Today more than ever, product quality is highly dependent upon a company's suppliers. Vendors chosen unwisely could create long-term problems for any manufacturer. Poor supplier quality is costing companies billions of dollars annually. Managing risk within this supply network is a growing strategic imperative.
Supply Chain Quality Management and performance monitoring are key components of any risk management strategy. Having visibility into supplier operations and quality programs (such as Six Sigma) will help ensure that the products meet requirements-reducing the risk of a defective lot.
eSPC provides statistical analysis and visibility of defective lots while products are still at the supplier's facility. Using this system, manufacturers are saving the time and expense of additional shipping and receiving for defective products.
If a problem occurs at any of your supplier's facilities, eSPC will send out an alarm at the instant the issue arises. This rapid problem identification and resolution helps to create an environment that fosters collaborative relationships between you and your suppliers.
Industry Trends
According to a study by AMR Research, one of the ways in which manufacturers can make their food supply chain safer is by improving the frequency of quality data and analysis:
"Companies that analyze quality data at least hourly through cross-functional teams were able to improve the percentage of products recalled by 10%. This frequent analysis of production data places renewed emphasis on the ability to access data from production management systems.
"Don't forget the dedicated quality management products, such as statistical process control (SPC) packages from InfinityQS. 77% of our study respondents had cross-functional review teams, with 14% collecting and reporting quality data on an hourly basis. When these two conditions exist together, dramatic improvements were noted in labeling and health and safety recalls."
A study by the Aberdeen Group reports that 58% of those surveyed have suffered financial losses as a result of supply chain disruptions.
These companies plan to improve supply chain risk management by implementing a data-driven, collaborative approach. Study participants are taking the following actions:
- Collaborate more effectively with supply chain partners to jointly manage supply chain risks: 59%
- Improve supply chain data quality used for decision making: 54%
- Re-design the supply chain: 34%
- Implement new software solutions: 27%
Source: Industry Week 2008
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