Process Auditing & Monitoring

QW6 helps you solve your process auditing and monitoring issues.

Definition of a Process Audit: The term Auditing implies a systematic review that investigates compliance to a set of pre-determined standards. In terms of a manufacturing process it would be the reviewing of machine settings verifying they are set correctly for the current production activity.

The objective of a good process audit is to ensure that all settings match the requirements needed produce a required output successfully.   There  can be thousands of settings in a manufacturing process and the important thing is to know which ones you should be checking.  

Starting with the specifications of the product you wish to manufacture would be a good starting point.  Add to that the performance characteristics of the equipment you are making the product on and you end up with a list of the likely candidates like pressures, thicknesses, speeds, draws, temperatures etc.

Now add to that list the past experience of running the process.  This is a continual learning process.  Each time there is a defect found  loss or stoppage in a process there is something to learn and typically it leads back to improving the process audit by including items you omitted or did not know affected a process.  So do not think you process audit is complete when you create it.  It is the start of the continual improvement of the audit and the process it supports.

Can you audit too many thinks in a process audit.  The answer is no!  That leads to the question – where to I find the time to check all these items?  The answer by being smart and efficient with your checks.  Automation interfaces can provide you with what I call “free data” – you get it with no manual effort on your part but it tremendous value to the manual data collected.  More about that later.

Timing is everything!  In a perfect world you only want to check an item just before it fails or causes a failure.  To do this you need data…lots of date collected over time that demonstrates the variability of a setting in a process.  Once you establish when variation may occur you establish the timing or sampling plan for an item.  This allows you to collect data on varying sampling frequencies meaning you don’t have to collect it every time.

Example you may determine that some variables need to checked every hour where others once a shift or day.  By getting the sampling timing right it allows you to keep an eye on items that are less frequent but still need to be monitored because eventually, as past experience has dictated, it will be back!

Options for creating Process/Monitoring Applications with QW6

One option is to use QW6Admin to create an application adding variables and assigning limits.  The nice part of QW6 is you can revise these applications at anytime and not lose the data you had already collected.  You can add interfaces to devices like scales or supplement your application with data from Automation (PLC’s) Systems.   These reduce the manual capturing of data. 

Standalone automated data collection.  Every Process engineer loves access to accurate and timely data.  Use the QWScheduler utility to capture data automatically on a timed or event basis and update a QW6 application for review and analysis later.  (automating data collection link)

If you already have data in an Excel Worksheet organized in columns and rows you can use the QW6 XLtoQW utility to build a QW6 application on the fly, then add the spec’s and targets and you are ready to go.  (Video tutorial QWXLtoQW)

You have data already in a SQL type data base and you want to bring it to QW6.  Use the QW6 SQLWizard Utility to extract the data and build a QW6 application on the fly.  Add Spec’s and Targets and analyze away using the powerful analytical tools available in QW6.  (Video QW6SQLWizard) 

QW6 is very adaptable to meet a variety of ways to get started quickly and refine your efforts over time…your can start quickly and build on your successes.

Explore QW6

Features & Functions Overview

Licensing

Options & Prices

Unlock your data with QW6 SPC Software

Smart teams know the key to improved results is unlocking data that will show you where to look. Give QW6 a try for free and gain the visuals and statistics that can lead your path to success.

Translate »