With the manufacturing industry’s increasing reliance on technology, companies expect their quality teams to maintain the highest standards at every production stage. This objective is possible through integrated quality management solutions like DELMIA Apriso.
DELMIA Apriso provides a platform that enables robust quality management through a modular system. The platform ensures manufacturers can proactively monitor and analyze quality performance, minimizing defects and optimizing compliance. This article presents how configuration, inspection planning, execution, and analytics tools enhance quality control.
The Quality Control module in DELMIA Apriso is one of the core components of the DELMIA Manufacturing Operations Management (MOM) platform, designed to work seamlessly with other DELMIA Apriso modules. The module creates a central digital thread to support inspection planning, test execution, defect management, and visual tracking.
Quality Control interconnects with other DELMIA Apriso features, ensuring that quality is measured and enforced across the entire production lifecycle. This outcome is achieved through the quality management capabilities, which are structured across self-contained modules that interact with each other.
In DELMIA Apriso, quality management is supported through several modules, including Quality Planning, Quality, Containment Management, and Issue Management. The first two address the core activities of configuration and execution:
To facilitate quality management in DELMIA Apriso, the main Quality Control module comprises additional modules. This modularity enables manufacturers to implement only the features they need and scale over time as their quality strategy evolves.
There are two ways to access the Quality Configuration screens in the Quality Control module.
In DELMIA Apriso’s Quality Control module, characteristics are core attributes that must be measured or monitored as part of the quality process. They play a crucial role in helping manufacturers maintain high standards of product quality and compliance. By defining what needs to be measured or monitored during inspections, characteristics enable manufacturers to track quality parameters consistently and with precision.
Characteristics serve two primary functions: They can either be defined as custom properties assigned to specific entities or used as quality parameters that are measured and evaluated against predefined limits during inspection execution. For DELMIA users, they provide a flexible and scalable way to capture both quantitative and qualitative data, supporting real-time decision-making, traceability, and continuous improvement.
Characteristics have:
Inspection-type characteristics can be set up for manual input or automatic calculation to facilitate real-time data acquisition and ensure traceability. While defining characteristics as calculated can be achieved using standard operation, this action requires development skills and needs to be performed through a separate development process.
Moreover, limits can be set for quantitative characteristics of the variable type, including:
Characteristics can also be flagged to ensure that the highest standards are met through quality management in DELMIA Apriso. The flags, codes, and equipment linking include:
In DELMIA Apriso’s Quality Control module, specifications offer a powerful way to organize and simplify quality inspection processes. They are used to group characteristics into reusable sets.
By grouping related characteristics into reusable sets, specifications reduce the complexity of creating and maintaining inspection plans. Instead of linking each characteristic individually, users can link an entire specification, thus saving time and ensuring consistency across inspections. This structured approach enhances clarity, promotes reusability, and ensures that quality test requirements are both scalable and easy to maintain.
Specifications contain one or more characteristics that define a complete quality test requirement set.
Each specification include a unique name, a localizable description, and support for versioning to track changes over time.
In DELMIA Apriso’s Quality Control module, business components cover only basic functionalities. Using custom standard operations and stored procedures is necessary for all other tasks. These include:
The Quality Inspection Planning functionality in the Quality Control module empowers manufacturers to design, automate, and manage inspection processes with flexibility and precision. Users can access the planning interface by:
By providing a structured, three-level architecture and robust automation capabilities, Quality Inspection Planning enables users to define inspection criteria based on real-time production conditions. This not only enhances consistency and traceability but also reduces manual effort, making it easier to uphold quality standards at every stage of production.
Inspection plans are built using a three-level structure that includes:
Furthermore, users can leverage specifications in inspection plans. There are two ways of doing this:
Inspection determinations define how inspection plans, specifications, or characteristics are selected automatically based on runtime conditions.
Inspection determinations use predefined selection criteria such as:
Inspection determinations can return:
The output from a determination is governed by the selected type (plan, specification, or characteristic).
