Quality Control (QC) in manufacturing is a core concept and the cornerstone of ensuring that products meet requirements and reach expected standards. These quality control methods include a series of activities aimed at regulating and improving production processes.
In this article, we will detail various quality control procedures, the key components of quality control systems, and the main advantages of such systems.
First, let's discuss an important question: What exactly is quality control in the manufacturing process? Generally, the meaning of quality control refers to a series of organized methods and procedures implemented to ensure that the products meet the stipulated quality requirements.
Quality control procedures involve testing and verification of the production process at multiple stages to find defects or imperfections in the products and correct their underlying causes when defects repeatedly occur. At the same time, quality control management has various methods, each specifically targeting different aspects of manufacturing. Some methods improve production processes through process monitoring, some use statistical methods to identify and eliminate defects, while others focus on management and human aspects of production.
ISO 9001 - Quality Management Systems is one of the most well-known ISO standards, highlighting the importance of quality control in manufacturing.
Feasible quality control methods in metal and plastic manufacturing consist of various elements that work together to produce consistently high-quality products.
To ensure that products meet quality standards, careful inspection at multiple stages of the production process is crucial. Inspections help to detect defects that occur during production. This helps engineers identify faulty processes and bottlenecks and prevent substandard products from entering subsequent production processes.
Testing is not merely a visual inspection. Instead, it includes various methods aimed at checking product performance. These methods include mechanical testing, chemical analysis, fault analysis, or other specific product examinations, providing engineers with important information about whether the product can perform under specified working conditions.
A robust quality control system has clear guidelines for maintaining documents like inspection records, quality standards, calibration certificates, and organizational hierarchies. SOPs related to these documents not only include the documents themselves but also the personnel responsible for them and the schedule for updating them.
Proper documentation helps facilitate and ease the flow of information in the production environment. It also encourages accountability and serves as formal proof of completed work during audits and compliance meetings.
After establishing product standards and process guidelines, it is necessary to monitor their execution. As a metal and plastic component manufacturers, JWB in advanced manufacturing environments, continuous monitoring checks are needed to capture process deviations in real time, thereby reducing the occurrence of problems.
Some common monitoring methods include regular manual checks, periodic inventory counts, component quality inspections, and defect capture technologies based on computer vision.
When non-conformances occur in the production process, a well-defined corrective action plan is a key guide for employees to handle and resolve the issues. Corrective action plans specify the exact steps to correct the issues, prevent recurrence, and comprehensively improve quality.
Continuous improvement is less a core process and more a management philosophy. It involves ongoing efforts to improve product quality, reduce waste, and increase productivity.
Various strategies like Lean Manufacturing, Continuous Improvement, and Six Sigma are widely applied in manufacturing enterprises to foster an environment of continuous quality enhancement.
To ensure smooth production processes, manufacturing employs various quality control methods. In the following sections, we will discuss some of the most commonly used quality control measures.
The 100% inspection method involves checking every item in the production batch. This technique is usually applicable in industries with high safety requirements, like aerospace, where there is minimal tolerance for errors. Additionally, it also suits small-scale custom production projects where each product requires individual quality checks.
Because this method is very thorough and requires time and resources to execute, it is not practical for large-scale production processes.
Lean manufacturing is a customer-centric production strategy that emphasizes minimizing waste and pursuing continuous process improvement. It is a unique quality control process because it focuses on waste rather than added value.
Lean experts map out the entire value chain of the production process and then focus on improving inefficient production processes. Today, Lean Manufacturing is widely adopted as a quality control management strategy across various industries, including aerospace, automotive, medical, and construction.
Six Sigma is a data-driven approach aimed at limiting defects and process variations to a certain level. Specifically, the goal of Six Sigma is to have only 3.4 defects per million opportunities.
It requires thorough analysis of the production process to identify opportunities where defects can occur. Since this quality measure applies to the entire process, the quality team will automatically focus on areas with the most defects.
Total Quality Management is a holistic quality control method dedicated to long-term quality improvement. It emphasizes continuous improvement through management principles, involving everyone from senior management to production floor employees. This organization-wide implementation approach allows everyone to participate in quality control measures, thus maximizing efficiency and boosting employee morale.