Quality Management

How are you currently handling customer complaint corrective actions?
We would like to use Vantage (& report builder) to handle this, but
could use any ideas you have.

Thanks.

George Brockman II
Gasket Engineering Co.


--- In vantage@y..., Judy Stauduhar <judys@t...> wrote:
> Hi,
> We are using the Quality Module. We are QS9000 certified and
changed over
> to use the Quality Module before our last audit. We got
compliments from our
> auditors. We switched all of our DMR's and corrective actions over
to
> Vantage before our last audit. Our quality manager was part of the
focus
> group, alpha and beta testing, so that helped. I haven't heard any
> complaints from accounting, but we do not overanalyze our job
costings
> either. We are still learning to think about the inventory impact
when
> choosing things in the quality module. (Such as if you make a DMR
from a
> job, it needs to go back to the job, not stock if you end up
accepting parts)
> The biggest thing I noticed was that the sort options are
terrible. Our
> quality manager wrote a whole list of ideas for improving the
module to
> Vantage. I have attached the list. I couldn't attach the file, so
I just
> copied the list. Hope this isn't too long (I know it is for the
digest
> users, as I am one). Please feel free to contact me if you would
like to
> talk about it more.
> Thanks,
> Judy Stauduhar
> Taber Bushnell
> judys@t...
> 763-847-0169
>
Hello, all:
I've been asked by upper management to inquire if any of you are using the
Quality Management Module in Vantage 4.0? If you are, do you have comments
about the workings, about what changes you may have had to make to your
process to accommodate the use of this module? We already know that every
scrap from the shop floor has to be dispositioned by "someone," through
inspection-any other complaints, suggestions, so on. Any accounting impact
that created a headache?

Contact me off-list if you don't think it is appropriate for the group.
Thanks in advance.

Lydia Coffman
Canyon Engineering Products, Inc.
661-294-0084
lcoffman@...
Lydia,

We are interested in the same feedback. Hopefully some company has
tried the quality module.

-----Original Message-----
From: Lydia Coffman [SMTP:lcoffman@...]
Sent: Tuesday, January 09, 2001 2:40 PM
To: vantage@egroups.com
Subject: [Vantage] Quality Management

Hello, all:
I've been asked by upper management to inquire if any of you are
using the
Quality Management Module in Vantage 4.0? If you are, do you
have comments
about the workings, about what changes you may have had to make
to your
process to accommodate the use of this module? We already know
that every
scrap from the shop floor has to be dispositioned by "someone,"
through
inspection-any other complaints, suggestions, so on. Any
accounting impact
that created a headache?

Contact me off-list if you don't think it is appropriate for the
group.
Thanks in advance.

Lydia Coffman
Canyon Engineering Products, Inc.
661-294-0084
lcoffman@...


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Hi,
We are using the Quality Module. We are QS9000 certified and changed over
to use the Quality Module before our last audit. We got compliments from our
auditors. We switched all of our DMR's and corrective actions over to
Vantage before our last audit. Our quality manager was part of the focus
group, alpha and beta testing, so that helped. I haven't heard any
complaints from accounting, but we do not overanalyze our job costings
either. We are still learning to think about the inventory impact when
choosing things in the quality module. (Such as if you make a DMR from a
job, it needs to go back to the job, not stock if you end up accepting parts)
The biggest thing I noticed was that the sort options are terrible. Our
quality manager wrote a whole list of ideas for improving the module to
Vantage. I have attached the list. I couldn't attach the file, so I just
copied the list. Hope this isn't too long (I know it is for the digest
users, as I am one). Please feel free to contact me if you would like to
talk about it more.
Thanks,
Judy Stauduhar
Taber Bushnell
judys@...
763-847-0169

List of improvements for Quality Module
1. In the DMR Processing window, I would like to be able to see all of the
nonconformances associated with a single DMR. In processing scrap, I have
been assigning all parts scrapped in a job due to line start/stops,
destructive testing, etc. to a single DMR. Since a job may run for several
days, it may have several nonconformance entries associated with it, but I
only create one DMR. The ability to see multiple nonconformances also needs
to be carried through to the corrective actions. (See below)

2. In the Corrective Actions, there needs to be a way to assign more than one
nonconformance to the corrective action. 1) There may be reoccurring
nonconformances between the time a corrective action is initiated and then
implemented. Vantage needs to allow these nonconformance to also be tied to
the corrective action. 2) A trend analysis or pareto analysis of
nonconformances may show a need for corrective action. In this case it is
usually the result of multiple nonconformances that a corrective action is
created. All of these nonconformances need to be tied to the corrective
action.