Logic is implemented using standard business components and, where needed, custom standard operations for advanced automation. Determinations are automatically numbered via the INSPECTION_DETERMINATION sequence and can be maintained through a standard interface.
Once a determination outputs an inspection plan, schedule logic defines when it should activate based on a specified trigger. For each plan type, schedules specify the validity period (start and end dates) and the execution conditions.
The activation triggers in DELMIA Apriso’s Quality Control module can be:
Inspection plan schedules can be accessed via the details screen. Alternatively, but only for Inspection Plan type, they can be reached through the inspection determinations output tab.
It is also possible to assign multiple schedules to a single determination. In this case, the schedules will apply to all inspection plans generated from that determination.
While the configuration user interface (UI) for plan schedules is part of standard Business Process Packs (BPF DVD), runtime execution logic is not. Developers can use the standard operation APR_QMS_GenerateTimeDrivenDisp as their starting point and extend it to meet site-specific scheduling requirements.
In DELMIA Apriso’s Quality Control module, sampling procedures and schemes are used to define the sampling rules for quality tests. These procedures help establish consistent, rule-based approaches to quality management by specifying how many units should be inspected based on the type and severity of the test.
Sampling procedures can be accessed directly from the main menu in the DELMIA Apriso Desktop Client and are assigned to specific inspection characteristics.
Sampling procedure types can be:
Within a single sampling scheme, users can define multiple sampling tables to cover various inspection severities and Acceptable Quality Levels (AQL). Each scheme may include multiple tables that correspond to different severity/AQL combinations.
The scheme type determines how a sampling table is selected and can be based:
on inspection severity:
on scheme logic determined by:
Each sampling table row defines:
For example, if the defect count falls between A1 and R1, additional samples are drawn, and the process repeats up to seven cycles. This allows for more accurate results when variability exists in smaller lots or high-precision processes.
The Quality Control module in DELMIA Apriso provides robust tools for executing inspections efficiently and accurately. Through features like dispositions, template-based test execution, and flexible user interfaces, manufacturers can ensure consistent quality checks across work orders, batches, and serial numbers.
Whether using structured inspection plans or performing ad hoc tests, the system captures detailed results and verifies conformity against specifications. Combined with standard tools like the Quality Inspection Cockpit and custom-built interfaces tailored for shop-floor use, these capabilities support fast, reliable, and role-specific quality execution.
Dispositions are transactional records used to execute quality inspections. They define what will be inspected and how the results will be evaluated. Depending on requirements, use cases for dispositions include products, work centers, machines, work orders, serial numbers, and batches/lots.
Dispositions capture test results and determine whether items conform to the defined specification. They can be:
Depending on the specific needs of the users, the Control Quality module offers both standard and custom execution interfaces to support quality inspections, from detailed data entry for consultants to simplified, role-based screens designed for shop floor operators.
The Quality Inspection Cockpit is a standard screen used primarily by DELMIA Apriso consultants to manually enter inspection results. It supports the full structure of a disposition, including lines, tests, samples, and individual readings. While comprehensive, due to its complexity and the large number of input fields, it is not ideal for shop-floor personnel, who need clear and intuitive tools to save time and maintain high productivity.
For client-specific needs, custom-built interfaces are often developed using standard operations. These interfaces are designed with usability in mind, offering role-based access, simplified input screens, and real-time validation to streamline the inspection process. Typically, shop floor operators use these lighter, more intuitive UIs to quickly enter test readings and record any detected defects, ensuring fast and accurate data capture.
In DELMIA Apriso’s Quality Control module, quality dispositions are structured records used to execute and document inspections. To ensure both traceability and flexibility throughout the inspection process, dispositions are organized hierarchically. Their hierarchical structure comprises:
When it comes to storing results and calculating conformity, DELMIA Apriso allows for both manual data entry and automated inputs via business components. The system evaluates conformity by comparing the recorded results against predefined thresholds, including:
To support automation and improve efficiency, standard business components, such as CreateDispositionFromInspectionPlan, AddSample, and StoreTestResult, are available. These tools help streamline the disposition process from creation to results, ensuring accurate and consistent quality control.
