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Example sketch

Tracking complaints in manufacturing

The sentence it all started with

“Complaints reach us by email, phone and word of mouth on the shop floor, and nobody can say which ones are still open or what caused them.”

This sketch is an example. We wrote the sentence; the concept was generated by an AI and edited by us; our renderer draws it.

Example sketch – not a client project

ConceptCustomer service

Complaint File

Every complaint gets a file, an owner and a root cause.

How we understood your problem

A complaint today has no fixed home. It sits in inboxes, on notes and in people's heads. That leaves no answer to what is still open, let alone the more important question: which causes keep recurring. The customer notices in the waiting time.

Who it's for

  • Sales supportLogs complaints and keeps the customer updated.
  • Quality assuranceDetermines the cause, defines actions and closes the file.
  • Production managementSees which causes are recurring and which batches are affected.

Interface

Files

Open complaints

Open

14

3 older than 10 days

Time to first reply

1.5 days

−2 days since launch

Stages

Intake2

  • R-0412Dimensional deviation, flange
  • R-0413Scratch, visible part

Review2

  • R-0409Thread out of gauge
  • R-0410Wrong quantity

Action2

  • R-0405Coating peeling
  • R-0407Transport damage
Causes

Causes, last quarter

Complaints by cause

38this quarter

DimensionSurfacePackagingQuantityOther

Dimension: 13, Surface: 9, Packaging: 7, Quantity: 5, Other: 4

Flagged batches

BatchProductCasesDelivered to
C-2291Flange DN 8046 customers
C-2304Cover, coated32 customers
C-2277Threaded bushing M1229 customers

Effective actions

  • Flange gauge replaced zero cases since
  • Interleaving added for visible parts cases halved
  • Counting scale in shipping running for two weeks
File

R-0409 · Thread out of gauge

History

  1. Mon Received by phone, photo to follow
  2. Mon Interim update sent to customer
  3. Wed Retained sample inspected
  4. Thu Cause: tool wear

Define action

Cause
tool wear
Action
limit tool life
Owner
production management
Effectiveness checked on
open

Save

Evidence

Add photos or report

or browse

  • thread_customer.jpg from customer
  • report_r0409.pdf QA

Data model

Data model as a table
EntityFieldType
CustomercompanyText
contact_personText
ProductnumberText
nameText
BatchnumberText
productReference
produced_onDate
ComplaintcustomerReference
batchReference
stageText
received_onDate
photoFile
CausenameText
areaText
ActioncomplaintReference
textText
effectiveYes/No
costAmount
Relations between the entities
FromCardinalityToRelation
Customer1:nComplaintfiles
Product1:nBatchis produced as
Batch1:nComplaintis affected by
Cause1:nComplaintexplains
Complaint1:nActionleads to

Market value

What this problem would be worth on the market: how the product could be offered if it were sold. Not our price, and not an offer.

Flat monthly price per business

  • Files

    89 €

    per month · per business

  • Most likely fit

    Files + causes

    149 €

    per month · per business

Complaints affect the whole business. Per-user pricing would penalise simply reading along.

Roadmap

  1. Stage 1

    One place

    Every complaint has a file with a stage and an owner.

  2. Stage 2

    Causes

    Fixed cause catalogue, analysis by cause and batch.

  3. Stage 3

    Outward-facing

    Interim update and closing report go from the file to the customer.

Core features

  • Logged in a minuteCustomer, product, batch, photo. Nothing more is needed at intake.
  • Stages, not status labelsIntake, review, action, closed: everyone sees where a file stands.
  • Cause catalogueA short, fixed list of causes is what makes recurring patterns countable.
  • Batch linkageShows other deliveries from the same batch before the next customer calls.
  • Reply to the customerInterim update and closing report from the file, as PDF or email.

Deliberately left out

  • No full 8D report: a cause and one action are enough for most cases.
  • No credit notes: the decision is in the file; booking happens in the ERP system.
  • No supplier complaints: different parties, a different process, later.

What the AI does

Reads incoming emails and suggests product, batch and a cause from the catalogue.

What the AI explicitly does not doThe AI never sets the cause or replies to a customer. Both stay with quality assurance.

Integrations

  • ERP system (batches)
  • Email inbox
  • PDF export

Three questions we would ask you first

  1. Can batches be traced through to delivery today, and in which system?

  2. Who decides on replacement or credit, and must that approval be part of the flow?

  3. How many complaints occur per month: closer to ten, or closer to a hundred?

A sketch, not an offer. Generated by an AI, rendered by us.