Customer requirements

There are a number of things to consider, but the most important is understanding the needs of the customer. Is the total sugar content of the product required or the lactose content The level of uncertainty in the result that is acceptable also helps focus on the choice of method. Once the method is chosen and validated, it is then important to ensure that all of the equipment is available and in a proper state of calibration. Then, all that remains is to have sufficient trained staff to carry out the analysis. Once the experimental results have been obtained and the data treatment is complete, the report can be written. The report also has to meet the customer requirements and should be written in an unambiguous way which is clear to the non-specialist. 

To ensure that analytical results are fit for purpose, there has to be a discussion with the customer before the analysis is started. You must remember that a customer who is a member of your laboratory is just as important as the customer from outside your organization. 

It goes without saying that you should make all measurements to the best of your ability. However, a value to the highest level of precision and trueness is not always required. The aim is that the result produced should be accurate enough to be of use to the customer, for the intended purpose (see Chapter 4). Customers may want the technical details of the method used but more often this will not be 

Forensic analysis is usually required for the collection of data in the course of determining whether legislation has been infringed. The customer requires that, above all, there is an unbroken chain of evidence from the time the samples were taken to the presentation of evidence in courts of law. In the laboratory this will include documentation and authorization for sample receipt, sample transfer, sub-sampling, laboratory notebooks, analytical procedures, calculations and observations, witness statements and sample disposal. All of these aspects can be called as evidence in court. 

As an analyst you understand the meaning of the scientific data you produce. However, it must be remembered that laymen often do not and so the data need to be documented in a form that is easily understood. For example, the chromatographic analysis of hydrocarbon oil from an oil spill can produce a chromatogram with over 300 components. Explaining the significance of such data to a jury will be of little benefit. However, overlaying it with a standard trace can demonstrate pictorially whether there is a similarity or not. The customer requires information from the analyst to prove a point. If the data are not fully documented, then the point cannot be proven. A customer who has confidence in a laboratory will always return. 

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This special inspection problem concerns the detection of cracks in the root of turbine blades. The customer required a fast and reliable inspection on the wings", i.e. without dismounting the blades from the engine. 

The system allows the inspeetion of all the blade roots of the whole engine within less than one hour. This is a very fast method which fulfils all the customer requirements concerning reliability, inspeetion speed and the inspeetion on the wings". 

Listed conditions are typical final design conditions are established by customer requirements. 

Protocol problems may exist for market researchers in a company. Often company poHcy dictates that any call on a customer requires the agreement of the sales department and the presence of a sales representative at the actual meeting. Similarly, if calls are to be made on suppHers, purchasing department approval and attendance are often necessary. These rules can delay or lessen opportunities for a useful dialogue but their existence must be recognized and coped with in the field. 

Some standard industrial quality specifications for n- and isobutyraldehyde are given in Table 3. Many times, however, specification limits are tailored to individual customer requirements. 

Turboexpander manufacturers and dry gas seal vendors recognizing the above limitation, worked together to develop a dry gas seal design that is an excellent compromise given the space limitation and customer requirement. Figure 6-16 shows a cross-section of the dry gas seal developed for turboexpanders. 

The initial design is analysed using CA at a component level for their combined ability to achieve the important customer requirement, this being the tolerance of 0.2 mm for the plunger displacement. Only those characteristics involved in the tolerance stack are analysed. The worst case tolerance stack model is used as directed by the customer. This model assumes that each component tolerance is at its maximum or minimum limit and that the sum of these equals the assembly tolerance, given by equation 2.16 (see Chapter 3 for a detailed discussion on tolerance stack models) ... 

Phase 4 - Production Planning. The critical process operations from Phase 3 are ranked with production requirement issues, ultimately translating the important customer requirements to production planning and establishing important actions to be taken. 

Design requirements (HOWs) Customer requirements (WHATs) to o 0> o c (Q t o Q. Customer rating... 

Ability to reproduce identically and without waste products which satisfy customer requirements. 

Job specifications should be reviewed. For larger sites job specifications may be many inches thick, and for small sites job specifications may not exist. For those sites where job specifications do exist, they should be studied in detail. The specifications will typically supply the author(s) of the HASP with pertinent information about the customer requirements. 

