Month: December 2018

AS9100 D and ISO 9001: 2015

Airplane, aerospace, AS9100

Question

Is there a document that compares the requirements of AS9100 D against the requirements of ISO 9001:2015?

I am looking to update our system to AS9100 D, and have the standard, however it would be helpful to have a document to help identify the gap between the two.

Answer

ISO 9001:2015 is embedded in AS9100D as the baseline.  If you look at AS9100D text…the regular text is ISO 9001:2015 text and the bold-italics text are the additional Aviation, Space & Defense text.  So what you are looking for regarding the additional requirements is the bold-italics text.

I hope this is helpful.

Buddy Cressionnie
9100 Americas Leader

For more information on this topic, please visit ASQ’s website.

Escalation Process and ISO 9001: 2015

Chart, graph, sampling, plan, calculation, z1.4

Question

I have created a project and problem escalation pyramid to help associates understand when and who is involved when a project or process issue needs escalation. I would like to know what clause in ISO:9001-2015 this would fall into?

Answer

Thank you for your question.

It sounds like you have created an escalation process for when outcomes don’t meet requirements.  In this case it sounds like ISO 9001 Clause 8.7 “Control of Nonconforming Outputs” would apply.   If the escalation process is specific to something like an engineering design process, then Clause 8.3.2 “Design and Development Planning” and/or Clause 8.3.4 “Design and Development Controls” could apply.

Also, in a general sense, if a process issue needs escalation, it’s part of the plan-do-check-act cycle described under Clause 4.4 “Quality Management System and its Processes”.

I hope you were able to find these references useful.

Denis Devos

A Fellow of the American Society for Quality
Devos Associates Inc.
(519) 476-8951
www.DevosAssociates.com

For more on this topic, please visit ASQ’s website.

ISO 9001: 2015 and “Effectiveness”

Control chart, data, analysis

Question

ISO 9001:2015 references measurement of “effectiveness” throughout the standard. My question is what methods/techniques are typically used to measure “effectiveness”? Is it purely a quantitative analysis of metrics, or does it also involve subjective evaluation that may not be driven by statistics or metrics? Also, is it expected that effectiveness be measured for each process/procedure?

Answer

Thank you for your question.

Let’s begin with the definition of effectiveness from ISO 9000:2015.

Effectiveness is “the extent to which planned activities are realized and planned results are achieved.”  This definition requires that you know what the expected outcome (or objective/target) you want for a given task, project or process.  The first step is to know what you want to achieve, and then ask yourself what would be the best means to determine the extent to which that objective was met?

Yes, it is expected that effectiveness be (suitably) measured for each process. This is at the heart of the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle.  Also, please read ISO 9001 Clause 4.1 and Clause 0.3.

As far as quantitative vs. qualitative metrics are concerned, you will have to decide what best measures the outcome of the process.  Also consider the cost of data collection.  Often, easy-to-collect qualitative data can suffice.   And don’t be deterred if quantitative data cannot be obtained.  As Dr. Deming so wisely stated: “Sometimes we have to settle for inexact measures of exactly the right things”.

Denis Devos

A Fellow of the American Society for Quality
Devos Associates Inc.
(519) 476-8951
www.DevosAssociates.com

For more information on this topic, please visit ASQ’s website.

ISO 9001: 2015 and Vendor Certification

Suppliers, supplier management

Question

We are ISO 9001:2015 certified and have a sole source vendor who is considering dropping their ISO certification. What is the best course of action to retain this vendor if they drop their ISO?

Answer

Thank you for your question.

Unless you are in an industry where you are required to have your suppliers registered to ISO 9001, (for example, the automotive industry under IATF 16949), or you have specific customer contracts which require this,  the choice is entirely yours whether or not your suppliers are registered to ISO 9001.

If your company wants to press the issue and require ISO 9001 as a condition for this supplier to continue to do business with you, be prepared for them to give you up as a customer.   If however, this is a valued supplier with a history of strong performance, you don’t want to dismiss a valued supplier partner.   If you decide to keep them, simply change your purchasing procedure to allow yourself the latitude for management to approve and use suppliers without ISO 9001 certification.

Denis Devos

A Fellow of the American Society for Quality
Devos Associates Inc.
(519) 476-8951
www.DevosAssociates.com

For more information on this topic, please visit ASQ’s website.