Section 3 - Management & Accountability (continued)
Planning and Quality Management
Quality Assurance (QA)
One of the important functions carried out by this unit is to conduct internal audits across the Mint to ensure we are complying with the requirements set out in the Mint’s Quality Management System (QMS) and to ensure compliance with the international quality management standard ISO 9001 this financial year. An audit carried out by external contractors reaffirmed the Mint’s accreditation to ISO 9001. This was a pleasing result with input required by a wide cross-section of staff to achieve this rating. In addition, the QA Section visits the premises of suppliers to audit their QMS to ensure there is alignment with the Mint QMS and ultimately to maintain the integrity of our product.
Additional demands associated with the staged closures and reopening of various sections of the Mint as a result of the refurbishment program has increased the workload on the QA. QA processed, on average, 39 per cent more coinage dies and 75 per cent more coinage blanks over the previous year.
During the year the QA Section identified several areas where it can improve its own performance for the benefit of the Mint. In particular the unit will focus on:
- increased monitoring of supplier quality standards
- taking a more systemic whole of organisation approach to quality improvement
- engaging with all branches of the Mint to identify key quality concerns and developing quality processes and procedures
- education and awareness programs for staff and suppliers.
The scope to do this within existing staff resources will be achieved by:
- standardisation of viewing/inspecting equipment across the organisation
- a stronger focus on Whole of Mint quality activities
- exploration and acquisition of new technology, especially for inspection functions, to remove any subjectivity when inspecting final product.
Planning and Scheduling
Another key function within the Branch is Planning and Scheduling. In order to achieve sales and profit target the Mint pays particular attention to the most cost effective scheduling of purchases and delivery of inputs in manufacturing circulating coins and numismatic products. We aim to maintain an optimal level of goods for sale and a balanced workload, fully utilising the available human and financial resources.
As a result of working cooperatively with suppliers and with input from all areas of the Mint, it has been possible to produce additional stocks of coins to meet the forecast demand for coins during the scheduled shutdown periods of the refurbishment program.
A key focus for the next year will be to minimise inventory holdings and optimise production volumes to match with fluctuating numismatic demands. Planning and Scheduling will work cooperatively with Marketing, Production and Finance branches of the Mint to develop a whole of Mint policy for numismatic products.
Circulating coins
The 197 million circulating coins produced during the financial year was substantially lower than the previous year’s production of 549 million pieces. This was because of the shut down of the Circulating Coin Section from October 2007 to January 2008 and the building of buffer stocks in the previous year. The demand for coins was 361 million pieces during the financial year which was fully met by using our stock holdings.
There will be a further closure of the Circulating Coin Section between late 2008 and early 2009 to install the Material Handling and Warehousing System. The Production Planning Schedule includes a front-loaded coining strategy to meet demand to the end of 2008 and the first six months of 2009 for circulating coins.