A quick audit for molders

Care to see how your operation measures up? James Ray is the manager of sales and marketing at TallyHo Plastics (Jacksonville, TX) and developed this Quick Audit to help molders evaluate their operations. Ray has 30+ years' experience in injection molding with a variety of titles and responsibilities in that time. He holds copyrights on more than 30 molding and mold design computer programs.

As a former quality manager, he has been involved in numerous surveys and audits including UL, FDA, ISO/QS 9000, as well as many custom-designed audits. You'll find he included many of the usual items that are indicators of quality but also several unique ones he has encountered. Follow these instructions, and see how you rate. Or, if you are an OEM looking to do business with a molder, rate your potential suppliers with these same principles in mind.

For each numbered section there is a series of points on which to rate yourself or your target molder. Add up the score for each section, and enter the total. Note, when scoring the survey, that partial credit is acceptable where appropriate. For each section, there is a total point value and a minimum to pass. Good luck!

+2 points: The quality manual is approved and signed by top management as well as key department managers, and each section/page reflects the last revision date.

+2 points: The manual is a living document. It shows evidence of use, has periodic updates, and actually reflects what is practiced. (I recently received a manual from a prospective vendor with every section signed and approved in Feb. 1986-obviously not a living document.)

+1 point: Ask three managers to produce their copy of the manual and award one point for each who produces an updated manual promptly.

+1 point: The manual has sections on in-process inspection, handling of non-conforming materials, and an organizational chart (or description) showing the quality manager reporting to the top site official or higher.

-2 points: Deduct two points for each instance where the quality manager has been overridden by a superior on a rejection in the past twelve months. Deviations or specification changes from a formal approval process, including customer and engineering sign-off, do not count.

-2 points: Review the documentation that supports overrides (above) and deduct if deviations are not documented.

+1 point: Inspect at least two measuring gauges. Award a point for each that has a current calibration sticker.

0 points: If financial records are the only measure of production performance, skip to the next section.

+1 point: Production efficiency, including reject percentage, is tracked daily and monthly.

+1 point: Downtime causes are tracked by reason.

+1 point: Reject causes are tracked by reason.

+1 point: Customer complaints are tracked.

+2 points: On-time delivery is tracked, updated regularly, and shows performance improvement.

+1 point: Award one point for each internal measure of quality: cost of quality, complaint tracking, a monitored corrective action program, and finished goods inspection reports. Each one must be reported at least monthly to be counted.

Count the cans of mold cleaner, mold saver, and mold release present and readily available on the shop floor. This, along with grease availability, is a reflection of how well the shop maintains its expensive molds. Choose the best representation for this question.

+8 points: The amount of mold cleaner exceeds the amount of mold saver, and the amount of mold saver exceeds the amount of mold release.

+5 points: The amount of mold saver exceeds the amount of mold cleaner, and the amount of mold cleaner exceeds the amount of mold release.

+2 points: The amount of mold release exceeds the other two, but all three are present on the shop floor.

0 points: No cans of either mold cleaner or mold saver are found readily available on the floor.

-5 points: Grease is not readily available to floor personnel.

+3 points: On-site mold maintenance facilities are present. If a molder has to ship out a mold and pay to have the maintenance done, it is less likely to be done as frequently as needed.

+3 points: Periodic maintenance records are kept for each mold and a regular maintenance schedule is followed.

+3 points: Only brass and aluminum tools are used in molds.

-1 point: Look in one of the technician's tool boxes. Subtract a point if sharpened ejector pins are found or if process technicians don't have a pair of brass pliers and nippers with which to remove stuck parts and sprues.

+3 points: Molds are stored in a dry area and have an air passage under them to prevent condensation.

+2 points: The mold storage area is organized so that anyone, armed with a mold list, can locate any mold.

+3 points: Each job and/or press has instructions or documentation specifying the proper way to run the job. Without a clearly established standard, every shift/operator may run jobs differently.

+3 points: Thorough and specific quality acceptance criteria exist for each job, press, and operation. Instructions like "keep flash to a minimum" are unacceptable for most applications. Instead, look for specific, quantifiable criteria and guidelines like ". . . flash over .03 inch is reject."

+3 points: Quality inspections are documented with both good and bad findings. If your supplier conducts regular quality inspections and can supply documentation, your part quality improves and your chance of losing a large-dollar liability judgment for negligence is decreased.

+3 points: Process setup sheets are present and current for each job and/or press. These should be living documents, updated regularly.

+4 points: A preventive maintenance plan exists with evidence of regular activity.

+4 points: Machinery appears and sounds to be in good care and shows signs of recent and regular greasing. Covers and safety gates are in proper working order and safety switches and oil filters are not bypassed. Listen to the sounds of the pumps and clamps as they operate. Unusual whining, slamming, or squeaking indicate weak maintenance.

+3 points: The shop, work spaces, and maintenance areas are clean and orderly. Everything is labeled and identified as to its intended use.

+3 points: All equipment is in good working condition.

+3 points: A majority of the equipment is less than 10 years old.

+3 points: Equipment has built-in SPC features that are used.

+5 points: The restrooms and break room(s) are clean and orderly.

+4 points: Storage areas are organized such that raw materials and finished goods are clearly identified, can be easily found.

+4 points: Storage areas are clean and dry. Everything is off the floor, stored on pallets or other racks.

+4 points: There is strict lot number control of materials, including unused regrind.

+4 points: Material property requirements are traceable back to engineering specifications. Regular inspections demonstrate conformance.

+4 points: Use of regrind is monitored and consistently limited to 25 percent or less, unless test documents support a larger percentage.

-4 points: Management is not humble, responsive, and sincerely interested in constructive criticism.

Scoring
Add up the scores from each section and use this guide to see how your operations rate.

Passing score (above the minimum in all sections):

Failing score (below minimum in one or more sections):

Parting Thoughts
If you scored 100, check again. The maximum score is 99. This is because there is always room for improvement. While there is no sure formula for success, this survey can provide an objective means for evaluating and ranking your shop's ability to do quality work and can identify potential problem areas.