Measure Smarter
Explore the Transcat Quality Program
The Surprising Costs of Not Calibrating
The costs associated with out-of-tolerance (OOT) follow-up work often exceed the initial calibration expenses. Moreover, the risk of incorrectly accepting in-tolerance results when they are actually out of tolerance (false accept calibration) is even greater! We assist companies in improving their in-tolerance success, reducing compliance-related follow-up efforts, and minimizing costs linked to out-of-tolerance situations. Our solutions also help organizations accurately assess and manage the measurement risks within their production processes.
How do we achieve this? Our team of metrology specialists is well-equipped to assist customers in:
- Evaluating and establishing process tolerances
- Enhancing instruments used
- Eliminating uncertainties in your measurement quality assurance process
- Forecasting Out-Of-Tolerance (OOT) instances
- Defining optimal calibration frequencies
- Educating personnel on interpreting measurements and taking appropriate actions
Evaluate and Establish Process Tolerances
One of the frequent challenges for internal quality and engineering teams is determining which parameters to assess in their industrial processes and the required accuracies.
- Are the tested parameters logical?
- Do the process tolerances have a valid basis?
Our experts can help pinpoint non-value-adding tests in your processes and may identify valuable tests currently absent. We offer assistance in establishing a solid framework for your process tolerances, essential before assessing the suitability of measuring instruments used.
Enhance Instrument Quality
How frequently should a specific measuring instrument be out of tolerance? How often does this actually happen?
Occasionally, companies select unreliable instruments. Sometimes, the chosen instrument is unsuitable for the measurement phase of the process. Our team can analyze the usage of an instrument across various clients to verify reliability and ensure that the chosen instruments are appropriate for their intended purpose.
Eliminate Uncertainty from Your Measurement Quality Assurance Procedures
Are you aware of quality blind spots (QBS)? How can you identify if a blind spot exists within your measurement quality assurance procedures?
Understanding that metrological traceability only exists if all seven components are in place, including your measurement assurance program, is vital. Many manufacturing companies possess aspects of a measurement assurance program but may not formally acknowledge it. The consequence of quality blind spots and incomplete measurement assurance is similar to tiny punctures in a water-filled balloon: your profits are draining away through wasted resources and parts rework or scrapping. Over time, these minor breaches may lead to major losses, like product recalls, without being traced back to their initial cause.
The Transcat Team begins by asking the right questions:
- Is every IMTE (Inspection, Measuring, and Test Equipment) identified within your calibration program?
- Are there any IMTE that may require calibration but aren’t?
- When is a standard calibration necessary?
- When is a custom calibration required?
- Are the correct tolerances applied to IMTE calibration?
- What impact does incorrect tolerance application have on your process?
- How are instruments utilized for measurements in your processes?
- Are any errors being introduced potentially leading to false acceptance of defective products or false rejection of acceptable ones?
You might be surprised by what our experts uncover as causes of these profit-draining leaks. Let us assist in strengthening your measurement quality assurance program via our specialized consulting services, which include tailored training to keep your employees focused on protecting your products and profits.
Anticipate Out-Of-Tolerance (OOT) Results
Transcat’s Guard Band service incorporates our unique Test Validity feature, which minimizes OOT results by predicting these occurrences in advance. The slightly increased cost of this service is offset by the reduction in expenses related to OOT reviews, scrapped projects, reworked parts, and product recalls. This improved forecasting is a crucial part of your measurement quality assurance program, minimizing non-value-added costs.
Establish Optimal Calibration Frequencies
IMTE tolerances, the performance of individual instruments, and calibration frequencies are all interconnected.
Transcat’s capability to track instrument performance over time in CalTrak enables our metrology team to ascertain the appropriate calibration interval for each IMTE. Some intervals may lengthen, leading to fewer annual calibrations, while others may shorten, necessitating more frequent calibrations to maintain minimal measurement risk.
The adjustment of these intervals may or may not significantly impact your calibration costs, but they will certainly reduce your OOT occurrences and associated expenses, which usually surpass calibration costs.
Educate Staff on Measurement Understanding and Responses
Do you manage every OOT occurrence uniformly?
If so, you may be investing either too much or too little time on them. Often, varied OOT events can have different implications for the manufacturing process and may not all require the same level of follow-up. Identifying, recording, and training on this variance is essential.
We can guide you in asking and answering the right questions:
- How many IMTE are part of your calibration program?
- What percentage of these IMTE have failed calibration during a specific time frame?
- Is this percentage unexpectedly high or low?
- How many OOT IMTE received a Non-Conformance Review/Report (NCR)?
- How many of these NCRs impacted product/process quality?
If the answer is zero or only a tiny percentage, is your buffer really strong enough to yield those results? Some companies do; others do not.
How confident are you that extensive investigations were conducted during the NCR process?
Was a genuine forensic approach adopted to let the evidence confirm the right outcomes, or could bias have influenced the investigation results?
If the latter is true, then traceability may have been compromised at a critical point, failing to eliminate risk from your product.
We invite you to let our Forensic Metrology experts evaluate your OOT-NCR process and present our specially designed OOT-NCR training program to your team, utilizing your own OOT outcomes so they gain insights into your specific industrial processes.
Contact Transcat for Your Calibration Needs
For more information about our accreditation or services, connect with our expert team. To request a quote, submit the form below.
