2020 Sustainability Report
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Quality

We are shaping our quality strategies in parallel with FCA’s Global Quality System that aims to ensure that production and services conform to superior quality norms. Our products comply with legal and sectoral regulations, and our mission is to produce products that are reliable in terms of physical norms and that perform better than their rivals.

We have updated our quality policy in line with our vision, corporate culture and values, so that it can address current trends and expectations and meet the requirements mentioned in the updated version of ISO 9001:2015.

Our quality policy is centered around our customers. Accordingly, in our diagram, we have summarized our basic principles under seven groups, and highlighted “Q”uality.

We follow numerous management quality standards while carrying out our production processes, which helps us enhance our capability to respond to possible risks and strengthen our quality of management. We evaluate our performance through certification, external audit, and verification procedures, and take steps to make improvements. We avoid risks by monitoring all of our processes through WPI (Work Place Integration) methodology. The IMDS Program enables us to control chemicals and prohibited substances in our supply chain.

QUALITY World Publishes Our Guarantee Expenditure Estimation Module

The paper about Guarantee Expenditure Estimation Model developed by Quality Department in cooperation with Information and Communication Technologies Department was published in the July-August 2020 issue of Quality World magazine as an inspiring case study.

Our project that won the grand prize in the Improvement System category in 2019 International Quality Awards aims to use artificial intelligence and data science in the automotive sector to produce higher-quality products that meet customers’ expectations at a more advanced level. Artificial intelligence and data science help us produce more accurate estimations about possible quality-related problems that may occur in the future, based on currently available data. As a result, more effective solutions are created at the early phases of production process, and customer satisfaction becomes sustainable even before the vehicle is delivered to the customer. 

Contribution to Quality Literature

In 2020, several papers were written about the quality projects conducted in Tofaş, which were then published in prominent scientific journals from around the world.

These publications can be listed as follows:

1)   Publication Name: A decision support system for proactive failure prevention: a case in a leading automotive company

      Content: This study focuses on production-related chaos in the automotive sector, and aims to develop a multi-purpose Decision Support System (DSS) to estimate the quality and quantity of malfunction risks associated with the work stations used in production.

      Authors: Armağan Altınışık / Quality Engineering Director, Özcan Çavuşoğlu / Quality Method & Planning Manager

      Published on: Journal of Enterprise Information Management/29.01.20201)

2)   Publication Name: The seven-step failure diagnosis in automotive industry

      Content: Within the scope of the project, a seven-step approach was developed for complicated and cross-functional diagnosis, based on the first two phases of universal problem solving approach.

      Authors: Armağan Altınışık / Quality Engineering Director

      Published on: Measurement Journal – Elsevier /29.06.2020

3)   Publication Name: A comparison of off-line laser scanning measurement capability with coordinate measuring machines

      Content: The paper compares the capabilities and uncertainties of CMM and Laser Tracker measurement systems through BIW (complete body).

      Authors: Armağan Altınışık / Quality Engineering Director, Emre Bolova / Product Quality Engineering Expert

      Published on: Measurement Journal – Elsevier/20.07.2020

4)   Publication Name: Failure prediction in electrical connector assembly: a case in automotive assembly process

      Content: The paper focuses on defining, prioritizing, and verifying the critical factors with regards to the complexity of electrical connector assembly process.

      Authors: Armağan Altınışık / Quality Engineering Director, Utku Yıldırım / Production Quality Engineering Expert

      Published on: Assembly Automation/18.09.2020

Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Certificate Issued by the Ministry of Commerce:

In 2014 we received our internationally acknowledged AEO certificate, which is issued by the Ministry of Commerce for the companies that are engaged in foreign trade activities, with the aim of facilitating their customs procedures and providing them with some privileges.

We have successfully passed our “on-site audit”, which is conducted by the auditors from the Ministry of Commerce at five-year intervals as part of our liability as a AEO certificate owner.

Furthermore, upon request of the Ministry of Commerce, we have conducted the first pilot scheme of “Onsite Imports Clearance for Manufacturer-Exporters” project in Turkey, which was launched in 2019, as a result of which we were given a Certificate of Appreciation by the same Ministry for our contribution to the process from preparation of the legislation to implementation thereof at a national level.

