Re: AS9100 Control of Non Conforming Product
Yeah. This Control of Nonconforming Product issue can cause a lot of angst in aerospace and in FAA-regulated industries.
Essentially, the basis is that nonconforming material has to go through a systematic process of determining whether it can be made conforming by rework or repair or must be destroyed (disposition does not mean "destroyed" - it only means that the product or "thing" is "positioned" under a set of controls to assure it does not get back into use while still in nonconforming condition.)
One of the big issues in the past has been that parts or products deemed incapable of being reworked or repaired to bring them into conformance have been "disposed" into a trash where unscrupulous or ignorant folks have retrieved them and put them into use as if they were conforming.
Thus, regulators have imposed a requirement that unrepairable items be further destroyed so as to make them absolutely incapable of being used.
Many folks in aerospace and FAA-regulated industries have created procedures and processes and work instructions to create a systematic appraisal of suspect product, documenting whether they are repairable or not. Those deemed repairable are diverted to a repair facility, unrepairable are held in quarantine until they can be destroyed (not merely trashed.) Destruction does not have to be in-house; it can be contracted out, but the contractor must go through an approval process to assure product slated for destruction does not reenter the production/installation cycle at some other facility. (think of document destruction where outside contractors bring big trucks with paper shredders to a company site and feed documents through the shredder to be destroyed. Some of the outsourced companies merely haul the documents back to a large central facility to be shredded - obviously the approval process is a little more elaborate because the documents are out of the chain of custody of the document owner while in transit.)
Once such processes are in place, individuals are trained and evaluated by supervisors to carry out those processes. Periodic audits and evaluations continue to assure the processes are being followed. Folks are not allowed to be part of the process until approved. Obviously, just like in school, "advance placement" by testing (without training) is allowed and encouraged for the sake of efficiency to eliminate redundant training.
It is important not to let the approval of employees be "once and done" - periodic assessment and audit is necessary to provide assurance to aerospace OEMs and FAA regulators.
