As a performance evaluation tool, the industrial diagnosis is an essential step for all industry players. But how does this audit work? What are the key steps? What are its objectives?

We take stock of the progress of the industrial diagnosis.

What is an industrial diagnosis?

An industrial diagnosis, or industrial audit, is an approach aimed at analysing and evaluating the performance, operations, processes and working methods within an industrial company, throughout the production chain.

This diagnosis is generally carried out by external consultants (auditors, industrial management consultants, industrial performance experts, etc.) on a periodic basis.

– Why carry out an industrial diagnosis?

Carrying out an industrial diagnosis meets multiple objectives, including:

Evaluate the efficiency of operations throughout the production chain;
Identify the strengths and weaknesses of the company;
Target areas for improvement;
Prioritize corrective actions to quickly improve performance;
Identify bottlenecks, failures, and potential waste;
Optimize tools, methods and workflows on the production line;
Reduce production times;
Reduce costs ;
Limit waste;
Limit technical flaws;
Improve the quality management system ;
Strengthen customer satisfaction ;
Strengthen the control of technical, regulatory and occupational risks;
…

Carrying out an industrial diagnosis is therefore a key step in boosting the company’s performance, its competitiveness, profitability and to identify opportunities for growth and innovation. It is also a An essential decision-making tool, which helps guide the company’s major strategic orientations.

The key steps of the industrial diagnosis

Industrial diagnosis is a highly structured process and is punctuated by several key steps:

1. Define the objectives of the industrial diagnosis

First and foremost, an essential preliminary step is the definition of the objectives of this industrial diagnosis. It is important to answer several fundamental questions:

What are the current challenges?
Which processes need improvement?
What are the most critical aspects of production?
What are the expectations in terms of performance and quality?
Who will be the stakeholders involved in the industrial diagnosis?
…

This reflection will make it possible to guide the audit, to identify the priority areas of evaluation as well as the scope of intervention of the industrial diagnosis and the related strategic issues.

2. Identify KPIs

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will also need to be defined and implemented ) that will be used during the diagnosis to evaluate performance. They must be aligned with the objectives defined beforehand.

Here are some examples of indicators for measuring industrial performance:

Scrap rate;
Machine downtime;
Average production time per product;
Overall rate of return;
Production cost per unit;
Rate of occupational accidents;
Customer return rate;
Inventory turnover rate;
Maintenance rate;
Rate of orders delivered on time;
…

3. Collect and analyze data

It will then be a question of collecting all the quantitative and qualitative data necessary to carry out the industrial diagnosis, from all the stakeholders:

quality control reports;
performance records;
production plans;
interviews with operational teams and local managers ;
data from production management software (ERP or WMS);
equipment performance data;
equipment maintenance data;
customer testimonials;
visual observations, on-site;
…

This data can then be carefully analyzed to identify flaws, sources of malfunctions and bottlenecks.

4. Produce an industrial diagnostic report

Once the assessment is finalised, the auditor will write a diagnostic report which will highlight the lessons learned from the evaluation, the weak points as well as the corrective actions and possible recommendations. This result will then be presented to the company’s management, which will then be able to decide on the adjustments to be made to rectify the flaws highlighted.

Depending on the results of the audit, the corrective actions will be different:

Reorganize processes;
Acquire new equipment;
Strengthen maintenance operations;
Integrate new technologies to optimize and accelerate production processes (artificial intelligence tools ; augmented reality; connected objects; Internet of Things (IoT…) ;
Train staff;
Optimize production and logistics flows;
Reduce production time;
Improve performance management through agile methods (lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, QRQC – Quick Response Quality Control, etc.)

5. Monitor, evaluate and adjust corrective actions

Like all audits, the industrial diagnosis must be part of a continuous improvement process. All changes made must be subject toRigorous follow-up and possible adjustments based on identified progress. Performance indicators will need to be closely monitored, continuously, to analyze in real time the evolution of performance at all stages of the production chain.

How does an industrial diagnosis work?