&Q practitioners, so they may consider ways to incorporate M&Q proactively during fundamental early system development activities such as requirements definition, mission engineering, and systems engineering. The guide encourages development project teams to integrate M&Q considerations for warfighter capabilities that can be produced feasibly and that will meet quality requirements.
The benefits of including M&Q in this early stage are many, including improvements in schedule, cost, and performance as the system proceeds through development.
Communities
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Defense Manufacturing Conference
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DoD Manufacturing Readiness Levels (MRL) Working Group
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DoD Service Leadership Group for Manufacturing and Quality
(DoD chartered, by invitation)
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Joint Additive Manufacturing Working Group
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Joint Defense Manufacturing Council
(DoD chartered, by invitation)
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Joint Defense Manufacturing Technology Panel
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Joint Industrial Base Working Group
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Manufacturing Institutes
Manufacturing Institutes (Manufacturing USA)
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National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) Manufacturing Division
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SAE G-23 Manufacturing Management Program Standard Committee
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Reliance 21 Materials and Manufacturing Processing Community of Interest
Engineering Tools
DAU Training
• PQM 101 Production, Quality, and Manufacturing Fundamentals
• CLE 004 Introduction to Lean Enterprise Concepts
• CLE 201 ISO 9000
• PQM 201A Intermediate Production, Quality, and Manufacturing, Part A
• PQM 201B Intermediate Production, Quality, and Manufacturing, Part B
• CLC 042 Predictive Analysis and Quality Assurance
• CLE 007 Lean Six Sigma for Manufacturing
• CLE 008 Six Sigma: Concepts and Processes
• CLE 015 Continuous Process Improvement Familiarization
• CLE 032 Sustainable Manufacturing for DoD – Part 1
• PQM 301 Advanced Production, Quality, and Manufacturing
CONTACT US
Send an email to Engineering/M&Q.

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense,
Research and Engineering (USD(R&E))
The Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301
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