Product quality investigation use case

Use case scenarios demonstrate when and how to use the Product non-conformance application to create a product quality investigation report. It provides practical examples of common product quality investigation situations.

Scenario-Airbag sensor defect investigation

This use case is a follow-up use case from Product non-conformance, see Product non-conformance use case.

Alectri detects airbag sensor defects affecting 2024 Voltar VS vehicles. Quality teams must conduct a comprehensive investigation with cross-functional coordination, structured root cause analysis, and financial governance. Key challenges include:

The quality investigation team encounters some challenges:

• Communication silos: fragmented communication across engineering, quality, and finance teams
• RCA methodology: lack of structured root cause analysis methodology.
• Cost visibility: missing visibility into total quality costs.
• Approval authority: No clear governance for remediation action approval.

Solution

Manage the quality investigation through four key workflow phases:

1. Investigate: Able Tutor (Quality Lead) opens the investigation case and creates analysis tasks (sensor calibration, manufacturing process, supplier controls).
2. Analyze: Emily Cooper (Investigation Member) performs 8D analysis with Fishbone methodology to identify root causes and define corrective and preventive actions.
3. Coordinate: Establish RACI roles across Engineering, Supplier Quality, Manufacturing, and Dealer teams. Review impacted assets and create remediation actions.
4. Approve: Finance Lead reviews line-level charges for parts, labor, and process improvements, then approves remediation costs with full traceability.

The Product quality investigation provides real-time visibility into investigation status, root causes, and cost of quality (CoPQ) tracking across all remediation activities.

Benefits

Compare the impact of using the Product Quality Investigation application.

Table 1. Quality investigation benefits

Without MCO	With MCO Quality Investigation
Uncoordinated root cause analysis	Structured 8D methodology with Fishbone analysis identifies underlying issues.
Scattered corrective actions	Linked corrective and preventive actions with clear ownership and timelines.
Hidden quality costs	CoPQ tracking provides visibility across containment, remediation, and prevention activities.
Manual approval workflows	Line-level approval authority maintains cost governance and end-to-end traceability.

Outcome

Alectri completes the airbag sensor defect investigation with cross-functional coordination and structured analysis. Emily identifies root causes through 8D methodology, develops corrective and preventive actions, and raises a financial request for remediation. Finance approves line-level charges, maintaining cost governance. The investigation establishes preventive measures and provides end-to-end traceability from root cause identification through remediation completion.