AS9100 8.5.1 j) - Lot splitting - any loopholes?

[Mike S.]

8.5.1 j) the accountability for all products during production (e.g., parts quantities, split orders, nonconforming product);

I'm the new guy on the block, in a shop that just went to AS9100, and today I found a batch of 20 pieces shipping with a traveler for 40 pieces.

The shipping guy says he put the balance to stock with a copy of the 40 piece traveler.

I told him it's not an issue today, but explained the AS9100 requirement above to him, and told him I'd look into it.

So, before I tell them they've got to change their evil ways ... baby ... is there any loophole because the parts have completed the production stages and are now finished goods? I don't mind bringing them up to speed, I'm just preparing for possible counter arguments.

Can't tell you folks enough how much I appreciate you -

I see nothing wrong with what is happening. We are AS9100 (now D) and have done this for years.

 

[Big Jim]

You may be confusing the term splitting as used in AS9120. There splitting refers to a distributorship (AS9120 is a standard for distributorships) that splits a batch. An example would be a batch of solvent that the distributorship purchased in a 55 gallon drum and then splits it into 55 one gallon containers. The distributorship is allowed to do this as long as they don't alter it so it remains pure and they continue to provide traceability to the original bulk purchase. They also need to keep records to show what all customers received part of the bulk batch.

That's very different to what you are dealing with in AS9100. That is dealing with maintaining control of a split batch during production. A typical example would be that you have an order for 100 widgets, and shortly after starting production (perhaps 2 operations into a 10 operation traveler) the customer calls and asks if you can ship 10 of them by the end of the week instead of in two weeks. They only want 10 of them early and the remaining 90 at the original date. The question becomes what do you do to keep track of the traveler sign-offs for the 10 and also for the 90.

A common practice is to make a photo copy of the traveler. Mark the original as "S1" and the copy as "S2". Revise the quantity of "S1" to 90 and the quantity of "S2" as 10. Then pull the "S2" ahead with 10 pieces so you can ship by Friday and leave "S2" with the remaining 90 to ship on the original date. When production is finished marry the two travelers back together.

Some shops would just write new travelers and that may be the best answer for them.

If you try to keep track of the splits with only the original traveler it becomes tricky to chase after it when signing off an operation and there is a high risk of sign-offs not being recorded.

Your example of building more than needed and putting the extras into inventory isn't splitting in the same sense.

You should, however, maintain traceability so don't mix batches. If there are already some on the shelf you should do something to keep them seperate and tracable.