Inspection Process
Inspections involve checking products in order to ascertain their quality. They are different from audits, which apply to the analysis of the manufacturing process and organizations. The quality inspector follows a pre-established checklist based on the specifications of the product. Inspected products could include everything from components to semi-finished goods to fully finished goods before they are shipped to customers.
The term inspection is defined by the ISO 2859 standard as the activity that measures, examines, tests, or gauges one or more characteristics of a product or service in accordance with specified requirements. Inspections help establish conformity with each characteristic.
The inspection of a product will help protect a brand or a company’s reputation by minimizing defective merchandise, non-compliant products, customer complaints and late shipments. It is important that manufacturers ensure that their products meet the industry and government regulations as well as their own requirements.
Quality inspections help manufacturers do the following:
- Ensure the safety of products before they are shipped
- Decrease the number of defunct components
- Diminish customer complaints spurred by inferior or defective products
- Root out products that do not comply with standards
- Ensure on-time shipments
Quality inspections may be done in different stages:
Pre-production inspections
Raw materials and components are inspected prior to production. This vetting process helps verify that the correct materials, components, and accessories were ordered. Inspections are also conducted on samples of partially produced products to scout out potential defects.
In-line or in-process inspections
In a typical in-line inspection, the first product that comes off the line is inspected for conformity to specifications. This allows for the repair of any flaws.
Final random inspections
Most customers give utmost attention to this inspection. Products are scrutinized for defects before shipment to consumers. The product is checked for conformity against criteria defined by the customer.
At this stage of the inspection, the total product quantity is counted, and samples of the finished products are drawn in a random manner for scrutiny. The random samples are considered representative of the whole batch.
Quality inspection assures customers that they are getting their money’s worth. It is an assurance that product specifications are adhered to.
At EMS Solutions, every product has passed through different levels of inspection to assure customers that they are getting the highest quality output available.