The Impact of American Petroleum Institute Certifications in Quality Management Systems: Analysis of API Spec Q1 and Q2 Certified Organizations

Abstract

The present study aims to provide initial insight into the quality management system. More precisely, it describes whether and to what extent implementation of Quality Management System according to API Spec Q1 and/or Q2 can impact various companies in the oil and gas industry. A sample of international organizations is surveyed to understand how certifications affect organizational culture, passing through elements such as competitiveness, reputation, organizational performance, costs, and others. In addition to the certification itself, a rigorous and challenging process of implementation, review, restructuring is carried out, involving fundamental elements of the organization. During this stage, technical support becomes essential for a productive consolidation of the required requirements, and later, the improvement scenario is indispensable to maintain all the success factors in order to consolidate a quality management system within the organization. Thus, based on the findings, companies in the oil and gas segment may identify and reflect on the certification benefits to improve their approach to quality management systems, given the observations of managers and operational interviewees.