Especially in these uncertain times with new LED screen projects few and far apart, can you really risk paying the balance and shipping a high price product without first having eyes on it?
What can go wrong?
I enjoy sharing our more spectacular or interesting FATs but these posts rarely give a hint of the work that goes into completing a professional FAT and they never include the issues we have found and have to work to resolve.
Bateman Consulting has been conducting FATs since 2006 but the roots of our FAT procedure originate in 1998 and while the inspection has adapted to cover new, smaller pitch and more creative products many of the same issues are found now as were 22 years ago. All the screens we inspect have already completed factory final quality control (FQC) and yet this year alone our FATs have uncovered a host of issues such as …
- Module flatness out of standard causing wide angle patchiness
- Variations in heights of LEDs in relation to mask causing patchiness
- Thermal patterns caused by local areas of panel or module being hotter than others.
- Gaps and steps between modules exceeding manufacturing standard causing visible lines.
- Wrong panel connector
- Wrong receiver card
- Dead LEDs or failing LEDs
- Defective modules or receiver cards
- Incorrect or defective calibration
- Handling damage such as scratches on cabinet or broken LEDs at edge of module or panel.
- Missing spares or equipment
What is the FAT?
During our factory acceptance test or FAT we conduct a detailed inspection of the finished screen, spare parts and accessories, against the agreed product specification, manufacturing standard and order item list. We also review the factory QC summary including aging report. We also report on general manufacturing quality and how the product performs visually based on our experience providing a detailed report and file of images / videos from the FAT.
How does the FAT help with corrective action?
Wherever possible we try to identify the root cause of any issues found and discuss corrective action. Most of the above issues can be resolved before the product leaves the factory and others which may be considered design related such as thermal pattern cannot be changed but may not be acceptable in the client’s application. It is better that the issues are known before a decision is made to ship rather than the issues being found when the goods arrive at the destination.
Is an FAT expensive?
We are based in Hong Kong and Shenzhen operating mainly in the LED screen manufacturing areas of Shenzhen, Huizhou and Dongguan, and being local can more easily adapt to sudden schedule changes which often leave overseas visiting technicians extending their stays and kicking their heals in hotels.
With low travel costs and less frequent need for hotel accommodation we are able to keep FAT costs reasonable and certainly less costly than flying overseas technicians into China.
Further it is always cheaper and faster for corrective action to be taken by the manufacturer before shipment than it is after the goods have arrived at the destination so the FAT could result in significant cost and time savings.
How to arrange an FAT?
Simply contact Dave Bateman at dave.b@chinasourcing.ws for a quotation. Please provide details of the factory or location, the product type, size of the screen and preferred FAT date.
We have resources available from mid October to conduct your FATs.