Unknown Plastic Housing: Supplier Qualification & 15 to 20 Percent Cost Reduction
Independent analysis revealed critical differences between equivalent materials.
A manufacturer needed to qualify a lower cost second supplier.
The incumbent supplier treated the formulation as proprietary, leaving the team unsure whether a cheaper alternative was truly equivalent in performance and reliability.
Investigation Workflow
Material Identification
Py GC/MS confirmed the base polymer as Nylon 6 while identifying important formulation differences.
Reinforcement Analysis
TGA showed substantial differences in glass fiber content between suppliers despite both being marketed as 30 percent glass filled.
One supplier was not compositionally equivalent.
Supplier A contained lower reinforcement and formulation differences that would likely reduce mechanical performance, dimensional stability, and long term durability.
Practical steps based on the investigation.
- Established analytical SOP for accepting incoming materials
- Qualified two alternative suppliers
- Created supplier equivalency requirements
- Documented composition for future sourcing decisions
Why This Matters
Materials that appear identical are often chemically and structurally different. Independent characterization protects quality while enabling smart cost reduction and supply chain resilience.
Technical clarity that supports business decisions.
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