Operational qualification (OQ)

Documented verification that equipment or a system operates as intended throughout its anticipated operating ranges, including alarms, interlocks and control functions. In the V-model it corresponds to the functional specification. OQ follows installation qualification and comes before performance qualification; keeping that order means a later failure can be traced to installation, operation or performance. PIC/S Annex 15 expects OQ to include tests at upper and lower operating limits or worst-case conditions. Japanese documents use the abbreviation OQ as often as the Japanese name.