Third Party Source Inspection

Third Party Source Inspectors are Quality Assurance individual specialists that pay special attention to detail in every step of the customer purchase order. A third party inspector like QAIS, Inc. works for you to monitor the inspection work at the contract vendor, ensuring the Inspection Test Plan is followed and the vendor Quality Control department has completed their job in accordance to the approved quality manual and specifications.

What do we do to make A Third Party Source Inspection Worth Your Time and Money?

• It is more economical to send an unbiased third party Inspection service such as QAIS, Inc. to witness what is happening on a real time basis at the contracted vendor facility.

• Given the updated purchase order, drawings, and technical specifications, we can give a customer a detailed technical phone call before leaving the vendor facility, reporting on his purchase order in expediting or fabrication production within 24 hours.

• The bottom line is all about saving the customer money by making sure they receive the product that they have ordered in accordance with their specifications on the timeline that they expect.

• We provide in depth reports on the quality of the fabrication and expediting of raw material, parts, etc., that are required to produce the contracted product.

We work for all industries. Your orders are a top priority for us and we strive to guarantee that the entire customer requirements are witnessed and reviewed or inspected per the purchase order & inspection test plan. Give us the specifications for any product. We will ensure that your contracted vendor produces the correct results in accordance with your agreed time line.

Haste Makes Waste

In the first quarter of 2016 we witnessed several delays of products from vendors to clients. The delivery of the products on all instances were well past the contract agreement due date, meaning vendors were behind on their delivery date simply because they did not follow their own approved manufacturing processes.

The old saying “Haste makes waste” is very true today.  Cutting corners to save dimes and nickels costs thousands of dollars in the end and creates customer dissatisfaction issues.

• Some vendors were attempting to make their End of the Month Sales targets. They were not paying close attention to drawing and contract details, resulting in paying out more money in labor and materials to repair the non-conforming product and possible delivery delay penalties.

• This causes customers to lose trust in the competency of the vendor’s ability to meet contract requirements, resulting in vendors possibly losing money in future sales.

• Everyone loses in the end when “Production” pushes “Quality” in manufacturing and repair. If vendors push a product out without following their own quality processes, extra costs and frustration for all involved in the purchase process can incur.

Our job at Quality Assurance Inspection Services, Inc. is to make sure our clients are satisfied with the products that they receive.  As the quality inspectors for our clients at the vendor facility, if we witness something that is not right, we alert the vendor’s quality management personnel. We can issue non-conformance reports on behalf of the client. It is the decision of the vendors to make their product any way they want to within the specifications given, but when the product is completed we will make sure it is right and complies with the drawing and material requirements. When we issue an inspection release, everything will be checked with reference to the correct contractual requirements and latest issue drawings.

We hope that the vendors are forthright, meticulous, quality driven and thus manufacture the product right the first time. Everyone will be happy and we will all do business again in the future.

Calibrated Measuring

Beginning in 2016, I have made inspection visits to several vendors (manufacturers). Most of them are fulfilling orders from 2015 for National and International Energy Companies.

There is a slowdown in new orders for new build products for the oil and gas industry that is causing vendors to lay off good employees. Companies are cutting costs however, we caution companies not to compromise on quality when it comes to calibrated measurement tools. The best quality, most intricate tools in the world are worthless for recordable accurate measurement unless they are calibrated and certified to the NIST standard. The reason for a tool to be calibrated is for reliable, accurate, recordable measurement that is recognized internationally.

The work that I have been doing recently includes, reading drawings and verifying dimensions on cast steel manufactured products. I use the vendor’s measuring equipment to do the dimensional witness checks because there is no possible conflict. The reason for using calibrated tools is to be able to accurately measure, record, and achieve true drawing tolerance. As a source inspector, the use of calibrated tools is the number one priority.

• *First, I look for proof of calibration.

• *Second is that the tools are in good condition with no damage. Measuring instruments are very sensitive to temperature, humidity, storage, and handling. The accuracy of the instrument can be flawed if the instrument is abused in any way.

Source inspectors want to witness the calibration certificate for each tool they are using or witness others to use. It is critical to retain calibration records and implement at tracking system.

Most vendors I visit are ISO registered companies and have ISO approved quality systems. ISO quality manuals list the required calibrated tools, calibrated dates and the interval for the calibration of each tool and are handled in accordance to the National Institute of Standards.

Tools used on a daily basis by floor technicians, officer personnel, etc. may require a more frequent calibration cycle as compared to a tool that may only be used daily, weekly, monthly, and so forth. Tools that are used in rough service environments, extreme temperatures, or high humidity may be required to be inspected and calibrated on a monthly or weekly interval.

I have witnessed three examples of vendors using uncalibrated tools so far this year.

• *Two calibrated tools had calibration validation stickers that were past due for calibration certification.

• *The third tool was a dial caliper that should have been calibrated because it was being used to measure less than 1/16^th of an inch.

Please note: I will not accept excuses for using tools that are not compliant with the calibration requirements listed in the vendor’s Quality Manual or customer’s purchase order or drawing.

If the quality manual or the customer requires that a steel tape measure or steel scale be calibrated, it shall have proof of calibration before I will use it or consider it to be used when I witness the measurement of any dimension on a customer’s piece of equipment. Any measuring tool that is witnessed to be misused or damaged will not be considered to be valid even if it does have a current calibration record in the file on posted on it.