How to become a good SQA (Supplier Quality Engineer) - Seeking advice and resources

[Crombes]

Hello everybody,

my boss has asked me to become the SQA of our plant
unfortuneately I have no experience in this area
(I do have the basics of qualtiy ,PPAP ,APQP , FMEA,....)
but have no idea how to become a good SQA

do you guys know any helpfull tools , sites, literature to gain more
knowledge on this area?


thanks

 

[SteelMaiden]

Hello everybody,

my boss has asked me to become the SQA of our plant
unfortuneately I have no experience in this area
(I do have the basics of qualtiy ,PPAP ,APQP , FMEA,....)
but have no idea how to become a good SQA

do you guys know any helpfull tools , sites, literature to gain more
knowledge on this area?


thanks

First off, to be sure we are all singing from the same page...by SQA are you talking about Supplier Quality Assurance? Please always remember that while there are some acronyms that are widely used, we have seen several recently that are specific to someone's own business and they might be confusing.

In order to be well versed in your suppliers quality assurance, you need to track/monitor all the things that are important to your company. collect the data, see how meaningful it is to you and keep fine tuning it till it gives you the information you need. Graphs are a great help. you can pareto causes for late deliveries/quality problems etc., and then decide how you want to work/partner with your supplier. So many times, we get so caught up in using tools, sites, literature, etc., that we forget what our original intent was. Continual improvement of OUR systems. Use what works for you. Nobody says that it has to be fancy as long as you get meaningful information from it.

 

[Paul F. Jackson]

Listen twice, speak once

 

[Wes Bucey]

Listen twice, speak once

That's not a bad thought.

I always told my folks tasked with monitoring supplier quality that the point was NOT to play "gotcha," but to work with suppliers from the onset to prevent quality issues from arising. In some cases, this meant nursemaiding and handholding on proper preparation of shipping documents and quality documentation to make it easier for us to process an incoming shipment from receiving dock to production line with as little fuss and muss as possible.

In every case, we tried to maintain a real "partner" attitude versus an "adversary" attitude where the supplier is always suspected of "cheating" somehow.

None of this works, however, unless purchasing and SQA (I think of it as Supplier Quality Assurance also) have the same mindset. Frequently, Purchasing needs education on achieving "lowest net cost in place" versus "lowest initial cost."

Often the soft costs of dealing with a wild card supplier who offers the lowest initial price on products far exceeds the initial savings. This re-education often means a change in corporate thinking, especially when purchasing personnel are rewarded for saving money on initial purchase while quality and production personnel are berated for high internal costs of dealing with poor suppliers.

 

[qualitygoddess - 2010]

.

In every case, we tried to maintain a real "partner" attitude versus an "adversary" attitude where the supplier is always suspected of "cheating" somehow.

None of this works, however, unless purchasing and SQA (I think of it as Supplier Quality Assurance also) have the same mindset. Frequently, Purchasing needs education on achieving "lowest net cost in place" versus "lowest initial cost."

I think this is excellent advice for a SQA. If this is your mindset, but not Purchasing's (perhaps they only buy on lowest price), then you may want to re-think your decision. As the quality manager for a contract mfg, I really relied on the SQA's at my customer's sites to help me help my company do a better job. And for the most part, Purchasing let the two quality people work together to keep things running smoothly.

So, you can know all the analysis tools, and set up a great feedback system, but if Purchasing does not want to do things they way you do them, yuo will just get frustrated!

--Jodi

 

[Randy Stewart]

Put yourself in the suppliers shoes

I have always looked at it as the old "Give a man a fish - teach a man to fish". If you have ever worked with an SQA, STA, etc from the "big 3" you have an idea what not to do. If one of your processes is causing you problems do you bash the operator? The emphasis is on process here. No, you look into what is happening and what is allowing the process to produce the nonconformance. Treat the supplier the same way. Analyize (listen twice, speak once), evaluate (the supplier is the expert on their operations), suggest (you are the customer). Share your concern and help them to correct the problem at the root. It may be teaching them the proper way to do an FMEA, it may be helping them do process improvement, etc. Bottom line show them what it is to be a team player, and treat them the way you want to be treated by your customers.

 

[Claes Gefvenberg]

Good advice has been given here I would like to add just one short maxim:

Always look for solutions that you and your supplier both benefit from.

/Claes

 

[yapijingo - 2008]

short answer

Just take supplier as you production line: The first work station,You are the second station .