By David Dayton

No matter what countries they source from, every brand manufacturer or buyer will, at some point, have to deal with quality fade in some form. I find two main types of quality fade, both leading to the same result -- sub-standard product.

The first type, as thoroughly detailed by Paul Midler last year, is purposefully and willfully dishonest, a conscious effort to give the supplier more profit at the buyer's expense. The cost to the buyer can be huge, not the least of which is the breakdown of trust and presumably the relationship. Fortunately, the great majority of serious exporters are committed to building strong long-term business by steadily improving their products and service, not by defrauding their customers.

Much more common in my experience is the second type, a "natural" quality fade over the course of time. It is the result of an inadvertent slide in various aspects of the manufacturing process, such as standards, production equipment, testing procedures and instruments, and so forth. It is also much easier to deal with emotionally than outright dishonesty as you don't have to confront a partner over business ethics, but you are faced with the same outcome of sub-standard product.

However, regardless of which type might result in a fall in quality, it is the buyer who controls what reaches the market. Each year, thousands of buyers purchase hundreds of billions of dollars worth of China-made goods that meet the required standards, so it is not an inescapable problem with the production base. The recent recalls of sub-standard product are as much a failure on the buyer's side as the supplier's.

Keeping quality fade at bay requires that you, the buyer, schedule regular updates and remain diligent in what, when and how you set up, manufacture, test and perform quality control (QC). There is no magic bullet to solve quality fade problems. Given the divide in geography, language and business culture, coupled with the complexity of the supply chain, it takes time and consistent efforts.

The root of the problem
When a non-compliant product appears in the market, a lot of fingers start pointing at the China factory. This is reasonable to the extent that, whether deliberate or not, the problem occurred in the factory. Some old China hands react to this by asking: "This problem happens in all countries, so why pick on China?" I'm not "picking on China." As the "world's factory", any issue of quality fade is of immediate concern for China manufacturers and their customers, and China Inc must address it.

However, it is overly simplistic just to say, "You can't trust China manufacturers." It is important also to recognize the buy side as a contributor to the problem (and one largely overlooked by the media). New importers are often overwhelmed by China's sheer size and the initial hospitality of our hosts. We are hypnotized by the opportunity, the masses of people, the incredible rate of development and growth, the huge factories and the (formerly) low labor rates. And under the China sourcing spell, we too often check our good sense at the door.

Some on the buy side may bristle at this comment, but I stand by it. How many engineers, quality assurance (QA) professionals and production managers have, perhaps under pressure from the home office to meet a deadline or price point, approved something that was previously unacceptable, and in so doing sent unhelpful signals to their suppliers? How many companies do due diligence at home but jump in with both feet in China because, "Hey, it's inherently risky anyway, right?" I've seen this repeatedly with projects we've been asked to fix and with clients who are more concerned about price points than quality.

Quality fade might start with the supplier, but it ends (or doesn't) with the buyer. At the end of the day, we hold the final say -- and responsibility -- for achieving the required quality and standards, and in finding and rejecting any product that falls short before it gets to market.

Solutions for staving off quality fade
A very common and straightforward solution to either intentional or unintentional quality fade is to hire third-party quality inspectors. More often than not, this will catch many of the problems. Used effectively, third-party auditing and testing can reliably deliver compliant products.

Other solutions include investing in or building your own production facility and hiring and training your own staff. This is probably the best solution but takes years and a lot of money, and you still need a system to update standards regardless of who is managing your QA.

Another option is to simply structure a contract so the supplier that sells you the product is then responsible for the quality of the product. This, of course is the whole point -- how can you confirm you are getting the same quality order after order?

The bottom line is, at some point you must have a degree of trust with your supplier. You cannot be onsite 100 percent of the time, and you are not going to test every single unit. Even if you personally watch the entire production run, you will not be able to observe production of all the raw materials and parts, nor can you monitor each individual line worker's performance. Trust but verify is excellent advice, but verification will never be 100 percent. Some element of your QC is necessarily left to trust in the relationship.

While it is nice to see the recent media coverage on this issue, I have not read any articles that list ways to develop this relationship of trust or establish regularly updated standards and samples.

