3 - Jacobs University

qualifications to perform the tasks assigned to them. This aspect is especially critical for the stable
business operations in developing regions which are subject to high personnel turnover (see Section
4.1). Personnel need to be regularly trained and should possess sufficient know-how about
suppliers’ products, frequently occurring problems, as well as the impact of the process on the
final quality. The facilities involved in the production should also be regularly controlled and their
ability to achieve the required quality level of the final products should be continuously monitored
and guaranteed. This is achieved through regular calibration of the machines and statistical control
of the most important process parameters, e.g. temperature, pressure, moisture, time, speed, chemical
composition, etc. Suppliers are also required to have the necessary testing equipment in place
and make sure during the series production that the respective quality requirements are achieved.
Moreover, material transportation between the individual processing stations on the work floor
should be implemented in an ergonomic way and should guarantee a continuous material flow.
Parts must be transported in suitable containers, which do not have negative impact on the quality
of the products, i.e. prevent the transported goods from pollution and damage. To assure traceability
each component has to be properly labeled. Volkswagen holds it for very important to have
easily recognizable identification of components used for reference or calibration, defective parts
as well as components, which need post processing. Such labeling is vital for preventing defective
parts to reach the final customer and for the subsequent analysis of the capability of the overall
production process. Suppliers are required to analyze the yield of the individual production steps
and to define appropriate actions to minimize the scrap rates. This is an important step towards
achieving continuous improvement of their overall process and accordingly lower prices of their
final products.
The third and final block of questions in the Volkswagen auditing questionnaire deals with
customer care and customer satisfaction. Volkswagen expects from its suppliers to be responsive
and react to customer complaints on short notice. In case of customer complaints the respective
problems have to be analyzed as quickly as possible and corrective actions have to be defined and
implemented accordingly. Suppliers have to define emergency plans for alternative ways of supply,
production, and transportation, which assure the continuous delivery of high-quality components
to their final customer even in the case of unexpected situations. These aspects are an essential
precondition for a healthy customer-supplier business relationship which has to be sustained on
the long term by any organization.
During a quality audit a supplier has to provide evidence that it has considered and adequately
implemented all customer requirements part of the audit questionnaire and thus assure Volkswagen
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