One Minute to Trace a Batch: How We Find the Billet Behind a Complaint

A buyer calls with a problem: on a shipment of anodized profiles, some lengths show fine scratches on the visible face. Before anyone can argue about who is responsible, one question decides everything: can the supplier tell you exactly which billet, which press, which die, which shift and which parameters produced those lengths?

For us the answer is yes, and it takes about a minute. This is how that works — and what it does not cover yet.

What is actually recorded

Every order is created as a sales order in the accounting system and scheduled in our MES. From that point the system links the pieces that used to live in different drawers:

The link between these is the batch identity, not a folder name. That is the whole trick: once the batch is the key, everything else attaches to it.

The one-minute walkthrough

A complaint arrives with a delivery note and some photos. Our salesperson opens the order, finds the batch, and the MES returns:

1. Which press ran it, on which date and shift.
2. Which billet lot was loaded — so we can go back to the billet supplier if the cause is metallurgical.
3. Which die was in the press and what its polish history was — the first place we look for die lines or pick-up.
4. The recorded billet temperature and ram speed — the parameters most likely to explain tearing, streaks or pick-up.
5. The inspection records taken at first-off, in-process and final — so we know whether the mark existed before anodizing or appeared after it.
6. Which anodizing or coating batch it went through, and with what else.

That is the difference between a conversation and a guess. If the mark is a die line, it appears in the same position on every length from that die — checkable in minutes. If it is handling damage, it appears randomly and usually only on the outer lengths of a bundle.

What we do with the answer

The point of traceability is not to win an argument. It is to shorten the loop:

• Containment. If one batch is affected, we know which other orders used the same die or the same billet lot, so we can check them before they ship.
• Correct owner. Billet problem, die problem, press parameter problem or handling problem each belong to a different team. Traceability removes the internal blame game, which is usually slower than the technical fix.
• Permanent fix. A repeated defect on the same die becomes a rework decision instead of a recurring complaint.

For a buyer this shows up as a faster, more concrete answer to a claim — and fewer repeat defects.

What it does not cover yet

We are honest about the gaps, because they are the reason this series exists:

• Three of our eight presses are not on the MES yet. Work from those presses is traceable, but partly through people rather than screens.
• Weighbridge data is still typed in by hand. It is small, but it is a manual step in an otherwise digital chain.
• Some inspection sheets are still paper. Records exist; they are not all in one place.
• Export documents are manual. The plant data is digital; the paperwork side of shipping is not.

None of this stops us from answering the minute-level question above for the presses on the system. But a buyer deserves to know where the seams are.

Why we publish this

Because "we have full traceability" is a sentence every supplier can write, and almost no supplier shows you the fields. If you want to check whether a plant can really do this, ask three questions:

1. Can you tell me the billet lot and the die ID for a specific delivery?
2. Do you record billet temperature and ram speed per batch, or only per shift?
3. How long does it take you to answer a claim like that?

If the answer is "we will get back to you", the traceability is a folder, not a system.

If you need profiles where a defect can be traced back to its cause instead of discussed, send us your drawing and the finish you need.

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