Effective defect management is crucial for maintaining product quality and ensuring quick corrective actions. In DELMIA Apriso, the quality defect management functionality provides tools to capture, monitor, and trace defects across production processes. Defects can be logged individually for specific products, batches, or processes, ensuring full traceability and supporting root cause analysis.
For broader problem-solving, the Issue Management Cockpit allows multiple related defects to be grouped together, making it easier to address recurring or systemic problems. These grouped issues can then be resolved using defined Corrective and Preventive Action (CAPA) workflows, ensuring that both immediate fixes and long-term preventive measures are systematically implemented.
Depending on user needs and operational roles, the Quality Control module offers two primary ways of managing quality defects. Choosing between the standard Quality Defect Cockpit and simplified custom-built screens is possible. Combined with a robust data model and business components, the two available methods support full traceability, root cause analysis, and seamless integration with other production records.
In Delmia Apriso, a standard Quality Defect Cockpit is a built-in screen designed for full-feature defect creation and management. While feature-rich, its interface can be overwhelming for casual users or shop floor operators who need highly intuitive tools to remain efficient.
Quality Defect Cockpit includes:
Many DELMIA Apriso users prefer to build custom UIs using standard operations. These custom forms improve usability and streamline the defect logging process for end-users.
Custom screens provide:
New quality defects in DELMIA Apriso are typically built as standard operations and designed as easy-to-follow custom screens. Access to these screens is managed using standard role-based security, ensuring that only authorized personnel can create or view defect records. In addition to defect registration, similar custom screens are often developed for quality defect maintenance.
Quality defects are stored in dedicated tables with links to associated production entities. Their interface supports tasks such as editing defect details, updating statuses, and closing records. The data model supports:
Key tables used to manage quality defects in DELMIA Apriso are supported by standard business components that handle core defect management logic. They include:
The VQDT module provides a visual interface for recording quality defects by marking them directly on product images. This is especially useful in industries like aerospace & defense, medical devices, electronics, or automotive, where spatial context is crucial. This useful module enhances understanding of where defects occur and helps operators or quality inspectors pinpoint inconsistencies that may not be evident in tabular data.
Benefits coming from the use of product imagery and concentration analysis include:
Stored visual data can also be reused in SPC dashboards or corrective action reports, linking visual data with statistical trends.
The SPC module provides tools for applying statistical methods to production quality data. The module is divided into three key areas that cover admin activities, data calculation, and visualization.
The SPC module in DELMIA Apriso integrates tightly with quality inspection data, using results from dispositions and characteristics to perform statistical analysis. When SPC flags are enabled on variable characteristics, their values are automatically processed by the SPC engine. This integration supports real-time responses to quality issues, long-term process optimization, and compliance with standards such as Six Sigma and IATF 16949.
DELMIA Apriso provides powerful quality management capabilities that offer a robust foundation for building a proactive, data-driven quality culture. From configuring inspection characteristics to executing advanced sampling strategies and tracking visual defects, the Quality Control module enables manufacturers to monitor quality throughout the entire production process and across all its stages.
Quality Control in DELMIA Apriso allows users to:
To maximize the impact of quality management in DELMIA Apriso, it’s best to be leveraging the platform’s other difference-making features.
We recommend:
Specification limits define acceptable product ranges and are used to determine if a product conforms. Control limits are statistical thresholds that help monitor process stability in SPC.
Yes. Custom schemes can be configured using sampling procedures and schemes based on ISO 2859-1, including personalized AQLs and severity levels.
Defects can be tied directly to work orders, operations, serials, or equipment using business components like CreateQualityDefectForEntity_v96, ensuring full traceability.
SPC provides real-time visibility into process variation. By identifying trends and potential issues early, teams can take corrective action before defects occur, supporting lean and Six Sigma initiatives.
Yes. Dispositions can be automatically created using standard operations based on inspection plan schedules, events, or determinations.