So how to do that? To guard against intentional quality fade and proactively prepare for unintentional quality fade, here are some steps, learned from experience, that should help prevent and resolve both issues in China.

Before production
1. Be realistic about what is acceptable. Ideally, this should be done before you start production. For every product and every material there are industry-accepted levels of tolerance. Know these or you will be at the mercy of whatever your supplier tells you they are. When push comes to shove, there are always acceptable standards that are short of perfection. Acknowledge that up front. Time, color, price -- all of these impact what you will get, so be prepared to say, for example, "If the color is off a bit but it's on time and otherwise correct then we're OK." Not only will this save you fights over color but it will also give you something to "sacrifice" to the factory when they are pushed into a production or deadline corner.

2. Establish standards and live by them at all times and in all discussions. If you can't, won't or don't follow your own contract you cannot expect your supplier to. When my company helps resolve disputes for overseas buyers, this is where we see most problems enter the production process. The buyer is in a rush to hit a deadline, so "just this once" will settle for something that does not meet the contract. Once this happens it tells everyone involved that time is more important than quality. Moreover, you've just granted license to the supplier to do the same next time there is a tight deadline. Also, if the lower standard is acceptable this time why not all the time? If you're not consistent and constantly vigilant, it will become the new standard for all future production. If you become complacent, expect the supplier to as well.

3. Communicate standards clearly. Develop a detailed QC checklist and have a meeting (or multiple meetings) to discuss it. Like your contract, go over this list in detail with your supplier and QC personnel on both sides before you start the project. When you and the QC department both understand the standards you'll be using, there will be no surprises down the road (other than your supplier saying: "You're serious, you really are going to be that strict with quality?!"). Why have meetings with people outside the sales department? Because managers will never have as many questions as line workers and QC staff on the factory floor. So get these people involved in the production line and QC discussions. Have a meeting with production and/or QC teams -- you'll win points for being "accessible to the little guys" and get the importance of your standards across much more clearly as well.

4. No shortcuts with new suppliers. If you are moving any part of the product to a new supplier do the entire start-up process all over again. Don't assume that because you have been through the process with the previous factory and the new factory is "better", you don't need to do all the same qualifying/investigation procedures again. YOU DO. If it took you six months to get a factory online the first time, don't expect you can do it in half that time the next time around. This goes for both main suppliers and sub-suppliers. If you switch to a new sub-supplier, don't assume your main supplier will automatically follow through on all the details and standards that were implemented with the original sub-supplier.

5. Get involved in the supply chain. Work your way up the supply chain and establish standards with as many suppliers as you can gain access to. Sometimes this is difficult as your main production facility may not want to let you have access to their suppliers out of fear of being cut out.

During production
6. Third-party quality control (3PQC). Use your own personnel and a reputable third party to constantly perform random QA. Not a fail-safe, but very effective. (And don't even think about not doing QC). Of course, you have to train and communicate your standards to them just as if you do to the factory. Also, request a time report from your 3PQC since they typically charge by the day.

7. Be onsite as much as possible. If a production change is supposed to happen and you are not personally onsite to witness and record it, there is a chance it won't happen. Importantly, being onsite also allows you to learn the process your supplier uses and to involve as many workers as possible in the idea that quality matters.

8. Keep detailed records. Record every change on every production run. It's not enough just to record that a change has taken place; you must record the reasons, options, solutions, costs and times. Not only will you be able to refer to these details again in later discussions, but your records will also let you determine what changes affect product quality and why -- and what can be done (or undone) for future orders. Suppliers know their product costs better than you do, but you can learn their costs and priorities if you take careful notes. Understand where their costs and most time-consuming issues are and pay special attention to those. Understand the nature and quality of the raw materials and procurement.

9. Hire a second 3PQC to double-check. Measure twice, cut once, right? Have someone else come in and see how their results measure up to the in-house testers or the original 3PQC. It'll cost you a few hundred dollars to do this once each production run and could save you thousands of dollars -- it can also be advantageous to have your 3PQC know you are going to be monitoring them.

