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Quality Control in Manufacturing
Edward Deming was an American management consultant who was considered one of the foremost experts in the field of process management and control. His work has been credited for turning around the Japanese economy after World War II, and his sampling techniques are still in use by the Census and Bureau of Labor Statistics today. He’s often referred to as the Father of Quality Management. Deming believed that if you improve quality control, it would lead to efficient operations and increased profit margins. When quality controls are implemented, the results are tangible:
Costs decrease.
Waste and scrap decrease.
Production levels increase.
Product quality is more consistent.
With improved quality, inspections can be reduced.
Equipment and processes can be used more efficiently.
Deming’s Plan to Improve Quality Control
Deming laid out a fourteen-point plan for improving quality control in manufacturing. It’s as applicable today as it was when he created it.
A System for Continuous Quality Improvement
Implementing Deming’s plan starts with the right quality management system (QMS) software. An integrated QMS, such as Bluestreak, ties quality control and quality assurance directly to individual work centers and processing steps on the production floor. It brings together every piece of data into one central hub and eliminates information silos.
How Bluestreak Improves Quality on the Production Floor
Bluestreak has been designed specifically for the service-based manufacturing industry and encompasses an end-to-end manufacturing solution. Containing a manufacturing execution system (MES) and QMS, it provides unparalleled production floor control.
Bluestreak is extensible, meaning that any metal-treating company—from heat treaters to coaters—can easily customize the software to handle their unique workflows.
Managing the Production Pathway
Monitoring every stage of processing, from order to shipping, provides insight and transparency to the production pathway.
Acting as a central repository for all documents improves communication for everyone who touches an order. Change orders ripple through the system automatically, so operators are always working with the latest specifications. It also creates a complete audit trail to track changes and reduce concerns about compliance.
Bluestreak | Advanced Specifications Manager™ streamlines the management of product and industry specifications, such as AIAG, API, AMS, AS, ASME, ASTM, ISO, MedAccred, NADCA, Nadcap, SAE, TS, internal, and Prime. This allows manufacturers to create repeatable processes that conform to specification requirements every single time, leading to less waste, less rework, and less scrap. Specs are automatically cross-referencing everything that can be impacted, including processes, equipment, staff, and vendors.
Statistical Process Control (SPC) can be customized to any product and provide real-time feedback on conformance. When test results are added, the SPC module will notify you of any variance or issues in order to help you spot trends before they become bigger problems, such as an entire run that is out of tolerance. Upper and lower control limits are automatically calculated and can be adjusted.
All of this helps you better control the management of non-conforming parts and scrap. When non-conformance issues are present, Bluestreak will automatically prevent parts from moving to the next stage of processing. When you take corrective and preventive actions (CAPAs), they will be connected to future orders. Quality managers will know that CAPAs have been viewed and acknowledged within the software via the electronic signatures of operators on the production floor.
Conclusion
The cost of poor quality in a thriving company is about 10-15% of operations. Effective quality improvement programs can reduce this substantially, thus making a direct contribution to profits.
Bluestreak provides a total end-to-end extensible quality control solution that would make Edward Deming proud. It has the information that everyone needs, from the front office to the production floor, and manages every step for maximum quality assurance.
Contact Bluestreak today, and improve quality control in your manufacturing facility. Bluestreak’s MES + QMS solution helps service-based manufacturers drive quality straight down to the production floor to minimize scrap and rework and therefore, protect their profit margins.
If you’re ready to leave manual, time-consuming service-based manufacturing tasks in the past, drastically reduce your scrap and rework percentage, gain visibility of your production floor processes, and build better relationships with your customers, contact us for a free consultation today!
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