While not measurable, these subjective terms enable customers to rate products and services on the extent to which they satisfy their requirements and are therefore suitable for their purpose. However, to the company supplying products and services, a more precise means of measuring quality is needed. To the supplier, a quality product is one that meets in full the perceived customer requirements. 

Knowledge that the declared intentions will satisfy customer requirements if met. (This may be gained from personal assessment or reliance on independent certifications.)... 

Requirement for a quality plan that includes customer requirements and references to appropriate technical specifications... 

Requirement for compliance with customer requirements for internal system and process auditor qualification... 

Conformance with ISO/TS 16949 for third party certification shall be based on objective evidence of meeting each applicable requirement including customer-specific requirements at the time of the audit. The auditor needs to determine specific customer requirements that apply and verify compliance with each requirement - not a sample. If the supplier has several different customers then compliance with the requirements of each customer has to be demonstrated. 

Have all shifts been staffed with personnel with authority for accepting product as meeting customer requirements ... 

Do the reviews ensure that the customer requirements are adequately defined and that the company has the capability to meet them prior to submitting a tender or the acceptance of a contract ... 

Quality policy - the organization s intentions with respect to meeting customer requirements, needs, and expectations... 

VJe will satisfy our customers requirements on time, every time, and within budget. 

Declare the intention to identify and satisfy customer requirements. 

In the upper diagram each supplier individually interprets the customer s requirements and either imposes additional requirements or neglects to pass on requirements. The net result at the end of the chain is that the external customer (the one who buys from the organization) does not get satisfaction from the transaction. In the lower diagram, each supplier refers back to the external customer s requirements to calibrate the internal customer s demands. This ensures that the net result matches exactly what the customer ordered. In reality, such calibration should not be necessary if the internal customers demonstrate traceability to external customer requirements. This can be achieved through process reviews performed in each process before instructions are transmitted to subsequent processes. 

Don t use customer procedures and forms within your processes. Translate customer requirements into your language and visa versa. 

Ensure products and services satisfy customer requirements Maintain the standards which you have been successful in achieving Improve standards in those areas where performance is lacking Harmonize policies and practices across all departments Improve efficiency... 

A system is an ordered set of ideas, principles, and theories or a chain of operations that produces specific results to be a chain of operations, the operations need to work together in a regular relationship. A quality system is not a random collection of procedures (which many quality systems are) and therefore quality systems, like air conditioning systems, need to be designed. All the components need to fit together, the inputs and outputs need to be connected, sensors need to feed information to processes which cause changes in performance and all parts need to work together to achieve a common purpose i.e. to ensure that products conform to specified requirements. You may in fact already have a kind of quality system in place. You may have rules and methods which your staff follow in order to ensure product conforms to customer requirements, but they may not be documented. Even if some are documented, unless they reflect a chain of operations that produces consistent results, they cannot be considered to be a system. 

ISO 9001 requires consideration to be given to the preparation of quality plans. However, the supplementary requirement in ISO/TS 16949 requires the supplier to have a quality plan which includes customers requirements and references to appropriate technical specifications. 

Quality plans are needed when the work you intend to carry out requires detailed planning beyond that already planned for by the quality system. The system will not specify everything you need to do for every job. It will usually specify only general provisions which apply in the majority of situations. You will need to define the specific documentation to be produced, tests, inspections, and reviews to be performed, and resources to be employed. The contract may specify particular standards or requirements that you must meet and these may require additional provisions to those in the quality system. Although ISO/TS 16949 requires the plan to include customers requirements, the intention is not that these requirements are reproduced if provided in a documented form by the customer, but that a cross reference is made in the plan together with any other relevant specifications referred to in the contract. However, when constructing the plan, it would make sense to refer to specific customer requirements and provide a response that indicates your intentions regarding those requirements. 

What your customer wants to be verified to meet the need for confidence. (The customer may not demand you demonstrate compliance with all customer requirements, only those which he/she judges as critical.)... 

The standard requires the supplier to have a process for product realization to deliver products on time to customer requirements including product design where applicable. 

How do you manage the product realization process so that it delivers products and processes that meet customer requirements ... 

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