10. Test multiple times in the production process. Test samples before you start production, test initial product off the line, randomly test pieces and completed product during the production process, randomly test packaged product that is to be shipped. If you are only testing samples you will not really understand what your production is. If you test only when the production run is complete you are asking for the major problems: Do you want to ship bad product or miss deadlines? Bureau Veritas recommends that you test and inspect from five to nine times per production run.

11. QC every part at every delivery and arrival point. If you are outsourcing part of the product, require QC before the parts are shipped from their original production site to the assembly location. Even if the sub-contractor is miles away or in another country, take the time to do QC either personally or via a local 3PQC. Even if you've already done QC in the original production location, do it again to hold the assembly factory responsible for the condition and quantity of the goods coming in. The few hundred dollars it will cost you will save you thousands of dollars and weeks of time if you can catch problems before you ship. Even simple things like bags for packaging can delay you a week or more.

Between production runs
12. Renew the standard sample at least anually. Everything loses quality over time and you must update your standards to keep pace with this incremental fade. Do this for both individual pieces of product and packaging as well as for finished product.

13. Annually renew your measurement tools. If you are using a caliper, Pantone books, or other scales or tools, get them checked or replaced annually to make sure you are testing accurately. Pantones are notoriously prone to fading and can cost you an entire order of otherwise acceptable product if you've approved the "wrong" colors. Compel your factory, as part of the initial contract, to update their measurement tools as well. You don't want to get into an argument about whose Pantone book is correct once a product is already completed.

14. Preserve your sample's quality. Everything degrades, so seal, bag, laminate, vacuum pack -- do whatever it takes to keep a standard sample "standard" through the full production cycle.

15. Keep an additional standard sample in a separate location from production. If you've ever sent a sample to a factory and then asked for it back you know it might be unrecognizable when returned. Ink, oil, grease, cuts, tears, missing parts are all possible. Send the factory a standard sample and then seal away another one to use for QC later, and contract with your supplier that the "off-site" samples are the final standard in case of disputes. If the standard is in your possession you will never have to ask: "Are you sure this is the sample we gave you?"

16. Update hardware. Check molds, frames and all production equipment for degradation and replace if necessary. Along with testing equipment, you need to inspect your hardware on a regular basis -- and it should be before you have a new production deadline because finding problems at that point is too late. Molds wear down and even break as they are moved in and out of machines. Confirm your hardware is still in good condition before starting and after completing every order.

Before, during and after production
17. Never, never, never accept chabuduo (almost) as good enough. If you do, that will become the new standard for everything. Good enough for you will be stretched into a wide range of "standards" for each of the multiple QC managers and line workers.

In talking with old China hand Kevin Smith about these solutions he insisted the only long-term solution to the problem is working with the people that are the actual source of problems.

That source could be line workers who need more training or managers who need to understand the importance of consistent standards, long-term clients and international standards. Or it could be the overseas buyer who just shows up once a year and expects everything to work itself out. To really solve this problem rather than just fix the current production run you need to invest time -- lots of it -- on the ground and in the factory.

Perhaps you don't think you have months to spend training your factory to get what you want -- but how much more does rejected product cost you in terms of time, lost sales and real dollars?

What you put into controlling quality fade is what you will get out of it.

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Readers have left 3 comments.

 1. Mr
Hamood, Unregistered

This is a very good article. It gives an outline of dealing with Chinese market and yet maintain QC in a simple way. I like it, thank you David

 Posted 2008-04-11 16:28:53

 2. QC is King
Guest User, Unregistered

Quality control is usually the LAST thing most importers look at, especially new ones. Good solid article.

 Posted 2008-09-19 11:40:45

 3. QA-inspector
Wang Lijun, Unregistered

I read 'PokaYoke' quality control system before, Your article is similar as that, but all of them are correct,

Quality is come from producting lines, not inspection, so QA should worked into producting lines for help fty establish the self checking system, to proventing any errors, it's the basic duty.

Garment inspection, Home textile inspection, Fabric inspection, Fashion accessories inspection,

www.china-inspector.com

 Posted 2009-04-05 10:14:19

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