DO YOU WANT TO REDUCE PRODUCTION WASTE?

DO YOU WANT TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF REWORK?

DO YOU WANT TO IMPROVE PRODUCT RECALL RESPONSIVENESS?

Many manufacturers are looking to proactive, real-time Quality Management processes and software applications to facilitate continuous improvement across these areas and carve out a sustainable competitive advantage.

Integrating the processes and tools for quality management with day-to-day operations can yield exceptional results:

• You can incorporate workflows into manual tasks and activities

• Receive real-time notifications of non-conformance events

• Deliver critical quality information to the right person, at the right time, regardless of where they are for proactive response

• Improve quality without disrupting operations

Quality by Design

Manufacturers need to move the focus to Quality-by-Design, rather than continue with the policing actions associated after design (Quality by QC)!

MES-focused Quality Management software facilitates the automation, standardisation, and centralisation of quality process data and content on the shop floor.

MES-focused Quality Management software takes advantage of real-time data collection capabilities of MOM software along the detailed steps of production operations in order to validate the accuracy of data at the point of collection, which is critical for error checking, improving quality sampling and inspection plans, enabling real-time alerts, and ensuring correct specifications. The right enabling technology can bring quality management and operations together seamlessly.

PRODUCT RECALLS

Quality issues such as product recalls can be time consuming and costly, not forgetting the damaging effects on brand reputation; affected products must be identified quickly and accurately. Eliminating common quality problems and reducing defect products will encourage a healthier bottom line. An Electronic Quality Management System (EQMS) provides real-time visibility and the historical data required to meet regulatory compliance and customer audits; it can also be used to capture and manage critical quality-related events, engaging personnel in quality initiatives.

HAZARD ANALYSIS AND CRITICAL CONTROL POINTS

HACCP is a recognised approach for the evaluation and prevention of hazards primarily applied within the Food & Bevarage, Pharmaceutical and Biochemical industries. This preventative tool used within a Quality Management System improves product safety management, ensures regulatory compliance and also enhances existing automated HACCP systems. Benefits include; the introduction of automated work flows, notifications, tracking, and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) all of which can streamline the supply chain to increase product quality and safety.

YIELD

Having an indication of First Pass Yield (FPY) also known as Throughput Yield (TPY) metric shows how good the overall process is at producing good/correct output the first time, without having to rework items to customer requirements. It’s an important metric for measuring quality and production performance. The number of good units produced is divided by the number of total units going through the process. First Time Yield (FTY) considers only what went into the process and what went out, so is a good measure of process effectiveness, accounting for the cost of rework. FPY is also a good measure of Continuous Improvement success, as waste and efficiency levels are analysed. It’s useful to benchmark yield performance metrics against similar manufacturing companies. Higher yields can be achieved through having the visibility and knowledge of the root causes of quality issues, so that they can be resolved quickly. Quality Management systems can be used as a tool for providing the visibility to achieve higher yields, whilst maintaining the control of waste and production processes.

HIGH LEVELS OF SCRAP, REWORK & GIVE AWAY

One way to cut production costs and to improve overall efficiency is to reduce the amount of scrap and rework produced. High scrap levels can lead to high material costs and lost production time making parts which aren’t saleable. Rework requires more production time to make the product saleable. Replacing paper-based methods with electronic systems can help you to identify root causes for scrap and rework, enabling you to better manage scrap levels and set goals for improvement.

STATISTICAL PROCESS CONTROL (SPC) & PROCESS VARIABILITY

Process variability in manufacturing is inevitable, and many factors can contribute to this. It is important to validate these processes, and you can reduce process variability using root cause analytics. Statistical Process Control (SPC) is a method of quality control using statistical methods to observe the performance of production processes in order to detect significant variations. Monitoring and controlling a process ensures that it is operated to its full potential, reducing waste and cost of production.

MIX UP PREVENTION

Preventing product ingredient mix ups is vital to avoiding cross contamination, costly product recalls and for maintaining product safety and quality. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), barcode technology and vision systems can be used as a tool alongside an EQMS to adopt mix up prevention techniques. Having a platform to monitor and manage quality issues, such as mix up prevention, can help standardise local and global quality processes in order to improve the way that quality is managed and controlled. Visibility of real-time quality information enables Quality Managers to monitor events such as material mix ups or non-conformance, therefore they can identify effective resolutions to reduce future events from occurring.