14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung has lost about $6.13 billion following the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco and the company is determined to avoid a similar situation from happening in the future. As a result, Samsung has put together a new quality control team, according to reports from Korea.
The South Korean company’s new quality control team will report directly to Kim Jong-ho, president and former production chief at Samsung Heavy Industries. The team will also be under the direct control of Kim Jong-ho’s three co-CEOs.
Samsung’s current CEO joined the company back in 1983 and has held leadership positions in production and research and development at the mobile business division.
In a statement, the device maker has said, “Kim is one of the best specialists in the manufacturing sector. He will be leading quality control and production innovation across all Samsung products, including smartphones and home appliances.”
Samsung has toughened quality control measures
Samsung conducted an extensive investigation on Galaxy Note 7 units and concluded that the batteries were to blame for the phone’s catching fire. The company didn’t seek compensation for batteries produced by Samsung SDI and China’s ATL, but rather preferred to take the whole responsibility upon itself.
Over 5 million Galaxy Note 7 smartphones were sold globally and about 90% of them were later returned to the company. After the thorough investigation, the device maker announced an 8-point plan for testing smartphones before they ship out.
In addition, the company released several videos in which it details the many endurance and quality control tests that phones undergo before they’re shipped to customers. The new quality control team will probably monitor the whole testing process and spot problems early on, before units enter mass production.
Earlier today, we reported that a Galaxy S7 phone caught fire while it was sitting in a car’s cup holder. Samsung wishes to avoid such situations in the future, as the company prepares to announce its latest flagship, the Galaxy S8, on March 29.