Glossary

Manufacturing performance measurement

Manufacturing performance measurement is the use of metrics to assess production efficiency, quality, delivery, and resource use.

Buyer Proof and Enablement Scrap, Rework and Cost of Poor Quality Reduction MES, ERP, PLM and Data Integration

Manufacturing performance measurement is the structured use of metrics to assess how well production operations are performing against defined objectives. It commonly covers efficiency, throughput, quality, delivery, cost, equipment use, labor use, and other operational signals.

In industrial systems, these measurements are often drawn from MES, ERP, QMS, SCADA, maintenance, and planning systems. Common examples include OEE, yield, scrap rate, rework, cycle time, downtime, schedule adherence, first-pass quality, and cost of poor quality. The specific measures depend on the production model, product risk, regulatory expectations, and management needs.

Manufacturing performance measurement is not the same as performance improvement. Measurement provides the data and indicators used to understand current performance, detect variation, and support decisions. Improvement methods such as Lean, Six Sigma, CAPA, or kaizen may use those measures, but they are separate activities.

The term should also be distinguished from purely financial reporting. Financial measures may be part of the performance view, but manufacturing performance measurement usually includes operational and quality data from the shop floor and supporting systems.

There is no single correct cadence. In aerospace, executives typically need a layered review rhythm: daily for critical escapes and major disruptions, weekly for plant-level trends and containment status, and monthly to quarterly for structural COPQ drivers and investment decisions. The right cadence depends on data quality, process maturity, and how quickly corrective actions can be validated.

What is the difference between rework and repair?

In regulated manufacturing, rework means bringing a nonconforming product back into specification using the original, approved process (or a pre-validated variant). Repair means making a nonconforming product usable by adding, patching, or modifying it in a way that does not fully restore it to the original design intent or specifications, and typically reduces or limits its allowable use. The distinction has implications for risk, documentation, validation, and customer and regulatory approvals.

Why are scrap decisions in MRO often harder than in OEM production?

Scrap decisions in MRO are usually harder because the part history, actual condition, repairability, and operational urgency are less predictable than in OEM production. The decision often depends on maintenance lineage, approved repair data, inspection evidence, parts availability, turnaround impact, and whether traceability is complete enough to support a defensible disposition.

What role does root cause rigor play in preventing recurring scrap on flight-critical components?

Rigor in root cause analysis is a primary control against recurring scrap on flight‑critical components, but only when it is systematic, evidence-based, and tied to controlled implementation and verification of corrective actions. In regulated, mixed-system environments, weak problem definition, poor data, and bypassing change control are common failure modes that allow the same defects to return.

Related Glossary

Sensitivity analysis

Sensitivity analysis examines how changes in input assumptions affect an output, model result, or operational outcome.

Rework impact

Rework impact is the effect that rework has on cost, schedule, capacity, quality, and traceability.

Association rule mining

A data mining method that finds items, events, or conditions that frequently occur together in data.