As a signatory to SC21, a company commits to the implementation of consistent quality and delivery measures which will enable them to measure (and manage) customer needs in a highly competitive global market.

Ultimately the key goal is, in time, to achieve zero defects and 100% on-time delivery (in both product and service environments) at all stages of the product/service lifecycle.

Finally it is important to note that the measures should be based on a 12-month rolling average.

The following definitions will be used by SC21 companies:

Customer acceptance or reject rate is a good indicator of quality customer satisfaction in the aerospace industry, these together enable customer satisfaction to be gauged and acted on. Meeting quality targets not only improves customer satisfaction but also reduces your costs by eliminating scrap, rework and unnecessary inspection.

'rejects' = units out of specification and not accepted on concession.

Delivery schedule achievement is fundamental to a high performing supply chain and poor performance in this area has a detrimental effect on both customer satisfaction and customer performance.

Positive improvement trends in quality and delivery measures are achieved by continual improvement of the processes that contribute to any shortfall in their performance. 

As SC21 companies improve their processes this will reduce rework and scrap, the need to hold additional inventory, reduce overtime and expediting - all of which increase costs in the supply chain. A number of internal measures are necessary to ensure that quality and delivery performance are achieved through excellent performance rather than increasing costs. Both the aerospace and automotive sector have for some time promoted an agreed set of measures that SC21 companies may wish to use to assess their internal performance. These metrics include:

• stock turns
• value-added
• employee training and development
• floor space utilisation

Additions to these would be:

• incidence of quality rejection within the customer network
• unplanned downtime

• scrap and rework

More detailed information on metrics can be found at University of Bath website . Click here.