Additional Quality Systems

[Karla Chaparro]

My company has an additional quality system (Divisional) from qs-9000, and we have the additional requirements documented in the Qs-9000 procedures. Now my question is: Does the external qs-9000 auditor has the right to audit those extra requirements since they are written in our procedures?

 

[matthew evans - 2002]

I think the first question to ask is do the additional requirements to your system come under the scope of your registration. If they do then I think the auditor has the right to audit the additional elements as you have included them in your procedures. If they fall outside the scope then you could argue that he cannot audit a system that is not covered in your scope of registration.
Hope this helps a little.

 

[Don Reid]

I tend to agree with Matthew. We have several additional non QA procedures wrapped up in one procedures manaul and I would not want an assessor/auditor to evaluate them.

 

[barb butrym]

if they link to the system its auditable..no auditor will go off looking for additions, but if he is lead there by procedures...he goes

 

[Marc]

If you write that you do something, it is auditable whether it has anything to do with any spec or not. If you have a procedure which, in part, reads: "...Receive material and then stick your finger up your butt for 15 seconds..." it is auditable ("Show me...." comes to mind right now from an auditor's perspective...). If you say: "...Test to ANSI 1234546..." you better have a current copy of it and test to it.

You say you do it - it's auditable. If it's written in your QS9000 procedures, then it's auditable.

Got an example for us to consider?

[This message has been edited by Marc Smith (edited 16 May 2000).]

 

[James Gutherson]

Don, why don't you want procedures in a procedures manual looked at? Do you actually do these procedures, or are they simply words to fill a gap? This scares me a lot.

 

[matthew evans - 2002]

In addition to my original answer consider a company that has ISO9000, QS9000 and ISO14001 (Environmental Management System) and uses one procedure manual to cover all three standards. When an auditor comes to audit say ISO,QS9000 he will only cover those two standards and not the ISO14001 because this is the scope of his audit, and your registration, and not to cover ISO14001.

See what you think about that.

 

[Laura M]

I wouldn't think the audit trail using the QSA(for QS9000) would lead them there. We had an auditor "stumble" on a procedure that was relavant to the company, but didn't fulfill any QS9000 requirements and he basically said "no, I don't care about that."
Can't even remember what it was, but if the auditor "sticks" to the QSA the other company procedures shouldn't come up. I'm thinking it was something like a Greivance procedure and how to handle the paperwork being that it was a UAW shop.

 

[Marc]

Originally posted by Laura M:

I'm thinking it was something like a Greivance procedure and how to handle the paperwork being that it was a UAW shop.

If does not affect the quality of the product it's none of the auditor's business. A grievance procedure is not auditable. That's why financials are not looked at.

However, that said, almost all systems can be argued to affect quality.