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How Does AAFES Ascertain the
Quality of Merchandise?
The mission of AAFES Quality Assurance (QA) is to provide
our customers with the highest possible level of consumer protection for the full range of
merchandise and services offered by AAFES worldwide. This is done through inspection,
testing and supplier quality assistance programs.
Inspection
Shipments of merchandise are subjected to random
sampling inspections at various AAFES warehouses and suppliers’ facilities
around the world. We use sampling plans derived from ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 "Sampling
Procedures and Tables for Inspection by Attributes", formerly known as
MIL-STD-105. The ISO designation for this standard is 2859. Each sample is
examined for conditions that adversely affect the appearance, serviceability, or
customer acceptance of the item.
We select shipments for inspection based on the status of
suppliers and the products they supply. Inspection priority is given to suppliers that are
new, provide military products, have a history of quality related problems or are shipping
large promotional orders to AAFES facilities. Inspection statistics from the random
sampling inspections are complied and updated daily, giving us up to date information on
the suppliers' quality performance and also identifying suppliers whose quality
performance is beyond the control limits set by AAFES. These limits are calculated
automatically based on the number of samples inspected from a supplier and the Acceptable
Quality Level (AQL) used. This information, which is updated daily, assists QA personnel
in the selection and prioritization of inspections and additional assistance the supplier
may need.
Inspection results are expressed in terms of % defective
for a given period of time and/or for a given number of shipments (lots).
% defective = (# of defective samples ÷ # of samples inspected) x 100
Note: A defective sample can have more than one defect.
Various types of merchandise inspected are clothing,
military clothing, furniture, toys, jewelry, small appliances, sporting goods, outdoor
living items, luggage, giftware, shoes, etc.
Examples of defects are:
Softline Merchandise---open
seams, exposed raw edges, spots or stains, material defects, such as slubs, floats, shade
bars, knots, holes, or badly shaded parts.
Hardline Merchandise---Mechanical
or electrical malfunctions or misalignment, dents, scratches, rust; poor finish, loose,
missing or damaged hardware, distorted audio or video, loose electrical connections,
safety-related defects, such as sharp edges, ingestible components, or other hazardous
conditions, incorrect or missing assembly instructions.
Those shipments that fail QA inspection are either
cancelled or are re-inspected after the supplier corrects the deficiencies.
In addition to quality defects, noncompliance with AAFES
Retail Business Agreement, or applicable federal laws or acts, can cause an item to be
unacceptable, such as:
- Missing or incorrect Underwriters Laboratories
Inc. (UL), or equivalent labels or marks, size labels, textile care labels,
fiber content labels, manufacturer’s or brand labels, military uniform
certification labels, flame-resistant identification, etc.
- Missing or improper pre-ticketing or UPC code.
- Missing or improper operating instructions/warranty
information.
- Unauthorized substitutions or variations in ordered
quantity.
- Not packed or packaged as required by law, contract or good
packaging practices, that is, caps not child resistant, caps not tamper resistant/safety
sealed (vitamins), not leak proof, insufficient inner packaging to prevent rattling and damage to
contents.
Supplier liability for supplying defective or nonconforming
items is explained in detail in the Supplier
Requirements, Section I,
General Provision, Inspection/Quality Assurance.
Ordinarily, we inspect items using normal sampling plans,
however, for re-inspection of a previously failed shipment we use tightened sampling
plans. QA use AQLs (Acceptable Quality Level) of 2.5, 4.0 and 6.5. An AQL of 2.5 is used
for all hardlines merchandise. AQLs of 4.0 and 6.5 are used for jewelry, shoes, clothing,
softside luggage and any cut & sewn item. An AQL of 6.5 is used for extra value,
budget, or entry price point type of merchandise. Check out the AAFES sampling plans here.
AAFES has developed Standard Inspection Procedures for a
variety of items. These are available to AAFES suppliers upon request.
Testing
Testing and product analysis are conducted on a variety of
items to assist buying decisions, to check performance and various features of an item, to
verify customer complains/returns and to answer store level questions. Various items
tested are clothing, toys, appliances, sporting goods, outdoor living items, AAFES brand
items, etc. Samples are tested and evaluated under varied conditions for safety aspects or
to see how well an item will perform under actual use. Follow-up testing and product
evaluations are also done after delivery of merchandise to assure our suppliers are
continuing to supply the same quality merchandise.
A copy of the AAFES Test
Methods for a variety of items are available to AAFES suppliers.
Whenever there is a customer complaint on an item, store
personnel are encouraged to notify QA. We call such reporting "store level QA
feedback". Every feedback report receives action to verify the complaint, to assess
how widespread the problem is, and what corrective actions are needed. It keeps QA tuned
into the quality of merchandise sold in AAFES stores and often results in the redirection of QA inspection
and testing efforts or improvement in the quality of an item.
Every effort is made through testing and inspection to
assure that the AAFES customers receive safe products. Electrical products and
gas fired products purchased by
AAFES require a third party safety certification.
Toys and other products intended for use by children must meet Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) standards or
requirements.
Should a product be found potentially hazardous or
defective after distribution to our stores, it is immediately withheld from sale and
verification action begins. If a hazardous or defective condition exists, immediate action
is taken to recall that item. QA is the focal point of all product recalls whether
initiated by AAFES, supplier, or other government agency.
In the event a recall is issued, we require our suppliers
to provide our customers and stores with the following information .
- Supplier's Toll-Free phone number, with sufficient capacity
to handle the anticipated call volume.
- For those companies with a website, recall information on
their website.
- Customer service e-mail address.
- Postal address.
- The action for our customers to follow to remedy the recall
situation.
- The disposition for the warehoused and store merchandise.
QA maintains a close liaison with the CPSC, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
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