Quality issues can make you want to slam your head on the keyboard, but beneath the frustration, the real question is how to fix them.
A skilled converter will meet your quality expectations, even if that means working with you to adjust your design or their processes. To facilitate this, Strouse’s team evaluates designs before production and optimizes them for manufacturing.
Investing in the product development stage is essential to preventing quality issues—whether early on or when revising the current process. Let’s examine some problems you might encounter and how to avoid them.
If you (or a loved one) are well-versed in custom product manufacturing, you’ve likely seen the following:
These quality issues are oftentimes preventable given proper planning, resources, and parties involved.
Quality issues can originate from multiple sources, but design flaws and converting quality issues are the most common. Knowing where these issues originate will help you understand how to fix them.
Not all designs are pleasant to adapt to a machine; certain product features may cause quality issues when run on a press without any preparation, modification, or adjustments.
Ideally, your converter will inform you of any design issues before adapting it to full-scale production. Strouse’s engineers ensure this by reviewing client designs, discussing specifications and tolerances, and developing a product and process to fit your unique design specifications.
In converting, simple design adjustments can mean the difference between a costly, complex, difficult-to-build part and a far simpler, cheaper, and more effective process. If you are open to design suggestions, we recommend choosing a converter whose engineering team will work to improve your design for production.
“We ask ourselves, can we improve this through our processes, production, and know-how? And if so, are there better, less-expensive ways to improve this design?” —Scott Chambers, Strouse VP of Sales & Marketing.
Converting is a highly precise process requiring hundreds of adjustments to keep a machine press running as planned. Without early testing or proper attention to detail, you might find yourself fighting a high percentage of flawed parts. The most effective way to prevent quality issues is by prototyping your design early on. Prototyping is a great way to test out different specifications, tolerances, as well as potential new features.
If your product is particularly challenging, either in material or design, converters may recommend a trial to prove out feasibility.
Although the thought of a trial may make the company’s credit card burn in your pocket, it’s a far more appealing choice than accidentally wasting thousands of dollars and hours on an unproven custom manufacturing process.
Preventing issues comes down to the following:
When you follow these steps, you will decrease your chances of encountering devastating quality problems later on.
If you’re looking for a converter, consider Strouse. Our engineers will help optimize your design for manufacturability and build a tested production process.
You can also visit our Capabilities page to learn more about what we do and how we can help.