Is APQP Required for All Projects?

[kwalityguy]

I am working on upgrading our ISO 9001 certification to IATF 16949 and have an APQP question.

We currently use a standard checklist for project management when a new job is implementing. I see the APQP checklists A- 1 to A-8 and there are many similarities.

The question I have is can we continue to use our current project checklist for jobs whose annual sales is less than X and use the APQP checklists for jobs greater than X? Or use APQP across the board? Or fold the APQP tasks into our current project checklist?

For small jobs I don't want to spend more on project implementation than the value of the job.

 

[Golfman25]

Only do the automotive apqp on automotive jobs. Do whatever works on the others.

 

[kwalityguy]

That was my plan. However, we do some automotive jobs that are very small in quantity and dollars. Such as providing a part at 25/day for $1.12 each. So annual sales are only $7k. The reason the cost is so low is because it is a very simple process. Cost of all the APQP paperwork would be huge relative to sales with little value added.

I'll do what needs to be done for IATF but if there's leeway I'm all for going the path of least effort.

 

[Golfman25]

That was my plan. However, we do some automotive jobs that are very small in quantity and dollars. Such as providing a part at 25/day for $1.12 each. So annual sales are only $7k. The reason the cost is so low is because it is a very simple process. Cost of all the APQP paperwork would be huge relative to sales with little value added.

I'll do what needs to be done for IATF but if there's leeway I'm all for going the path of least effort.

Me too. Here's what I would say. If the part is already in production, argue it is grandfathered. No need to create APQP paperwork for something that has been running for years prior to TS implementation. New parts, I think you're stuck. But keep it as simple as possible - commensurate with the value of the part. Now when your auditor arrives, keep the focus on the high value parts. The worst thing is to get dinged on a stupid part that isn't worth your trouble.

 

[ncwalker]

We actually run a light APQP and a full APQP.

How do we get away with it? We do a risk assessment in our procedures that determines which one to use. Example: if we a buying a washer from Fred's Washers and have been for the last 20 years and we need a new washer that is 1/16" of an inch thicker, the risk assessment would say light APQP. Why? C'mon, you're just going to feed in stock 1/16" thicker into the stamping machine.

Or if we launch a new program, and we are using the same bolts from the old program (or bearings, or whatever) and they are just being used in the new design - light APQP. It's already been PPAP'd with the previous program.

The point is - the auditors are fine with this because there is some semblance of a system that says "OK to use this ...." It's not just if we feel like it.

If you write your procedures thusly, you can indeed do a portion of the APQP process.