Instead of waiting to manufacture the entire batch only for Quality Control to find out that something went wrong, companies carry out tests during the actual production. The Production department carries out in-process controls usually as the process is running, but also sends samples to the Quality Control Department which does separate in-process controls for some parameters.

Below are  in-process controls typically carried out by the Production department in the various stages.

• Granulation / mixing: loss on drying (to determine the moisture content), flow
• Tabletting: Weight, diameter, hardness, thickness, disintegration, friability, visual appearance (colour, shape, absence of defects like cracks, capping, foreign matter etc.)
• Encapsulation: Weight, dimensions, disintegration, visual appearance (colour, shape, absence of defects)
• Coating: Weight, dimensions, disintegration, visual appearance (colour, shape, absence of defects)
• Packing: correctness of materials and printed text, visual appearance (colour, shape, absence of defects), weight