Just thought I'd drop a few lines about our recent certification experience. First, we passed with one minor finding dealing with Dock Audits. Second, the audit was smoother (and dare I say...easier) than the past QS audits.

The auditors worked from our control plans and process flowcharts
The auditors never looked at Master Lists, or asked for any procedures during the Certification Audit. They obviously did review the required documents during the Readiness Review.
Auditors spent about 80% of their time on the floor with process owners
Spent alot of time following up on corrective actions from customer issues
Reviewed minimal training records, but spent time reviewing EE Goal Settings and Performance Planning documentation
Diligently reviewed process metrics for efficiency, effectivess, and achievement
During the course of auditing the Manufacturing Processes, they picked up items like purchasing, incoming inspection, supplier evals, measuring equipment calibration, record retention, etc.

Again, I just wanted to share some items I noted during the audit and pass it along. Sometimes it's nice to hear how others experienced the process. Now it's on to certify our plant in Detroit in March (only ISO this time)!

Congratulations and well done. It's great to hear how the audit actually went. One question though - you say you passed with one minor. Under QS, you couldn't be recommended on the initial audit with ANY N/C. Did you have to correct the minor on the fly or is the recommendation being held up until you close the minor?

Good luck on the audit in Detroit. I would be interested in hearing about that one too.

Dave

You cannot be recommended until all NCR's are cleared. Also With TS2 you cannot clear NCR's "on the fly". Each NCR must be properly addressed using the established in-house CA process and then submitted to your auditor for review.

Thanks Sam - I thought that was the case. pga_gold must have meant there was a gap between the audit and the certification. I mistook them for simultaneous events.

Dave

Dave,
Yes the comment is mis-leading. I'm also somewhat concerned with the statement that the audit "was easy'. Also, TS2 does not refer to dock audits. I would be concerned if an auditor would write an NCR.
Anyway maybe I'm too picky or just jealous ( we had 8 minors and two OFI's). So congrats pga_gold on your achievemnent.

Perhaps the dock audit is a final inspection for them and if not properly run would thus be an issue.

At times, we are still confused with dock audit and product audit. We thought that dock audit is the routine outgoing inspection audit and the "product audit" under 8.2.2.4 means audit conducted by internal auditor to check the dimensional, fitting, labelling and packaging along the manufcaturing process.

Are we on he right track?

A dock audit could serve as a product audit as you are auditing the labelling etc. If you are using SPC I feel this could serve the need as well for in process at stages. Any comments?

IMHO a dock audit is an extra audit above and beyond all other audits and inspections. You don't do dock audits on every part or shipment. It should be a random selection of product that is "sitting on the dock ready to ship". Verification of everything on that product should be done including all labeling, packaging and anything called out in the work instructions or specifications. Some companies do dock audits as few as 1 time a week according to their procedure.

I agree with Sam that although dock audits were required by QS, they are no longer specifically mentioned in TS.

Dave

A few items for clarification:

First, our certification was conditional based on the corrective action being implemented. That was closed in about a week. Sorry for the confusion, when posting I usually try to be brief and in so doing, left out some information.

Second, we are using dock audits as one method of satisfying "product audits." EVERY automotive shipment that goes out the door is staged and audited. The dock audit is to check for labelling, quantity, product integrity, packaging integrity, etc. Our QC department does sampling for dimensional specifications prior to product being sent to the warehouse.

Third, the audit wasn't easy....I felt it was easier than past QS audits. The auditors didn't seem to dig as deep into documents. That is they didn't need a thousand copies of work instructions, records, master lists, etc.

Thanks everyone for the feedback! I'll try to proof my posts a little better from here on out. This one is already the longest I've put together! :tg:

Thanks for the clarification. You have given me an opening to say something to others who are hesitant to post for fear of leaving something out.

Don't ever worry about confusion in your posts. We have all posted then had to clarify something because someone had a question we didn't think about or didn't see as relevant at the time. Another thing, don't ever think questions are meant to reflect on you or your post. Sometimes, your post will set someone's mind off in another direction and the question will spring up from there. Best thing to do when posting is state it as clearly as you can and if the penny doesn't drop for us, we can always ask for clarification.

Point is, if you have a question or comment, don't ever be afraid to post it. This wouldn't be much of a forum if we didn't ask questions and offer answers. Something else to remember - there is no such thing as a stupid question.

Dave

pga_gold, Congrats on a job well done :applause: