Chinese QC on Intermountain Cars


M

MGWSY

Active Member
Speaking of Chinese quality on previous posts. Here are some pictures of Intermountain’s new Cylindrical Hoppers. I had 26 on order from Intermountain and out of 26 19 arrived damaged, from crooked parts to broken ends, Glue haze, Broken glue joints, etc. Here are some pictures of the cars and remember these are direct from IM and just released from the second run. The first run was much better and had better QC.

All these pics are of cars right out off the box and for $33 retail I am really disappointed as they are not even worth $10 in this condition. I will not sell them to others in that condition either.


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And all of these American companies that outsourced this stuff to China etc. are going to feel the pinch real soon. This is not the first example of poor workmanship and quality control that has shown up in the last few years. What about all of the production delays, missed release dates?? Eventually they will learn that is is cheaper to make this stuff here. Just my 2 cents worth.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110505/bs_nm/us_usa_manufacturing_china

the writing is on the wall already.
 
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wow that is bad. So how long do you think it will be before a company gets fed up and brings everything back to the U.S?
 
NYSW F45 said:
wow that is bad. So how long do you think it will be before a company gets fed up and brings everything back to the U.S?
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If the samples Mark shows are typical of the entire production run then it shouldn't take too long between dealer complaints / returns. The packaging looks to be in good shape suggesting the cars were crap when packaged and not damaged during shipment. And of course glue smears and fogging doesn't happen in shipping.

The old saying goes: " You can have it done cheap, you can have it done quick, or you can have it done right....pick one."
 
Mike, good point about the glue smears and fogging. We all know that can only happen if it's packaged with the glue still wet. That means they were rushing big time to get them in the boxes and out the door.
 
Yup I am far from pleased with these and I have 7 that I can fix once I can work on stuff again. but there is no excuse for this as in the long run sales will drop if this keeps happening. The package was shipped to me from IM via FedEx and I picked it up at thier location. not even a dent in the box so I doubt is was shiping damage too. I Emailed IM with the results and pics and I will see what they do for me as this not acceptable. I am sure I am nopt the only one that will have complaints so buyer beware if you see these cars on sale or selling cheap. Once I opened the shipping bax and saw a few cars that had broken end walkways I just opened each box and checked each car and a lot of them have sloppy construction and almost every single one had parts loose in the bax from hazmat placard holders to pieping broken off and in pieces.
 
NH Mike said:
If the samples Mark shows are typical of the entire production run then it shouldn't take too long between dealer complaints / returns. The packaging looks to be in good shape suggesting the cars were crap when packaged and not damaged during shipment. And of course glue smears and fogging doesn't happen in shipping.

The old saying goes: " You can have it done cheap, you can have it done quick, or you can have it done right....pick one."
Click to expand...

That line usually goes, pick 2, you can't have all 3.
 
I hope they get these fixed. I've got their PS2CD 4750 hoppers on order for the fall.
 
I know that you are upset because you paid full price. Contact Intermountain and try to negotiate for new ones, keeping the old ones. That damage actually looks like real stuff that's on the rails every day. They can make for a good repair scene or just everyday traffic. Many cars are not pulled out of service unless their safety or brake appliances are out of order.
 
MGWSY

I understand your frustration. It's too bad especially for the price you paid for it. Obviously a very bad batch. Is there a way to send them back and (a) get a refund or (b) exchange?

Industry best intentions do not always work out. You know even with the best Quality Assurance or Quality Inspection, well, it happens. You don't have to look very far to get plenty of example: Domestic auto industry, domestic appliances makers, domestic hardware store, domestic manufacturing etc. I had to send things back many times or go back to the delareship to get manufacturing errors/problem/damages fix before I would accept them.

I would be pretty PO myself if I received these cars in that conditions as well, and I would contact the manufacturer (pictures included) to let them know and to see what they would do to correct the problem. That is where you will find out what this Manufacturer is made off. Having said that I would be carefull to start blaming 'chineese manufacturing " (or Indian, or Korean, or Japaneese, or European, or American etc..) There's plenty of products of all kind coming from these places/countries that seem to have great Quality Assurance program AND that survived intact the long trek to get here.

Hopefully you will get a satisfying resolution to this problem soon.



Off the soapbox

:rolleyes:
 
Geeez Mark, that's really bad. Intermountain is a stand up company, and should make things right.

I sure hope the writing is on the wall.

China and quality control don't even belong in the same sentence.

I would gladly pay a premium for products made in the U.S.
 
I've seen it from both end in the electronics industry. Things made in China from our documentaion were often shipped without any testing - even though we paid for testing.

You kind of catch them "red handed" when they have things plugged in backwards, or even missing parts, and they claim they ran it through QC-test. See! There's the tech's stamp on the paperwork. :D

Even in the USA!
I remember working for a well-known company that knowingly shipped hundreds of incorrectly built multi-drop-modems to NASA - back in the 1980s. Our CEO was told that they had the wrong parts and wouldn't pass testing. The rework would take two days and it was at the end of the financial-month. They were shipped anyhow. Just so some bean counter could meet the monthly shipping forecast.

In the long run it cost all the comapany's profit, and much more, to replace them in the field. They were scattered all over the east coast. That's the kind of Bravo-Sierra that started our downhill slide. :eek:
 
I have a few of these on order and am glad I came across this thread before they are shipped. If they look like that then the dealer can deal with IM.
 
Just so some bean counter could meet the monthly shipping forecast.
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And that in a nutshell is an extremely large part of what has been wrong with American business for several (many?) years -- the "bean counters", knowing nothing about what they're judging, are making decisions SOLELY on how it affects the bottom line. Very sad... :(

My two cents worth -- and we all know what two cents is worth nowadays!

Regards,
Tom Stockton
 
Just FYI I am a dealer with IM so these were for orders I had, I didnt have any issues with a large order from the first run so this is news to me. IM did reply to me and told me to return them for a replacement/refund/repair of the cars so I am sure I will get taken care of.
 
tomstockton said:
And that in a nutshell is an extremely large part of what has been wrong with American business for several (many?) years -- the "bean counters", knowing nothing about what they're judging, are making decisions SOLELY on how it affects the bottom line. Very sad... :(

My two cents worth -- and we all know what two cents is worth nowadays!

Regards,
Tom Stockton
Click to expand...

They don't look at the big picture either.
 
They don't look at the big picture either.
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I believe that is also a true statement. Too many examples of the "fat cats" getting in to a business, pillaging - uh, I mean earning some money from - the company, then getting out with their "earnings", leaving employees, stock-holders and pension-holders having to deal with the mess the "fat cats" created.

Lucky for me I'm not bitter about such behavior... :mad:

Regards,
Tom Stockton
 
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