Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software is a powerful way to manage the complexities of modern manufacturing. In an earlier post on streamlining manufacturing production cycles, we discussed how the right ERP solution can optimize operations, centralize data, encourage collaboration and drive revenue growth.
With better management of data and systems, the need for quality control (QC) may seem like less of a priority. However, in an era of increased regulatory demands, quality control is essential for successful manufacturing.
So how does an ERP system help you ensure order accuracy and consistency while maintaining regulatory compliance?
Here is a closer look at how you can meet your quality control goals with an ERP solution:
It Starts with Good Data
Your quality control program starts and ends with good data. For QC professionals, a lack of accurate data is problematic and requires a great deal of guesswork. However, surveys show that only 3 percent of company executives believe their data meet basic quality control standards.
The right ERP solution helps you collect and organize your company’s data, much of which is done in the background and behind-the-scenes. An integrated solution allows companies to collect information from various parts of their manufacturing operations, as well as from suppliers, partners and customers. With this information in-hand, decision-makers have the ability to make business decisions based on accurate, real-time data and get a better look at the health of their organizations.
Because this data collection is automated within an ERP solution, there’s less worry about manual data entry errors. Automated data collection also saves your workers time and ensures they’re working on value-added tasks rather than tedious manual ones.
Standardization
Your QC strategy needs to ensure that the output is accurate and meets the standards your organization puts in play to ensure product quality. Having access to real-time data allows for that analysis to happen faster and more consistently.
An ERP helps ensure that the materials, products and procedures are visible to all, monitored and applied or created properly. With ERP software, you can set up automated audits and checks of incoming raw materials to ensure that they meet the agreed-upon quality standards.
An ERP solution can also ensure that the entire supply chain works from the same performance indicators and procedures, with the transparency of data providing documentation, identifying issues and allowing for multiple players to work on developing solutions together.
With the right tracking and reporting, your ERP solution can help maintain standards, uncover issues quicker and respond to recalls at a moment’s notice.
Track and Trace
In the unfortunate case of a recall due to product quality, ERP solutions help manufacturers respond quickly and minimize impact. Recall management tools can easily identify affected lots and shipments, the type of recall and reasons. In minutes, you can have a clear indication of the affected products and quantities, supplier details, remaining affected stock and call lists for CRM and sales teams to do outreach.
Your recall management module can manage and track customer responses and generate notification letters while assigning appropriate response tasks.
Centralized Inventory Control
Inventory control is about ensuring accuracy, appropriate reordering and proper and timely usage. With quality functionality built in, a manufacturing ERP allows for the creation of inspection plans and checklists, the embedding of measures of accepted values, material requirements planning (MRP) and mobile recording of statuses and test results.
Your ERP applications will allow for the analysis of real-time inventory data and the development of historical QC results to identify patterns. Your organization will have less waste and fewer customer chargebacks.
Regulatory Compliance
Ensure that federal and international regulatory issues are in full compliance to avoid costly fines and penalties. ERP tools help manufacturers comply with multiple sets of regulatory guidelines, creating audit trails and reports that are necessary to document processes and risk mitigation.
If you’re struggling to meet your quality control goals, we’d love to show you how our ERP solutions can help. At NexTec Group, we help companies identify their needs and find the right ERP solution to drive productivity. Reach out to us now to learn more about the relationship between quality control and ERP. We’d love to chat.