QualityInspection.org

Quality Assurance, Product Development, and Purchasing Strategies in China

The Design for X Approach: 12 Common Examples

The Design For X (or “Design for Excellence”) methodology lays out a number of design guidelines for reaching the product’s objectives. The idea is to review and improve the product & process design before the new product is manufactured. Many product designers design for functionality and for aesthetics. Of course, those are important, but there are other important questions such as “can it be made with mature processes?” and “can it be made within budget?” (a.k.a. Design for … [Read more...]

How A DFQ Review Designs Quality INTO Your Product At An Early Stage [Podcast]

What if you could reduce the chances of quality problems long before your product goes into production? A DFQ review can help you achieve this! What is DFQ? Design For Quality is where we review a number of factors that affect quality at the early stages of the new product introduction process, so that's your concept and prototypes. Not every Chinese manufacturer will do this, and while it may be tempting to power through to production to get to market, it's risky to do so (could your … [Read more...]

Design New Products with ‘Right To Repair’ in Mind

There is a long-term trend that companies and people designing new products need to have in mind: A growing share of consumers expect brands to design more sustainable (or fewer unsustainable) products; In some regions of the World, regulators are also pushing companies in that direction.   EU legislation driving changes to consumer products The latest sign comes from the EU. This new legislation is going to require consumer technology to last for a decade. The European … [Read more...]

Why Preventive Maintenance Is Important [Podcast]

How well could you cope if key equipment or machinery in the factory failed unexpectedly? Listen to this episode, where Renaud introduces why preventive maintenance is important and shares some examples to help illustrate how it all works and its many benefits. If you're interested in implementing a preventive maintenance plan of your own, we also provide a free template that you can download and work from, too. Preventive maintenance plan? A plan for maintaining equipment/machinery … [Read more...]

What Are the Factory Assessment Reports Shown on Alibaba Worth?

About 10 years ago, I remember Global Sources was listing "verified suppliers". Good idea. And their competitors followed suit, showing factory assessment reports and anything that can make buyers confident. And I am not sure that has been a positive development, overall.   The basic principle to be aware of when buying factory analysis/verification There is a basic principle that all buyers should be aware of: When you are not paying for an analysis/verification, you can't fully … [Read more...]

How We Set Up A New Factory In China From Idea To Operation [Podcast]

Planning on opening a factory in China in 2021? To get some insight into just what it takes to set up a new factory in China let's explore how WE came to open our own factory, Agilian Technology, there in 2018! Renaud will explain the reasoning behind doing so, the goals, and the 6 phases we followed in order to make the idea of having a contract manufacturing subsidiary a reality. This will give you food for thought and help you start planning the project as it's possible you won't have … [Read more...]

A Textbook on Design for Manufacturing and the NPI Process (EVT-DVT-PVT)

I am halfway through this book and I thought many readers would enjoy it: Product Realization: Going from One to a Million by Anna C. Thornton. Here is the book's presentation by its publisher: Product Realization: Going from One to a Million delivers a comprehensive treatment of the entire product launch process from beginning to end. Drawing upon the author's extensive first-hand experience with dozens of successful product launches, the book explores the process of bringing a design from … [Read more...]

A New ‘Cold War’ Between The USA & China’s Effect On Manufacturing [Podcast]

As tensions rise between China and the USA, is a new 'Cold War' brewing? If so, what effect is this or could this be having on manufacturing? Adrian from Sofeast and myself go political in this episode, discussing how the political rhetoric and actions towards China by the USA and other Western nations are on a downward trend and how the media seem to encourage this, too. Renaud posted this recent Forbes article which suggested that Americans polled would be prepared to pay 20% more for … [Read more...]

Are Quality Inspection Activities Just “Waste”?

In the lean manufacturing philosophy, there is a distinction between 2 types of activities: Value-added operations, generally described as “transformation of the product” or “something a customer is willing to pay for”. For example, when two parts of a garment are sewn together, it creates value. All other operations, which are called “non-value-added” and are often called “waste”. Some of them are necessary in the current situation (with the current level of technology, etc.) or at … [Read more...]