Quality Management is
a rigorous methodology employed by a manufacturing company to ensure that the
quality of its products is consistent.
Two essential components of quality
management are Quality Assurance (QA)
and Quality Control (QC), which
are often used interchangeably, even though there are distinct differences
between the two.
The
Relationship Between Quality Assurance and Quality Control
According to the American
Society for Quality (ASQ), “Quality assurance consists
of that ‘part of quality management focused
on providing confidence that quality requirements will
be fulfilled.’ The confidence provided by quality assurance is
twofold—internally to management and externally to customers, government
agencies, regulators, certifiers and third parties.
Quality
control is that ‘part of quality management focused
on fulfilling quality requirements.’ While quality assurance
relates to how a process is performed or how a product is made, quality control
is more the inspection aspect of quality management.”
Quality assurance best practices focus on the prevention of
mistakes and/or defects during the manufacturing process. Adherence to its
principles helps to streamline production and ensure that the company’s
exacting standards are met throughout the design, development, manufacturing
and delivery processes. Quality assurance also helps to safeguard the quality
of all raw materials, components, assemblies and finished products and to
prevent any issues arising as a result of defective third-party components.
Typically, those working on a manufacturer’s
QA team function as overseers of critical systems such as document control,
process control, calibration, training and corrective action and they are also
tasked with conducting audits, as necessary, to ensure compliance with ISO 9000 or
TS16949 standards.
The ASQ, in collaboration with the American
Productivity and Quality Center (APQC), recently published the 2016 Global State of Quality 2 Research
reports. The report’s findings are based on nearly 1,700 survey
respondents from organizations around the world and addresses topics that are
germane to quality and continuous improvement programs, including the influence
of the customer, trends in industry standards, training systems, governance
structures and more. One interesting fact from the report to mention here
– 60 percent of respondents don’t know or don’t measure the
financial impact quality has on their organization.
Quality Assurance Best Practices
Best practices in a company’s QA program all contribute to a
host of benefits, including reduced costs, dramatically increased efficiencies
and, ultimately, greatly enhanced customer satisfaction.
5 key best practices to consider:
1: Integration of a Robust ERP with QA Capabilities
Delivers the Highest Quality
While many manufacturers have yet to adopt a
fully automated system to ensure the quality of their product, gradually, more
and more are transitioning into enterprise resource planning (ERP) with
robust QA functionality to achieve these objectives.
These solutions provide
the tools needed to effectively manage quality assurance objectives at every
point in the supply chain – from initial evaluation to finished product to
distribution.
ERP systems also enable QA teams to monitor all of the systems
and sub-systems in the production cycle for errors or defects so that the
finished products are consistently of the highest quality, as well as safe and
effective.
2: Quality Assurance Yields Higher Customer Satisfaction
Quality assurance and customer satisfaction are inextricably
interconnected. That’s why manufacturers who rely on ERP solutions during the
production process are much more likely to deliver higher-quality products that
will attract more loyal customers for the long term.
An ERP system with robust
QA capabilities is able to gather critical, real-time intelligence from within
and without – from the manufacturing plant, distribution centers, human
resources, etc., as well as from every link in the supply chain.
Armed with all
of this intelligence, manufacturers are not only able to produce higher-quality
products; they can deliver higher levels of customer service.
3: Improved Workflows Mean Reduced Expenses and Better
Decision-making
Another by-product of an ERP system with integrated QA
functionality is the ability to generate accurate forecasts that can anticipate
future events in the supply chain and help to make workflows more efficient.
Worthy ERP solutions provide a broad range of business analytics that can shed
light on the effectiveness of assorted workflows, including production
planning, inventory and distribution.
Studies indicate that use of ERP systems
helps businesses make more informed decisions and significantly reduces costs.
One such research study by the Aberdeen Group reveals that access to accurate,
real-time information about daily operations helps businesses make faster,
smarter decisions, enabling them to reduce operational costs by 23% and
administration costs by 22%.
4: Quality Products Breed Loyal Customers
This is an extension of QA Best Practices #2, but it bears
restating – If a manufacturer takes all the steps necessary to produce a
first-rate product and deliver to its customers on time, the odds are very good
that not only will they be repeat customers, but they will recommend their
products to others. In other words, the benefits (and the profits) will
continue to accrue over time.
One additional way to earn customers’ trust is to
provide them with up-to-date quality assurance testing information (taken from
the ERP system) on products they purchase, which reinforces the perception that
the company is totally committed to quality and transparency.
5: Compliance
Compliance is a critical issue for all manufacturers and an ERP
solution with QA capabilities will instill confidence that all regulations and
standards are met across the board.
For starters, these systems will help
manufacturers comply with all health and safety guidelines in the workplace
(e.g., OSHA) and thus avoid hefty fines and other penalties that can result
from non-compliance.
To this end, the right ERP solution is able to collect all
applicable data from integrated systems to monitor workplace safety and to
prevent any potential workplace hazards. An ERP solution also facilitates
generation of weekly or monthly safety reports.
The system should also enable
manufacturers to design their own testing procedures of incoming materials to
make sure that they meet all the requirements, starting with the quality of raw
materials and spreading throughout the entire manufacturing process.
Credit: https://www.optiproerp.com
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