Al bought a digital camera from his local electronics store. When he first used it he found the zoom lens function was inoperative because a gear was installed improperly. For the manufacturer of…

Question

Options

• AInternal Failure Cost
• BPrevention Cost
• CExternal Failure Cost
• DAppraisal Cost

• A
  83% (15)
• B
  6% (1)
• D
  11% (2)

Explanation

Important note: The stated correct answer (A) appears to be incorrect based on standard quality management principles. The actual correct answer is C - External Failure Cost.

Why C is correct: An external failure cost occurs when a defect reaches the customer - after the product has left the manufacturer's control. Al discovered the broken zoom function only after purchasing and using the camera, meaning the defect was not caught before delivery. That is the defining characteristic of an external failure.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• A (Internal Failure Cost) - This would apply if the gear defect had been caught during manufacturing or inspection, before the camera shipped. It did not; it reached the customer.
• B (Prevention Cost) - Prevention costs are proactive investments (training, process design, supplier audits) made to stop defects from occurring in the first place. No defect has occurred yet in a prevention scenario.
• D (Appraisal Cost) - Appraisal costs are the costs of inspecting and testing products (e.g., incoming inspection, final QC). These detect defects but are not the cost of the defect itself.

Memory tip: Think of the customer as a fence. Defects caught inside the fence (before delivery) = Internal. Defects that jump over the fence to the customer = External. Al holding a broken camera is clearly on the outside of that fence.

If this question is from an official source and the key truly lists A, flag it to your instructor - the scenario as written is a classic example of external failure cost in every major quality textbook (ASQ, PMBOK, Juran).

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