I. PRODUCTION PROCESSING, QUALITY INSPECTION PROCEDURES.

 Processing is as follows:

SEQ	Description	Performer	Contactor
Receiving raw material	- In practical experience, the receipt and evaluation of soil quality was performed by looking, taste, touch ... - For all types of clay may be accurately determined, it should produce test samples for quality testing before putting the land into production	- Production Manager	- Director - Supplier
Soak clay	Purpose: Alum and filtered to remove impurities and large particles in the clay	- The workers	- Production manager - Factory manager
Rolling and cover up the clay	After being soaked and filtered of impurities, the clay was put into the mill to prepare materials for the production. Cover up to increase the viscosity of the clay, easily to forming	- Production manager - The worker	Factory manager
Prepare the Mould	The mould have to be cast in the form of the design department. If the products is the new samples, Design department have to send the artwork to the worker who make the mould and after the mould is finished It has to be approval by design department  before use for forming	- Design Department - The Worker	Sales Department
Forming	Performed using turntables or presses or formed by the mould was cast in the form of the design department. Products formed by the two methods can: pour or squeeze up. after shaping, workers need to check, edit, complete product lines, patterns and eliminate excess seats.	- The worker	- Factory manager - Production manager
To dry the greenware	Purpose: - Time to burn the products is shorten - Check products to remove the broken product, distortion product,.ect	- The worker	- Factory manager - Production manager
Apply glaze	Semi-finished products are applied the glazes.	- The worker	- Factory manager - Production manager
Put Semi-finished products into the Kiln	Put products into the Kiln	- The worker - Production manager	- Factory manager
Take out the Kiln to cool down and Finished products	- After burning, take the products out of the Kiln, do preliminary inspection, finishing products and transport to ware house.	- Factory manager - Production manager - The worker	- Managing Director - Factory manager
Inspection, packing before loading container	- When the products transport to warehouse, the QC team have to inspect the quality (based on the quality guide line) to reject the  non-qualify products as P.O requirement.. -  Do packaging and loading on container	- QC team	Sales Department

II.QUALITY INSPECTION GUIDELINES

The objective of this quality manual is to promote a clear understanding of  quality control of TKpottery. This manual contains a basic format that lays the foundation for an effective quality assurance system and introduces the inspection criteria.

The guidelines in this manual are restricted to both indoor and outdoor ceramic potteries.

RAW MATERIAL :

The Produtcion manager will do in-house checking the raw materials (clay and glazes) before put in mass production .

Production manager and QA will inspect, assess quality of clay and glaze by practical experiences such as: bonded, touch.. This is the perceptible assessment. If need, Production manager can assess by making the samples to test the quality of clay and glaze..

PRODUCTS :

1. Quality control during production

The QA team will do inline checking during the mass production every week. If he can detect some defects, he have to inform production manager and find a corrective action.
This inspection will control 100% of semi-finished products.

2 . Quality control after finishing production:
When the products come out the Kiln and transport to warehouse. The QC at ware house have to inspect before packing and loading container.

This inspection will control 100% of finished products., and based on classification as follows:

1. CLASSIFICATION OF DEFECTS

Defects are classified into three categories:

(a) ‘Critical’ defect: A defect that fails to meet mandatory regulation and/or affects the safety of consumers when using the product.

(b) ‘Major’ defect: A defect that affects the sale ability or the product’s design or the used materials, colors etc are not same as the approved sample.

(c) ‘Minor’ defect: A defect that is marginal or do not affect the sale ability but has a discrepancy from the defined quality standard.

2. INSPECTION CRITERIA

2.1. Clay body
Any chips or cracks on the body are not acceptable (rated as ‘major’ defect). 

2.2. Glaze

• Indoor ceramics without glazed, both inside and/or outside (except outside base), are considered ‘major’ defect.
• Blistering and crawling are not acceptable on glaze surface (rated as ‘major’ defect).
• The glaze must be covered from the ‘bottom edge’ to ‘under rim’.

