Customer NCR - How to respond to a non-applicable NCR?

[KCIPOH]

Hello Cove members,

I have a case whereby our customers have returned to boxes of defective parts that could only happens after it has been stored or kept for at least few months or a year time and i have review those parts but found none of those defects can cause by our side (process, loading, handling) as the parts are being deliver in good conditions each time.

How i should reject our customer that this NCR is not applicable in a proper manner and what is the upfront action or defective parts information i should collect before i fight the battles?

Please help

[Richard Regalado]

In Reply to Parent Post by KCIPOH

Hello Cove members,

I have a case whereby our customers have returned to boxes of defective parts that could only happens after it has been stored or kept for at least few months or a year time and i have review those parts but found none of those defects can cause by our side (process, loading, handling) as the parts are being deliver in good conditions each time.

How i should reject our customer that this NCR is not applicable in a proper manner and what is the upfront action or defective parts information i should collect before i fight the battles?

Please help

Hi KCIPOH. I am assuming here that NCR means non-conformity report. What is the non-conformity statement?

[pldey42]

First, I would involve their account representative or sales person. It might be better customer relations to just replace the product than get into a battle.

Alternatively, some sales people have a way of presenting facts to customers in a fashion that doesn't annoy them. Presumably, you would like more business from them than less.

To confront the situation the data and information that I would want would include

- data that demonstrates product arrives at customer in good condition

- review of contract: does it stipulate that payment of the involce means they accept that the goods arrived in good condition? Do you have any forms from their goods inwards agreeing it was ok on arrival? Did they pay?

- can you tell them what it was they did that caused the deterioration? Can you prove it?

- do you have inspection/test records for their particular product or batch?

- do you have general data on returns that you can share with them that shows their situation is exceptional?

- could you invite them to visit, audit perhaps, and see for themselves that the problem is theirs?

A final thought: are they doing something to the product during storage, fitting, use etc that you had not thought of and could help with? Perhaps, for example, better packaging that will protect it - at a price of course?

Sometimes, close, personal attention to a reported problem based upon building mutual understanding can strengthen a relationship with a client and, oddly, lead to more business.

(And yes, NCR is the general abbreviation in quality for non-conformity report.)

Hope this helps,
Pat

[somashekar]

that could only happens after it has been stored or kept for at least few months or a year time

See your statement above ...
See the word only
Have you determined this now ? or you knew about this earlier ?
Have you told your customer how to store these parts for its best useful life and how long it would be valid., by a label on the box or any other method ?
If you have not told this clearly to your customer, how would you say this as non-applicable NCR ?

[Sidney Vianna]

In Reply to Parent Post by KCIPOH

How i should reject our customer that this NCR is not applicable in a proper manner and what is the upfront action or defective parts information i should collect before i fight the battles?

Good answers you've gotten already. But let me offer a slight different perspective. Sometimes we have to learn to "play the game", by looking at the big picture. Picking the right fights is an art, aided by wisdom and maturity.

How much would cost your organization to credit the value back of the damaged products to the customer? And how much sales do you have with this customer? If it would cost you $100 to replace the items and you sell $1 Million/year to the customer, swallow your pride, mickeymouse (as a verb ) a corrective action and keep the customer "happy".

On the other hand, if the cost to replace and/or credit back the product is significant, vis a vis the limited volume of work for this customer, IN A VERY DIPLOMATIC AND TACTFUL MANNER, find a way to make the customer understand you don't accept responsibility for the damages and the NCR should be voided. But, as previously said, base your responses on facts, not opinions. If you allow the issue to turn into a battle of opinions, you won't win, even if you are right.

Remember: Customers are not always right, but customers are always the customer.

[KCIPOH]

Thanks all for your reply but after i called the customer and found out the parts was returned by their packing supplier as the parts are being sent to another supplier by our customer for packing process. Question arise and i have called customers as at first, why our customers side didnt detect any defective parts during their incoming as the parts are damaged seriously when returned bk, secondly, why the supplier didn't inform our customer at the first place when they receive such a badly damage parts and some parts with tear off adhesive marking which this could only happened if the sticker have been stick to the parts for quite some time and try to remove it, if it was to be remove immediately as what our operators are doing when they found wrong position, it wont have the adhesive mark on it.

So from here, this is a non-applicable NCR and i have tell customer about the actual situation and shouldn't be issue us a NCR but instead should issue the packing supplier a NCR for careless in handling the parts and causing badly damaged to the parts.

Anyhow, Thanks everyone for your help

[Big Jim]

In Reply to Parent Post by KCIPOH

Thanks all for your reply but after i called the customer and found out the parts was returned by their packing supplier as the parts are being sent to another supplier by our customer for packing process. Question arise and i have called customers as at first, why our customers side didnt detect any defective parts during their incoming as the parts are damaged seriously when returned bk, secondly, why the supplier didn't inform our customer at the first place when they receive such a badly damage parts and some parts with tear off adhesive marking which this could only happened if the sticker have been stick to the parts for quite some time and try to remove it, if it was to be remove immediately as what our operators are doing when they found wrong position, it wont have the adhesive mark on it.

So from here, this is a non-applicable NCR and i have tell customer about the actual situation and shouldn't be issue us a NCR but instead should issue the packing supplier a NCR for careless in handling the parts and causing badly damaged to the parts.

Anyhow, Thanks everyone for your help

Start by talking with the customer, the one that issued the NCR. If they agree with your assessment, then answer the NCR with the explanation that upon investigation determined the problem lies with the packager that the customer contracted with.

If they don't agree with you, find out precisely why they think it is your problem and work from there to get it resolved.

[KCIPOH]

In Reply to Parent Post by Big Jim

Start by talking with the customer, the one that issued the NCR. If they agree with your assessment, then answer the NCR with the explanation that upon investigation determined the problem lies with the packager that the customer contracted with.

If they don't agree with you, find out precisely why they think it is your problem and work from there to get it resolved.

Hello Big Jim,

Thank you very much for your suggestion and this is the answer that i'm looking for, furthermore, it has been a great learning for me as well.

Good Day