Key Manufacturing Quality Metrics in Food Production | PlanetTogether

For food manufacturers, quality is extremely important to their consumer, which is why it is so important to ensure that all of the quality standards are met. This is not only to appease consumer needs and demands, but also to demonstrate to board members, suppliers, regulatory agencies, and various others that their product is worthwhile and is indeed meeting quality standards. With the threat of recalls, bacterial intrusions, and all sorts of other potential issues, how does a food manufacturer effectively measure quality and understand their quality metrics? This is where certain tools may be utilized and are useful in the sense that they offer proof of quality performance. While these tools may vary from company to company, there are a few essential ones that can provide thorough insight into the operation and aid in ensuring quality.

Quality Metrics in Food Production

The tools utilized in analyzing quality metrics in food production include the following:

• Control Charts - Also known as Shewhart charts, these charts demonstrate predictability of a process by plotting and charting data. These charts indicate stability within production.                                          An example of this would be packages of candy having normal distribution in the number of pieces per package. Any data that falls outside of the control limits will signal an issues that needs to be addressed to effectively maintain consistency.
  
  
• Capability Analysis - This tool pertains to calculations that are used to assess whether a system will be able to meet certain specifications or not. This statistical tool will further eliminate any headaches pertaining to when processes fail to meet any unrealistic expectations.
  
  
• Statistical Process Control - Statistical Process Control is used to analyze and interpret data in order for any improvements to become apparent. This process may involve collecting data on any fill rates in food packaging or any potential incidents of food-borne pathogens within production. Any process can be measured and improved.

A software that can adequately measure these metrics within food production includes PlanetTogether’s advanced planning and scheduling software. Advanced Planning and Scheduling Software (APS) allows you and your manufacturing operation to have thorough insight into your operation and can effectively boost efficiency among production.

Advanced Planning and Scheduling Software

Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) software has become a must for modern-day manufacturing operations due to customer demand for increased product mix and fast delivery combined with downward cost pressures. APS can be quickly integrated with a ERP/MRP software to fill gaps where these systems lack planning and scheduling flexibility and accuracy. Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) helps planners save time while providing greater agility in updating ever-changing priorities, production schedules, and inventory plans.

• Create optimized schedules balancing production efficiency and delivery performance
  
  
• Maximize output on bottleneck resources to increase revenue
  
  
• Synchronize supply with demand to reduce inventories
  
  
• Provide company-wide visibility to capacity
  
  
• Enable scenario data-driven decision making

Implementation of Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) software will take your manufacturing operations to the next level of production efficiency, taking advantage of the operational data you already have in your ERP.

Video: Using What-If Scenarios to Improve Food Production Quality in PlanetTogether APS

In this video, you’ll see how PlanetTogether Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) uses what-if scenarios to improve quality performance in food production. Learn how planners can model different schedules, batch sizes, changeover strategies, and resource allocations to see how each option impacts key food quality metrics before making changes on the plant floor.

Key takeaways from this video:

• How PlanetTogether APS lets you compare multiple what-if schedules
• How different schedules impact key food quality metrics (stability, capability, SPC results)
• How to test batch sizes, sequences, and changeovers before changing the live plan
• How to balance quality, throughput, and on-time delivery in one APS view
• How linking quality metrics to what-if scenarios supports continuous improvement in food production

Turn Food Quality Metrics into a Daily Operating Advantage

Tracking control charts, capability indices, and SPC results is essential in food production—but metrics alone don’t improve quality. The real gains come when you combine those metrics with better planning and scheduling decisions that stabilize processes, protect critical resources, and reduce variation across every batch.

Download our visual Food & Beverage Brewery Infographic (2023 Data) to see how leading producers are using data, quality metrics, and APS to:

• Connect quality results to production schedules and line loading
• Reduce overfill, scrap, and rework while keeping service levels high
• Improve consistency across batches and packaging lines
• Turn existing ERP and quality data into actionable insights for planners and quality teams

Use it with your quality and operations teams as a quick, real-world snapshot of how food and beverage manufacturers are linking quality metrics to scheduling and APS to drive performance—not just to pass audits.