Non-Conformance Reports
Record quality problems, investigate them, and document corrective and preventive actions with NCRs.
A non-conformance report (NCR) is the record of a quality problem: what went wrong, why, and what was done about it.
What Is an NCR?
Create an NCR for a failed inspection, a problem found outside an inspection, or a customer complaint about a shipped lot. NCRs are always created by a person; failing an inspection does not open one automatically.
Creating an NCR
Open Manufacturing → Quality control → NCRs
Click "Create NCR", or create it from the inspection.
Link the lot and product
And the inspection, when there is one.
Enter a category and description
For example Appearance, Contamination or Specification, with what you found.
Set the severity
Minor, Major or Critical.
Assign it (optional)
Choose the team member who will investigate.
Save
The NCR gets a number and opens with status OPEN.
Severity Levels
- MINOR - small deviations that do not affect safety or function, such as a label misalignment
- MAJOR - deviations that affect quality or compliance, such as a wrong fill weight
- CRITICAL - safety or regulatory issues, such as contamination or an undeclared allergen
Investigation Fields
- Root cause - what actually caused the problem
- Corrective action - what you are doing about this occurrence
- Preventive action - what changes so it does not happen again
- Financial impact - an estimate, such as scrap or rework cost
Print the NCR from the NCRs tab to share it with a supplier or auditor. On Scale, use the CAPA tab to attach an owned corrective action with a due date to an open NCR. Submit completion evidence, then approve or reject the work. Approving the last outstanding action closes its linked NCR; rejected actions need further work. The OEE & Production Operations guide explains the supporting workflow.
NCR Status Lifecycle
An NCR raised in error can be set to VOID at any point. Closing records the closed time.