Why transparency is the best ingredient for quality in manufacturing

The story of the failed cake and the lost batch

I like to bake from time to time. I weigh the ingredients, follow the recipe strictly, and look forward to the result. And then half the cake is burnt. Frustrating! In a private household, this is annoying; in industrial manufacturing, the “burnt cake” – the scrap – is a serious and costly problem.

The crucial difference: When baking at home, we usually know what went wrong (in my case, I need a new oven). In the complex world of production, however, where thousands of parts are manufactured in dozens of steps from different batches, troubleshooting quickly becomes a nightmare.

The mammoth task of troubleshooting in the paper age

Imagine a customer complaining about a batch of 10,000 parts. The reason: a material defect. Now the hunt begins:

• Which batch of material was used?
• When was this batch processed?
• Which machine was used for production?
• Was the machine used before or after the last maintenance?
• Which supplier delivered the batch?

In many companies, this means poring over thick folders, comparing Excel spreadsheets, and interviewing employees. This manual tracking is not only time-consuming, it also ties up valuable skilled workers, costs nerves, and, worst of all, leads to long delays in fixing the problem and making a new delivery. Customer trust is quickly lost.

From baking recipe to digital twin: The power of seamless recording

This is where digital batch recording comes in, implemented by modern MES (Manufacturing Execution System) and PPS systems such as tetys. We are not talking about simple warehouse management here, but about end-to-end, intelligent transparency.

Basically, you create a “digital twin” of your product. This digital log knows:

1. Goods receipt: When did the batch of raw material A arrive and from which supplier?
2. Processing: Which product batch was manufactured from it, in which production step, on which machine, by which operator, and under which parameters (temperature, humidity, etc.)?
3. End product: Which end products contain exactly this batch of raw material?

Safety and efficiency at the touch of a button

The greatest strength of this system is its speed. When an error occurs, analysis is no longer a matter of weeks of detective work, but a matter of seconds.

• Quality assurance can immediately narrow down the cause of the error (e.g., “The reject rate only increased for material batch B, which was processed on machine 4.”).
• Production planning can react immediately and shut down the affected machine or material to prevent further scrap.
• Recalls can be limited precisely to the product batches that are actually affected – this saves enormous costs, conserves resources, and minimizes damage to reputation.

Looking ahead: Batch recording as the gateway to the Digital Product Passport (DPP)

The relevance of digital traceability is growing rapidly. The European Green Deal brings with it the Digital Product Passport (DPP).

The DPP will become mandatory for many product groups, especially in industry, and requires complete documentation of:

• Origin and material composition.
• Repairability and service life.
• Recyclability and environmental impact.

Without clean, digital batch recording, the creation of this passport is hardly conceivable. Those who already anchor transparency in their processes today not only meet current quality standards, but also secure a decisive competitive advantage for the future by proactively fulfilling compliance requirements.

The human element: From frustration to expertise

Ultimately, it all comes down to people.

When quality management and production staff know that they won't be buried in mountains of paperwork when problems arise, but will receive an immediate, informed response, employee satisfaction increases. Specialists can concentrate on solving problems instead of wasting valuable time on administrative searches.

Digital batch recording is therefore not only a tool for quality control and increasing efficiency; it is a sign of trust in the processes and an appreciation of the expertise of the people who deliver top performance in production every day.

The bottom line is that I can quickly review and clarify problems and processes at home so that the cake turns out right next time. You should make your life easier in your production facility with smart tools!