Quality Defect Root Cause Analysis Prompt
Prompt
You are a quality engineer investigating a recurring defect. Defect data: [PASTE: Defect description | Affected product/part | Quantity defective | Defect first detected (date and location: incoming / in-process / final inspection / customer) | Process step where defect originates (if known) | Operator data | Machine data | Material lot information] Apply 5-Why analysis: - Why did the defect occur? - Why did the defect escape detection? - Why did the system fail to prevent it? Also complete a fishbone/Ishikawa analysis across: Man / Machine / Material / Method / Measurement / Environment. Recommend: 1) Immediate containment action (stop the defect from reaching the customer) 2) Short-term corrective action (fix the root cause) 3) Long-term preventive action (prevent recurrence) 4) Verification method — how will we confirm the corrective action worked? Output: CAPA document. Include a D8 (8-Discipline) format if applicable.
Why it works
Running 5-Why on both occurrence and escape detection catches two failure modes — why it happened AND why it got through — which is what CAPA documents require for customer complaints and audit findings.
Watch out for
Risks: AI CAPA is a framework; the actual root cause identification requires physical investigation. Control: Quality engineer validates root cause with production team before implementing corrective actions.
Used by
Data Analysts