3. There needs to be a way to create corrective actions from the RMA
processing in the same fashion as the DMR's corrective action button. RMAs
represent a customer complaint. Customer complaints almost always require a
corrective action. In an ISO or QS compliant company, it is mandatory to
show this link quickly and efficiently.

4. Need to add user fields and Vbforms throughout the Quality Module. There
are fields available in the Quality Module tables, but no way to add
information or to customize for our needs. This includes corrective actions,
DMRs, nonconformances, RMA's.

5. Allow a text file to be assigned as a template for memo or comment fields.
Take the contents of the text file and automatically copy and insert it into
the memo or comments fields when a new record is created. This would add
flexibility to Vantage for further user customization. For example, in the
corrective action module, a text file assigned to the comments text field
could guide users to enter the information desired by the Quality Manager
such as mistake proof method used, corrective action team members, documents
changed, similar processes evaluated. Another example, in RMA processing a
text file assigned to the comments field could ask for input of internal
inventory checked, preliminary solutions reached, etc.

6. Recommend cleaning up the nonconformance window opened from the
"Nonconformance" button in the Corrective Action when the nonconformance type
is "Other". The screen is very messy and it appears that fields overlap.

7. Nonconformance Cycle time could be improved if there was a button, fast
path, or blow-through to inspection processing when the nonconformance is
created by an inspector. In addition, it would be helpful to allow the
inspector to correct nonconformance typos for quantities, part numbers, and
other information at top of inspection processing windows.

8. Allow the nonconformance text and the failed inspection comments to be
passed to the DMR. These are typically entered by different personal and
could help in the resolution of a corrective action.

9. Improve cycle time by adding the ability to filter the DMR list by DMR#,
part number, description, etc. similar to the Nonconformance list.

10. Add view refresh to the DMR processing list. When I am processing scrap
I often have the Inspection Processing window and the DMR window open at the
same time. Once I am done assigning all scrap nonconformances to a DMR, I
move to the DMR window to immediately process the scrap DMR. Currently I
have to close the DMR window or switch between the open and closed DMRs to
get the new DMR to show.

11. Add more global alerts for the Quality Module for the creation of a new
Corrective Action, RMA, 1st Article, DMR, etc. to alert individuals that
quality actions need to be taken.

12. Add user/date stamps to the DMR module.

13. Improve PO receipts inspections to show the PO requirements and comments.


Date: Tue, 9 Jan 2001 11:40:11 -0800
From: Lydia Coffman <lcoffman@...>
Subject: Quality Management

Hello, all:
I've been asked by upper management to inquire if any of you are using the
Quality Management Module in Vantage 4.0? If you are, do you have comments
about the workings, about what changes you may have had to make to your
process to accommodate the use of this module? We already know that every
scrap from the shop floor has to be dispositioned by "someone," through
inspection-any other complaints, suggestions, so on. Any accounting impact
that created a headache?

Contact me off-list if you don't think it is appropriate for the group.
Thanks in advance.

Lydia Coffman Canyon Engineering Products, Inc.
661-294-0084
lcoffman@...
We have the Quality Module, but we don't really use it so I'll tell you a
little, but I don't really know too much about it.

For us, there are so many steps to go through, that we only use it when we
have to, which is defined as when we return parts to a vendor from a job or
reject parts from a job.

The system does a good job of tracking the costs, taking them off of the job
and moving them through the different stages. Fortunately, we don't have
too many part rejects or returns from jobs, because, like I said, the
process is too time-consuming.

Basically we would prefer to skip the first two steps of creating the
non-conformance and inspecting the part and go directly to creating the DMR.
For these parts, by the time we need to transact it in Vantage, we know it
is either rejected as a write-off or rejected to be returned, so the first
two steps are just extra work for us. My purchasers are the one who
disposition these and they HATE using it. Basically every time they have to
do one, they call me and complain about "why do we have to go through so
many steps to return a part", "why can't we add more than one part on the
same DMR". that's another thing, if you want the DMR's to automatically
create the debit memos, it creates a separate demit memo for each DMR, and a
separate DMR for each material line. So, if we bout 50 pieces of a part# to
a 5 jobs, 10 for each job, then it creates 5 different DMR's and 5 different
Debit memos' even though we will only get one from the vendor. Our A/P
people HATE this as well. They do not like the debit memos that are
created, so we no longer have the debit memo's auto create. I guess I could
go on for a while about our problems with this and that is probably why we
don't really use it.

Another bug we found which I posted here a while back was if the parts have
pricing other than 'Each' such as 'per 100' the system somehow loses the
/100 and 100 times the cost gets transferred from the job. I called tech
support, they duplicated the problem, but do not seem to care to change it.
This am very annoying and time-consuming to work-around bug for us and I
would think it would be for anyone who buys with that pricing.

HTH - Sarah