2.3. Dimensions and shapes

Table 1 and Table 2 show the acceptable and non-acceptable dimensions and shapes of pots. 

Table 1: Acceptable dimension

Criteria	See examples		Applicable for	Deviation allowed (maximum)
1	Height	Image 1	All kinds of products (including animals)	+/- 5%
2	Diameter  (outer – maximum)	Image 2		+/- 5%
3	Length and width		Rectangular products	+/- 5%
4	Rectangularity of edges	Image 3	Rectangular products	+/- 3%
5	Straightness of edge	Image 4	Rectangular products	+/- 2%
6	Regular shape of surface deviation / height	Image 1	All kind of products	+/- 2%
7	Upright stand deviation / diameter	Image 2	All kind of products with flat base / animals	+/- 2%

Image 1  

Height Irregular shape of surface

Image 2

  Upright stand    

 
Image 3

Image 4

Table 2: Types of defects in shapes

Preferred	Major defect Maximum deviation exceeded - +/- 2% (see Table 1)
Straightness of the edges
Side view
Seen from top
Regular shape of surfaces
Upright stand, no wobbling
		Not acceptable if pot is wobbling

2.4. Chips and other effects

Table 3 and Table 4 show the acceptable and non-acceptable levels of chips and other effects (pinhole, pinheads and blister). 

Table 3: Chips

Type of pot	Preferred	Minor defect	Major defect
Pot height < 30 cm	No chips, no flakes	Maximum diameter < 0.3 cm (only one single defect)	Maximum diameter > 0.5 cm or several small defects
Pot height > 30 cm	No chips, no flakes	Maximum diameter < 0.5 cm (only one single defect)	Maximum diameter > 0.8 cm or several small defects

Table 4: Pinholes, Pinheads and Blisters

Type of failure	Preferred	Minor defect	Major defect
Pinhole / grain diameter < 1mm	No flaw	5 or lesser flaws on the surface	More than 5 flaws on the surface
Pinhole / grain diameter > 1 mm	No flaw		Any pinhole and grain
Blister	No blister		Any blister

2.5. Crazing

Crazing is not acceptable (rated as ‘major’ defect – see image belows)

2.6. Colors

Colors are checked based on the approved samples (shards and fragments of pottery) with the agreed color variation. Non-conformity of color is rated as 'major' defect.

2.7. Drainage holes

Drainage holes will be required depend on each customer... Production manager and QC have to check carefully on each order.

Some defects:

Description	Image	Type of defect
Big chip on the bottom		Major
Surface not equable		Major
Efflorescence on the surface		Major
Rim not straight		See table 2
Hole on the rim		Major
Crack on the clay body		Major
Different colour on the same article.		Major
Glazed less point on the rim		Major
Crack on the bottom		Minor
Chips bigger than 0.8 cm on the rim		Major
Pot is not round		Major
Crack in the clay body		Major
Rim is defective		Major
Crack on the base		Major
Chip on the clay body but the glaze is well and closed		Major
One small crack on the bottom rim		Minor
Glazed rim inside are not even		Minor
Glazed rim on the bottom are not even		Minor

3. PACKAGING

Packaging materials used must be able to support and protect the products. Depend on each customer’s requirement, the packaging maybe different. However, In general, the pallet and packing must be as follows:

- The pallet should not exposed to rain or stored outdoors or placed on wet ground

- Maximum height inclusive of pallet is 225 cm for container DC, 255 cm for container HC

- Pallet must not be damaged or craked.

3.1. With indoor products: The products have to be packed by carton box then put on pallet and secured with plastic straps. See picture belows:

3.2. With Outdoor products: The products have to be packed by carton bundle then put on pallet and secured with plastic straps. There is a wooden frame between each layer. Some products have to be packed by wooden –crate.

THIEN KY EXIM CO., LTD (TKPOTTERY.COM)