AS9100 Unserviceable inspection tool retention

[drew3007]

Hello everyone. I'm trying to get some clarification and maybe some experience with how unserviceable inspection tools are supposed to be handled according to AS9100.

As I read AS9100D:
7.1.5.1 b. "maintained to ensure their continuing fitness for their purpose".

So, if that is no longer possible for financially reasonable, then that inspection tool needs to be removed from service permanently.

"...shall retain appropriate documented information as evidence of fitness...", so it's documented that the tool is no longer fit.

Lastly, "The organization shall establish, implement, and maintain a process for the recall of monitoring and measuring equipment requiring calibration or verification."

It seems that if the tool no longer requires such procedures, then the literal interpretation is that the organization no longer needs to be able to recall it.

My question is, can we just document that the inspection tool has been determined to be unserviceable and has been permanently removed from service and then just remove it from the facility? Does it need to be destroyed, scrapped, retained or anything like that or is documentation and removal acceptable?

Thank you for the consideration.

 

[Big Jim]

You read the standard properly. Rest easy.

 

[Michael_M]

Does it need to be destroyed, scrapped, retained or anything like that or is documentation and removal acceptable?

I will use thread gages as a reference: Back when I was set to AS9100 (and even now as ISO9001) I had a registry of all tools that required calibration. When thread gage dropped off either because if failed calibration or we no longer used the tool, I would set it's statue to "retired-Destroyed" or "Retired-Bond". If I said it was destroyed, I made it unusable (even preventing people from taking it home). If I said it was bond, I kept it locked in a special bond cabinet and my procedures allowed me to put back in the system so long as I re-certified it (mostly used for tools that had not been used in 2+ years but are good). This is subject to your requirements, but if you say you are going to destroy it, I would think you would need to render it unusable.