Computer-Aided Quality Assurance / CAQ – Smart Factory Glossary

Computer-Aided Quality Assurance, or CAQ for short, is about using computers to assure quality in manufacturing. It is an essential part of quality management, which is either implemented as stand-alone solution or integrated in a Manufacturing Execution System (MES). A CAQ system usually provides functions for in-production inspection, initial sample inspection, goods receipt inspection, and goods issue inspection. Also, complaint and test equipment management as well as supplier evaluation are typically included in a Computer-Aided Quality Assurance.

The quality inspection of an intermediate or finished product can be performed by the operators themselves and be integrated into the production workflow. This means that operators check defined product specifications on their own. Details on each inspection step are displayed to the operators on the shop floor terminal. Thanks to the step-by-step guidance with precise inspection instructions including drawings and product information, a reliable computer-aided quality assurance is possible. With the use of digital measuring equipment, the measurement result is directly returned to the CAQ system and the risk of transposed figures, typing errors, and careless mistakes is considerably reduced.

 

Quality Assurance with MES

Quality Assurance, as many other MES functions, looks at the entire process from planning and collecting data to evaluating the results. In an innovative Manufacturing Execution System such as HYDRA X by MPDV, the CAQ applications are assigned to the Quality Management category. The CAQ functions of the MES HYDRA X include the following features:

• Functions for initial sample and goods issue inspection as well as planning of in-production inspection
• Flexible definition of quality characteristics, for example inspection charts, visual defects recording, or sampling
• Creating inspection due dates with intervals based on time, quantity, and events
• Intuitive inspection data collection with specific information on the inspection directly on the shop floor terminal or at the inspection station
• Connection of complex measuring machines and automatic transfer of measured values from digital measuring equipment
• Detailed evaluations, diagrams, control charts, and reports, and generation of inspection certificates

The ecosystem of the Manufacturing Integration Platform (MIP) offers many Manufacturing Apps supporting a Computer-Aided Quality Assurance.

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