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Traceability Textbook
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Basic Knowledge
What is Traceability?
Trace Forward and Trace
Back
Information to be
Transferred and Its Format
Implementation Basics
Technological
Innovations and Laws
and Regulations
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What is Traceability?
Basic Knowledge about Traceability, an Indispensable System
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for Quality Management
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Traceability is the ability to trace all processes from procurement of raw materials to
production, consumption and disposal to clarify "when and where the product was 1D/2D Code Reader
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produced by whom." Due to improving product quality and the rise in safety awareness in
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recent years, traceability has been increasing in importance and spreading into a wide range
any code, anywhere,
of fields, such as automotive, electronics, food and pharmaceutical. This section describes any speed
basic knowledge about the increasingly-popular traceability. Download
Concept of Traceability
The term Traceability is formed by Trace and Ability. Although its definition slightly varies
depending on the industry, such as automobile, electronic component, food, and
pharmaceutical, it is defined as follows in the manufacturing industry:
Traceability
Necessary information such as manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors is
recorded. This information is tracked in all processes from procurement of raw
materials and parts to machining, assembly, distribution, and sales to ensure that
their histories can be traced.
Traceability has been defined in the ISO 9001 standard from the International Organization
for Standardization.
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Two Perspectives on Traceability
Although there are various ways to view traceability, it can be generally divided into two
perspectives: chain traceability and internal traceability.
Chain Traceability
The general concept of traceability in the world applies to chain traceability. Chain
traceability means that the history from procurement of raw materials and parts to
machining, distribution, and sales can be traced forward or backward. Manufacturers can
monitor “to where their products have been delivered (= can trace forward)” while
companies and consumers in the downstream can understand “from where the products in
their hands have come (= can trace back)”.
This provides manufacturers with the benefit of easier cause investigation and product recall
when unexpected problems occur with theirDownload
products. Consumers can also use this
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benchmark to select highly reliable products, without worries such as mislabeling.
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Internal Traceability One reader for
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Internal traceability means to monitor the movement of parts/products within a limited
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specific area in a whole supply chain, such as a single company or plant.
For example, an engine assembly plant procures engine parts such as camshafts and pistons
from suppliers and assembles them.
Management and utilization of the manufacturing history and inspection results of these
parts by the plant can also be regarded as internal traceability.

Specific Example of Internal Traceability

<Traceability in Manufacturing Processes>

Traceability in manufacturing processes is an activity of collecting and managing information

regarding what has been done in manufacturing processes from acceptance of raw
materials and parts to shipment of products. For traceability in manufacturing processes,
each product or lot is assigned an identification number, and then information such as work
details, inspection results, and dimensions are linked to this identification number in each
process so that it can be utilized for assembly in a later process. Using this information for
machining contributes to the improvement of production/work efficiency and quality.

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 Traceability Textbook

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<Traceability in Parts Control>

Traceability in parts management is used to control and operate repeatedly used parts such
as tools and jigs. Serial numbers for individual identification (such as 2D codes) are marked
on each tool to manage their conditions, including usage and wear limits. As the entire flow,
warehoused tools and other parts are marked with management 2D codes and assigned
information such as plant names, shelf numbers, and serial numbers to manage put-out and
return. Other information such as the count and date/time of grinding is collected and
managed to maintain and stabilize product quality.

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Why is “Traceability” Important?

If a product quality problem occurs, the manufacturer of the product must take effective
measures promptly.
A slow or ineffective response from the manufacturer will create a sense of distrust among
consumers or business partners, which may even endanger the existence of the company.
In addition, as laws to protect consumers have been implemented, the number of
companies required to quickly recall their products due to problems has been increasing
every year.

Traceability has long been aggressively promoted in the automotive industry. It is widely
utilized for preventing recall problems, minimizing damages, and extracting/improving
management challenges as well as ensuring quality management. It is, however, difficult to
check the data from manufacturing through disposal of all components numbering several
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regulations that change withContact
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Furthermore, globalization is progressing, while cost and delivery-time competition are
 intensifying in recent years, so the importance of traceability keeps increasing. There is an
urgent need for building a history management system from a global perspective that
covers both inside and outside of the plant. For details, refer to Automotive industry in the
Traceability Textbook
section describing the standards, laws and regulations concerning traceability.

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Trace Forward and Trace Back High Quality at High Speed

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