NADCAP Audit - No work in house - How does a NADCAP auditor audit the process?

[dbzman]

Hello everyone!

I am hoping that someone can help me with a NADCAP question.

We are looking at (possible) certification in the future. The heat treating facility that I work for is going after some aluminum work but they do not have it yet. They want NADCAP so that they can get the work.

If we do not have any work in house how does a NADCAP auditor audit the process?

Thanks!

[alspread]

Excellent question!!!

It's a chicken and the egg situation. If you're not heat treating, the auditor has nothing to audit. If your not approved, you can heat treat.

In the past, I have received a temporary exclusion from my customer to permit processing pending Nadcap approval. My customer performed their own process audit and wanted to see all of my procedures and a purchase order to PRI for Nadcap auditing and an audit scheduled before they authorized processing.

The customer wanted some assurance that we were doing the process correctly on their parts and that we were committed to pusuing Nadcap process approval.

The product produced prior to approval was either controlled pending approval or permitted to continue with an exclusion or signature/serial number release.

I've also seen the pending product submitted as nonconforming/noncompliant and dispositioned using the nonconformance reporting system.

Work closely with your customer PQE.

Good luck.

[Sidney Vianna]

In Reply to Parent Post by dbzman

If we do not have any work in house how does a NADCAP auditor audit the process?

They won't, as far as I know. If you don't have a system/process to be assessed, you can't be accredited by Nadcap. But you should contact them for clarification.

[Phiobi]

Have you ever produced aluminium parts to NADCAP controls for this customer? If so they could do a historic check.

Due to ITAR it is possible to pass an audit without a primes work being processed, this happens with me all of the time.

Do you have any work for primes to show? Or is this the only aerospace customer you will have?

Before the audit you should speak to the staff engineer or the assigned auditor to confirm how they want to play it.

[dbzman]

We have other customers that are Aerospace but have not required NADCAP. We have been able to process there work without it. They usually audit us and give their approval. This would be the first time that we have tried for NADCAP.

It almost seems like putting the cart before the horse. How to audit before you get the work in.

Thanks!

[mutton4u]

Go to the PRI website and find one of the Staff Engineers for Heat Treating. Call and ask them how the Nadcap process works. Best to hear it from the people that are involved in the process. No need to contact the auditor at this time.
As far as not having any work in house, you can work with your possible Customer to get some "scrap" parts to see if you can control your processes as required.

[world quality]

if it is still here under supplier quality, I posted from Automotive side CQI-9 II
on Heat treating and what you have to comply with.

If it isn;t still there please email me and I will send it to you at your email or company. I Train personnel on CQI-8,9,10,11,12.

[Gakitygak]

I was granted a one year permit for providing a plan to become Nadcap certified. At the expiration of the permit, we will have to have our audit scheduled. The prime was eager to work with me and had no problem offering a permit, as long as accreditation was actively being pursued.