One of the things that manufacturers dread most is product recalls. They can be devastating to a company since it means they wasted resources in producing bad products. Additionally, a recall means the company has to pay for getting the products back.
If you want to avoid having to do this, you should focus on making high-quality products. Besides stopping recalls, you can also raise the bar on product quality so that customers will have a better opinion of your company. This can mean increased sales in the long run. Here are some things that you can do to start making better products.
Set Higher Quality Standards
When making products, one mistake that many manufacturers often do is to set their standards too low. For some companies, as long as the product sells, they are fine with it. This is not the sort of approach you want your company to make. If you want higher quality in your products, you should change your standards first. Decide on what you consider is an acceptable product for the market and make that your aim. Be reasonable about your requirements. Too high a standard and you will reject too many from your production line. Having standards higher than before should be enough, but you should progressively raise it so that you can see a general improvement in the product quality.
It is not just the final product that should have your focus. If your production line has multiple processes, then it is a good idea to raise the standards on each process. Improving processes can see better performance and improved results. If these processes create parts for your final product, they can also contribute to better product quality.
Upgrade Your Equipment
It can be surprising how many product issues are because of sub-standard equipment. If your operations are using state-of-the-art machinery, and you have a well-trained staff, then you would be assured that disturbances and issues would be minimal. But not all companies have new equipment. If your company has aging machines, then you should consider updating or upgrading them. The quality of the equipment can greatly affect how good your product is. For example, when your air compressor has a good air dryer, moisture particles become fewer in the compressed air. This means your product won’t have microscopic drops of water disrupting the results. Better equipment also means more efficient performance. If your production runs are slow, then some upgrades will see that problem solved.
Better Employee Training
In manufacturing, you should not ignore the human factor. Despite all the machines involved in the process, it is still human errors that can cause the most problems in terms of quality. Train your employees so that they can find and detect abnormalities in your products easily. Many companies think they can save by focusing their training on quality assurance personnel. It is better to have your entire staff trained with quality in mind.
There are different ways in which you can approach this. Many companies start quality training from the moment they hire a new worker. Experienced employees handle the training since they know the standards of the company. But besides teaching workers about quality standards, these training programs should also create a culture of excellence in the company. Employees who don’t think highly of their work will slip up more often than not. Teach your people that their performance affects the company at large and they are important. This will help them take their job seriously so that quality issues don’t pop up.
Use Data For Improvements
Making your product creates a lot of data. This includes everything from supplier delivery times to shipping delays. This information can be very useful in improving your operations. An interesting approach to product quality maintenance is to track abnormalities through this method. This can then allow you to identify where exactly these product defects come from. Collecting the data and analyzing it can be a big investment, but it can be worth it to see the improved results of the changes you made.
The data can also improve efficiency by identifying which areas are performing well. For example, if you have two manufacturing sites and one produces a better final product, you can identify what the site is doing right. Spreading the improved process to your other site will see your general product quality increase.
When customers buy products, they want to get the best deal possible. Providing them with high-quality products will make them happy and improve your brand’s reputation. This is worth the investment in the changes you have to make in your manufacturing process.
