How To Improve Quality Control In Your Business
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Keeping your company’s work to a high quality is important for your reputation. Here are just a few ways to improve quality control within your business.
Introduce more checks
Introducing more checks can help to prevent errors from being overlooked. This could involve getting colleagues to check each other’s work such as proof-reading a report before it is sent or getting another chef on gantry to check a plate of food before it is sent out to the customer. These checks don’t have to be made by humans – nowadays more people are using software to handle quality control such as spell-checking software.
Invest in high quality tools
Having the best tools can also help to guarantee better quality work. This is important in sectors such as manufacturing where new technologies can offer more precision such as waterjet cutting for cutting through aluminum or 3D printing for creating car parts. However, it can also make an impact in other industries too – a restaurant kitchen needs robust cooking equipment whilst an accounting office needs strong and secure software.
Keep your tools maintained
Maintaining your tools is also important for quality control. Industrial equipment needs to be regularly cleaned to avoid contamination and parts need to be checked for wear and tear. Software meanwhile needs to be kept regularly updated so that you’re always running the most recent and secure version. Some companies keep a logbook to ensure that all equipment is cleaned and well maintained. Analytic smart technology is also starting to creep in, allowing such checks to be done automatically. The key is to act upon any faults and not just ignore them as many businesses do – if a machine is telling you that one of its parts is worn, don’t wait until the part fully fails to fix it.
Train your employees thoroughly
Training your employees is also an essential part of quality control. There’s no use in having the best equipment available if your employees don’t know how to use it. Similarly, your employees need to know all the checks needed to ensure quality. Dedicate time to training up all new employees and supervise them in the beginning so that you can ensure they’re getting every step right. If you personally don’t have time to train them, make sure that a senior employee is able to take up the task.
Keep doing research to improve your product/service
Constant research can help you to keep improving the quality of your product/service. Don’t assume that you no longer need to improve – the best companies are always tweaking things in order to stay ahead of their competitors. Research could include listening to customer feedback, seeking support from professional advisors or doing your own experimenting. Some old formulas do work and aren’t worth changing, but there are likely to be some aspects of your business that can be improved upon.
