Quality Assurance Software to manage ISO 9001 - Need advice

Hello everyone, first time on this site. I need list of sofware that I can evaluate for manufacturing company.

There are K's of software packages to cover all aspects of manufacturing.

Could you be more specific in what you are looking for?...

It might increase your response rate!

ASD...

www.pilgrimusa.com www.integsolutions.com www.powerwayinc.com

Companies:

Omnex
Excell
Harrington Group

Anybody else care to add to the endless list?

ASD...

I need a list of quality assurance software to cover ISO 9001-2000 standards which can help businesses to implement and maintain ISO 9000. It's not a manufacturing software.

[Marc]

At ***DEAD LINK REMOVED*** there's an article on 'Quality Software'. However, expect this link to expire soon as it's part of their 'current' magazine edition.

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by Mary Beth Nilles

"It's no secret that successful organizations share best practices internally and then improve upon them. In fact, this is one of the primary reasons that standards such as ISO 9000:2000, ISO 14000 and QS-9000 emphasize a process approach to achieve improvement. Complying with these standards means implementing a philosophy of ongoing process evaluation, improvement and measurement. Like most things worth achieving, it's easy to say that you agree, but it's sometimes hard to do.

Of course, this is made all the more challenging by the standards' flexibility. They state what needs to be accomplished but don't dictate how to do it. In addition, the 20-clause format of the ISO 9000:1994 series is out; ISO 9000:2000's eight management principles are in. This flexibility is somewhat of a mixed blessing because some organizations are confused about how to organize and manage their quality or environmental management system processes. Those companies that do successfully comply with ISO 9001, QS-9000 or ISO 14001 have found a way to organize their business processes to follow the new standards' management principles. Many have found that the most effective tool for doing so is the right software.

The million-dollar question, sometimes literally, is, "What's the right software?"

Conquering customization

Let's start with what software is not: a customized packaged program. After years of trying to organize quality management systems on paper, quality managers were delighted when software providers started offering "complete QMS packages" to automate the system.

Unfortunately, many managers discovered that most packages don't work without modification. Remember, programmers, not quality managers, design these software packages. They know code; they know platforms; they don't know quality management. Even if the programs do have QMS input, they are created to serve customers in a wide variety of industries. Users notice this and complain that the packages just don't fit the way their company does things. Sometimes entire applications are missing."

[John Swartz]

I absolutely agree with Marc, there is no one 'canned' software out there that will fit your quality system exactly. 'Canned' software is best used for those who do not have a quality system but are building one. For those of use with established QMS's, 'canned' software is more of a burden and requires lots of changes either to the software or to the QMS. Sometimes it is just not feasible.

If you MIS group or Access programmer can do it, I think spending the money on an internally written QMS database would be much better, under your control, and most of all easily revised.

I use the QSI system for both ISO and QS9000. I have decided not to purchase the ISO14001 package because I can write an Access program that could easily fulfill may needs and be patterned directly from my EMS.

Good Luck.

[Big-3-Hand-Puppet]

John,

Few months back, I would have completely agreed with your comments re:
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"there is no one 'canned' software out there that will fit your quality system exactly. 'Canned' software is best used for those who do not have a quality system but are building one.
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This company proved me wrong, they reverse engineered they way I now think of canned software...I wish more companies followed their lead. We have a bastardized way of doin FMEA's. In 20 minutes they emailed me a new FMEA template that followed my Excel worksheet to a "T".

Having now used the program for a few months, the open architecture (engine) allows the software to follow my way of doing things, rather than the other way around, like we have been forced in the past. They even import old Ford fmeaplus files into new 3rd edition format

Nothing more to say, other than look at www.fmeapro.com

Big-3-Hand-Puppet

[John Swartz]

You're correct about FMEAPRO, but that's only one very small portion of the QMS task. I've considered using it for our TE FMEA development, but one of our engineer's developed a beautiful little gem in Excel and we've been using it since.

Back to QMS, as a whole...I still stand by my statement that there is no 'one' software package available that can perfectly mesh an existing QMS without revising either the software or elements within the QMS.

I would like to see QMS software developed whereby a Quality Manager would simply fill-in-the-blanks or outline his (her) QMS and out pop a viable and perfectly usable QMS database. All levels of documentation could either be scanned or cut-and-pasted into the database (there are a lot of these now), FMEA, control plan, LCC, etc. documents that look and feel like your own, CAR/PAR and nonconformance tracking systems that follow you specific method of escalation and approval, etc.

Right now, the only way I can see anyone developing a computer based QMS without too much revision to their system would be to purchase canned software packages that perfectly meshes with the QMS for each individual aspect required. Similar to Powerway's philosophy, buy a specific database based on your needs, but you're still buying their format, not the one that has been developed for yor company.

I think we're probably beating a dead horse. There are very fine software packages available, but don't expect to find one which with you will be perfectly satisfied.

Quality must not only exist...it must be perceived by the customer.