On top of that we have successfully completed our application and audit processes for “onsite imports clearance” and “onsite exports clearance” authorizations, and became the first automotive company and one of the leaders in Turkey to complete these processes. This procedure provides us with flexibility, saves costs and time, and simplifies our export processes as well as the processes we use to supply imported materials.

TSE (Turkish Standards Institution) CoP (Conformity of Production) Audit:

Between June 8 and 12, we successfully passed our periodical CoP (Conformity of Production) audit conducted by TSE (Turkish Standards Institution) on behalf of the Ministry of Industry and Technology, and received our Declaration of Conformity certificate, which will be valid for two years.

Thanks to thorough preparations, as well as rapid and satisfactory feedbacks during the audit, we have gone through a very efficient audit process.

Furthermore, performed remotely due to Covid-19 pandemic, the audit has opened new gates for us in CoP audit.

FCA’s Best Quality Performance Figures

According to 2020 mid-year results of NCBS (New Car Buyer Survey), conducted by independent survey companies, our QUBO model commercial vehicle was listed in the 1st quartile, indicating the highest quality score.

The 2020 year-end results of FTC (First Time Capability) Quality Indicator, on the other hand, point out that our passenger models reached the best model level in FCA EMEA region.

According to 2020 year-end results of Functional and Dynamic Vehicle Quality Assessment that reflects the viewpoints of customers, TOFAŞ reached the best factory level in FCA EMEA region.

And finally, according to 2020 year-end results of Vehicle Body Geometry Quality Assessment, Egea Sedan model became the 2nd best model in FCA EMEA region. 

Connected Supplier Brings Tofaş the First Place in CQI International Quality Awards

With its “Connected Supplier” project Tofaş became the winner of the Improvement System category in 2020 International Quality Awards organized by Chartered Quality Institute, one of the world’s most important Quality Institutes. In the category that witnessed a competition among 10 projects from five countries, our creative and unique point of view was praised by the jury. Our Warranty 4.0 Projection System project was the winner in the same category last year.

Digital Quality Management

Data associated with all new projects and mass production processes are kept in Tofaş’s digital platform, which is used to manage quality data. The platform with integrated WCM QCS tools is capable of managing more than 40 error channels in and out of the company. Potential risks are also managed through the same system.

This software offers us various advantages, including:

Managing WCM QCS activities in a digital medium.

The International Quality Awards ceremony was organized in London, capital of the United Kingdom, on November 27 by The CQI (Chartered Quality Institute) one of the leading Quality Institutes. It involved 103 projects from 10 different countries, competing in 7 main categories, and TOFAŞ Quality Team won the award in the “Improvement System” category outdistancing its international rivals.

The advanced level Machine Learning and Quality 4.0 application under the Warranty 4.0 Projection System was described by all jury members as an exemplary project.

“Digitalization” has been treated as a strategy by the Quality Directorate since 2017. The main objectives of this strategy are: 

Therefore, in order to attain our long-term quality goals in that context, the quality directorate and other production units work together in the following fields:  

Risk Management

The risks are identified and necessary actions are taken and followed up in accordance with the risk and opportunity assessment method defined for all processes in parallel with the perspective provided by the revised ISO 9001:2015. Periodic reviews are done to identify new risks and opportunities.

Risks and opportunities associated with our processes are defined in accordance with ISO 9001:2015, and relevant activities and follow-up procedures are carried out accordingly. New risks and opportunities, on the other hand, are defined via periodical reviews.

We analyze all processes associated with quality management falling under the scope of Quality Directorate and other departments with a strategic perspective using Hoshin Kanri methodology. Accordingly, we investigate potential risks, possible impacts, and measurements required to be taken, while also checking the risk maturity levels regularly. 

Stakeholder Engagement

Tofaş demands its stakeholders in the value chain to adopt Tofaş’s business ethics and working norms, and to focus on constantly developing themselves. Within this scope, our objective is to improve the product and service quality of our suppliers, i.e. the most significant factor of our value chain, and we attach a great significance to this objective.

Accordingly, the Connected Supplier event was organized to produce low-cost technological solutions to quality problems, and attracted a large turnout by our suppliers.