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Identifying the root cause of a problem is only the first step in solving it. Once you have pinpointed the cause of the issue, it's important to develop a corrective action plan that addresses the root cause and fully resolves the problem. Heat Treaters identify and address issues such as incorrect temperature, time, or atmosphere during the heat-treating process, inadequate process controls, or operator error. Any deviations or non-conformances from the specified heat-treating process can lead to problems such as material failures, out-of-specification parts, reduced product performance, and failed audits!
The Corrective Action Plan Should be a Systematic Approach to Addressing the Problem.
1. Linking to Compliance Records: The corrective actions should connect to relevant areas of the compliance record to communicate the full context of the problem. Each corrective action should be linked to the appropriate source, such as audit results, nonconforming materials, safety incidents, or customer complaints.
2. Action Items: The plan should break down into discrete steps, providing added details where necessary to help users understand what to do. For instance, including a photo from the audit or incident record that illustrates the problem and how to fix it, any specific metrics or required conditions for closure, and instructions on necessary updates to related areas such as Document Control or Employee Training.
3. Defined Workflow: Each of the corrective action steps must pass through several key waypoints. The process starts before forming the corrective action plan, with someone reviewing the initiating event and investigating the root cause. Executing the plan itself may require participation from multiple people, creating opportunities for the problem to fall through the cracks. A truly robust corrective action process prevents this from happening, also eliminating the back-and-forth emails that suck so much time out of the average day.
4. Responsible Party: Assigning a responsible party is an essential part of writing a corrective action plan. You should schedule deliverables by role, streamlining the process while creating accountability around your action items. You also should consider what the process is if that person doesn’t follow through.
5. Risk Assessment: Risk is the most essential element in a corrective action plan that works. You can leverage a risk assessment at both the beginning and the end of the process. In the beginning, each corrective action request can include a criticality level, calculating risk based on your internally developed risk matrix. Risk is also critical to assess before closing out the request since that’s what tells you whether or not the action performed acceptably reduces risk.
To Ensure an Effective, Streamlined Corrective Action Process, you can:
1. Implement a Quality Management System (QMS) or EHS Management System.
2. Create unique workflows for different corrective action types to better standardize processes. 3. Set due dates according to your own internal business rules. 4. Automatically route the corrective action plan from one step to the next. 5. Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the corrective actions taken. 6. Communicate and train stakeholders on the corrective action plan. 7. Collect and analyze data to identify areas for improvement and refine the corrective action process over time.
What are Some Ways to Measure and See Improvements in Corrective Action Effectiveness?
Closure Rate: The closure rate measures the percentage of corrective actions that were successfully closed out within the specified timeframe. By tracking the closure rate, you can see if your corrective action process is effective in resolving issues.
Time to Close: The time to close measures the time it takes to fully resolve a corrective action. By tracking the time to close, you can identify bottlenecks in the process and make improvements to speed up the process.
Repeat Issues: Repeat issues occur when the same problem arises again after a corrective action was taken. By tracking repeat issues, you can identify systemic issues that require a more comprehensive solution.
Cost of Quality: The cost of quality measures the cost of correcting issues and preventing them from happening again. By tracking the cost of quality, you can see if improvements in corrective action effectiveness are resulting in cost savings.
Customer Satisfaction: Customer satisfaction measures how satisfied customers are with the quality and performance of your products. By tracking customer satisfaction, you can see if improvements in corrective action effectiveness are resulting in better quality products and increased customer satisfaction.
By managing the details of the corrective action plan within the context of the bigger picture, you can ensure that the corrective actions taken are aligned with the overall goals and objectives of the organization. This can lead to more effective and efficient corrective actions, as well as improved overall performance and results.
By utilizing Bluestreak | Integrated Quality Hub™ into the Heat Treating production process, companies can reduce the disconnect between CAPA and production, improving the effectiveness of the CAPA process and ultimately improving product quality, reducing costs, and increasing customer satisfaction. Contact Bluestreak™ for a quote, and start on your path to solving quality control issues.
About Bluestreak™:
Bluestreak™ is a fully integrated Quality Management System (QMS) and a powerful Manufacturing Execution System (MES), designed for the manufacturing environment and service-based manufacturing companies ( metal-treating/powder-coating, plating, heat-treating, forging, and metal-finishing), businesses that receive customers’ parts, perform a process (service) on them, and send those parts back to the customer). Companies need MES software tailored to specific functionality and workflow needs such as industry-specific specifications management, intuitive scheduling control for both staff and machinery maintenance, and the ability to manage work orders and track real-time data. If different work centers on the production floor aren’t “speaking” to each other via the MES, the data loses value and becomes disjointed or lost in disparate silos.
Bluestreak | Bright AM™ is a QMS + MES software solution specifically designed to manage and optimize the unique requirements of Additive Manufacturing’s production of parts and powder inventory usage.