Layered Process Auditing (LPA) for a service provider

[QCDiety]

My company is interested in adopting a standard LPA system, however rather than being a manufacturer we are a third party service provider to many automotive suppliers. Short of having constant personnel evaluations to ensure everybody follows our processes, what other types of measurables would be best suited for a service provider?

[Coury Ferguson]

Does anyone have advice?

[AndyN]

Originally Posted by Coury Ferguson

Does anyone have advice?

Yeah - don't do them! There's a lot of posts, pro and co about LPA's. I believe it's going to be difficult to apply them to a service - with no tangible product.

The emphasis LPA's place is on the build up of product - is the operator following any written instruction, right tools, pm'd/calibrated equipment, place for rejects etc. etc. etc.

You could fit an LPA to service but you only have to look at the other LPA threads to see my experienced based views! My friend Kees DeWitt has had good results, so maybe he's got some good advice for you.

Kees?

[bobdoering]

Andy is right,

If your processes are so straight forward that they are never deviated

If you never had to put in a permanent corrective action, and had the problem reoccur

If you have no records that sometimes someone "forgets' to fill out

If you have no gaging

If you procedures, work instructions, etc. are always up-to-date and accurate

If have no customer complaints

If you have no audit findings


...then LPA's are likely redundant for your system. Again, the point of the LPA is that everyone knows that folks run around like crazy cleaning up messes right before an audit. So, if you audit every day, the messes will be smaller and less problems prior to the real deal. But, if you don't have those problems, then it really doesn't fix anything.

[Duke Okes]

Originally Posted by QCDiety

My company is interested in adopting a standard LPA system, however rather than being a manufacturer we are a third party service provider to many automotive suppliers. Short of having constant personnel evaluations to ensure everybody follows our processes, what other types of measurables would be best suited for a service provider?

How about measures of how well the processes actually perform (e.g., outcomes), in addition to auditing process activities?