Which statement aligns with best practices for QA/QC in projects?

• A. QA/QC is optional after project start
• B. QA/QC activities are needed across all phases
• C. QA/QC is only needed for regulatory compliance
• D. QA/QC should be postponed until data analysis

Answer: (B)

Quality assurance and quality control are ongoing activities that guard the accuracy, reliability, and reproducibility of work across every stage of a project. Best practices require these checks from the planning phase through design, data collection, processing, analysis, and reporting. By embedding QA/QC throughout, issues are caught early—calibration is verified, methods are validated, data integrity is checked, and documentation is maintained. This prevents costly rework, supports traceability, and builds trust with stakeholders and regulators.

If QA/QC is treated as optional or something to do only later, problems can go unnoticed until later stages, making fixes expensive or even undermining results. Limiting QA/QC to regulatory compliance narrows its purpose to a minimum standard rather than aiming for overall quality. Delaying QA/QC until data analysis misses opportunities to correct design flaws, sampling issues, or data collection errors, which can skew results and interpretation.