Quality control plays a significant role in manufacturing as it impacts production costs and on-time delivery. The lack of efficient quality control increases expenses by generating greater labor costs required for rework and can significantly compromise a brand’s reputation if faulty products reach customers. A robust software suite such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 can streamline quality control in manufacturing companies. This article will explore the advanced features and capabilities of this system that will help improve quality control processes and provide a basic outline for an implementation process.
Workflow automation and efficient collaboration
Enhanced collaboration and workflow automation are two core features of the Microsoft Dynamics 365 suite, which offers a unified view of numerous business and operational processes within the company as well as improved autonomy. Both aspects of the software can transform quality control processes in any manufacturing company.
Automation of quality management processes whenever applicable streamlines operations, increasing the consistency of the quality management routine. Furthermore, Microsoft Dynamics 365 provides all stakeholders involved in quality assurance work with access to relevant data. The platform also supports collaboration and the exchange of information, along with functionality for real-time notifications about critical discoveries related to product quality.
Integration with AI and IoT
Integration with AI and IoT is another notable feature of Microsoft Dynamics 365. The platform utilizes artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things (IoT) to enhance manufacturing processes.
Manufacturing companies can leverage AI regardless of whether they implement IoT, which is primarily used in the manufacturing industry for the automated collection of real-time data from the production floor and quality control laboratories. AI, powered by machine learning algorithms, can learn from any data related to production and quality, making accurate predictions or discovering hidden trends that are inaccessible to traditional analytics based on statistics.
Among the applications of AI provided by Microsoft Dynamics 365, manufacturing companies can leverage:
- Predictive maintenance;
- Anomaly detection;
- Root cause analysis;
- Supplier performance analysis;
- Optimization opportunities.
Meanwhile, some advantages of IoT for quality control include:
- Access to real-time equipment and machinery data monitoring;
- Early detection of production defects;
- Quality assurance in the supply chain and quality control automation;
- Predictive maintenance.
While Microsoft Dynamics 365 supports integration with IoT, this technology requires the installation of special sensors on machinery, equipment, and products as well as a robust connectivity infrastructure and ample data storage and processing power.
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Enhanced traceability
The functionality of Microsoft Dynamics 365 discussed earlier undoubtedly improves the traceability of production, allowing companies to better monitor the movement and transformation of materials and other components used in production. This, in turn, helps identify the root causes of quality inconsistency.
However, this is only one of the functionalities of the software suite contributing to the traceability of products. Microsoft Dynamics 365 acts as a platform integrating data from various sources, including quality control and supply chain management tools, production machines, and IoT sensors, providing a consolidated source of all necessary information related to manufacturing processes and quality control.
Furthermore, this system supports tracking individual products or batches by assigning unique serial numbers to them, helping to trace the lineage of each product or component as well as their suppliers.
Regulatory compliance support
Manufacturers have to take care of the quality of their products not only to meet customers’ expectations but also to ensure alignment with the regulatory requirements applicable to their industries. While this task can be particularly challenging, Microsoft Dynamics 365 can be of great help. Below are some of the functionalities of this software companies can leverage for regulatory compliance:
- Creation of standardized quality control processes and workflows according to industry standards, regulatory requirements, and based on best practices;
- Efficient management and exchange of quality-related documents such as work instructions, standard operating procedures, quality manuals, and reports for compliance with regulatory requirements for non-conformance management;
- Enhanced accountability for regulatory compliance purposes due to tracing the history of quality-related changes and actions;
- Simplified regulatory reporting, including certificates of conformance, quality performance metrics, and other documents required for regulatory compliance;
- Robust supplier management providing manufacturers with the possibility to track regulatory compliance among the component suppliers.
Microsoft Dynamics 365 implementation process in manufacturing companies
To improve quality management in your company with the help of Microsoft Dynamics 365, the organization may need to go through the following steps:
- Assessment of the company’s needs and defining implementation objectives.
- Assembling a team of specialists from different company departments.
- Planning configurations and customizations.
- Integrating Microsoft Dynamics 365 with existing systems.
- Preparing data for migration to achieve accuracy and integrity.
- Testing implemented software.
- After-go-live monitoring and support.
Enhanced quality control with Microsoft Dynamics 365
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a comprehensive software product that significantly enhances various aspects of quality management in manufacturing companies including streamlining quality control processes, improving collaboration and communication among stakeholders, and offering real-time insights into production and quality data. The success of the implementation of this software depends on proper planning and the expertise of the project team, which can be enriched by the knowledge and experience of a professional implementation partner such as XPLUS.
