Can Calibration Due Date start upon issuance of the device to production

M

murugan

#1
Hi,
we have more than 300 different type equipments for calibration in our company. once we receive equipment after external calibration, we will store until the similar equipment in production floor is due for calibration.

upon issuance to production floor, then only we will control the calibration due date. we have our internal issuance sticker placed on the equipment.

for a example : item calibrated on 6 april 206. but issued to production only on
7 july 2007. our internal interval of calibration for this item is 3 months. so the item a will due for calibration on 7 oct 2007. it will based on date of issuance and not from the date of calibration. is this way correct in calibration theory. please give ur opinion.thank you.
 
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D

Dale D. Barnes

#2
Re: can calibration due date starts upon issuance to production

I have always started the calibration when I issued the item. I label the certification as Activated and place the activation date on the cert. I have never had any problems with any of my audits. An auditor may be able to give clearer information on this subject.

Dale
 
A

andygr

#3
Re: can calibration due date starts upon issuance to production

This is acceptable.
There in no issue with your approach. One of the most common items covered in this way is Thread gauges which are dipped in wax preservitive and stored untill needed. They are tagged at that point and made active in the calibration recall system.
Just make sure your records araccurate
:2cents:
 

CalRich

Involved In Discussions
#4
Re: can calibration due date start upon issuance to production

Indeed, your system is acceptable provided the records are maintained. It assumes that the gage does not change from when it is calibrated and when it is activated and used.
We set the due dates from the actual date of calibration as there is too much opportunity for misadjustment after leaving the calibration lab. We don't issue the gages directly from where the gages are calibrated.

My question is, let's say you have a thread plug calibrated January 1, 2007 with a 12 month recall. But, for whatever reason, it doesn't get used for three years. Do you consider the calibration valid forever when a gage is not used?
For hard gaging, there is some dimensional drift even when not used, just sitting in a drawer. Sometimes this matters, other times not. Then there's the case of calipers, mics, etc. Even though not "used", calipers might need adjustment even when unused because they've been jostled around in a cabinet over and over.
If it works for your company, continue with it. It does seem to benefit in having to calibrate items more than necessary.
 
A

andygr

#5
Re: can calibration due date starts upon issuance to production

Calrich
Point taken but I fell that this interval control methodology practice is an acceptable part of a calibration system.
As the basic recall interval for calibrated equipment is based on stability I would expect storage to be addressed the same as the enviroment the calibrate equipment would see if it was in use. A longer storage interval would be acceptable if stored in the controled enviroment of the cal lab then if it was to be stored at the point of use. The actuals seen durring calibration should support this.

Besides at some point if the equipment was never used then why not "lean" and remove it from the area/system ( not that I could ever do it since I am a true pack rat at heart!).

Have to look at the overall "system" and document and address accordingly. With this the auditors should be happy.
 

Jerry Eldred

Forum Moderator
Super Moderator
#6
Re: can calibration due date starts upon issuance to production

Your question seems to be well covered by the previous replies already.

I would say it depends on the items. You can use calibration history to determine how well an instrument retains its specifications when kept in storage. There are a wide variety of implications depending on the type instrument in question.

For thread gages dipped in wax or liquid plastic until used, it can be reasonably assumed that it will not drift over some time. For some electronic instruments, just sitting on a shelf can change the instrument over time. For some dimensional instruments, exposure to high humidity over time will change the instrument. for thermocouple temperature probes, sitting on a shelf for a few months or even a year or two will normally not change the item.

Yes, it is acceptable to begin calibration interval when you issue an instrument. But I would recommend some sort of guardband protection. This might include defining types of instruments, how long you allow yourself to store each type instrument prior to issuing, how the instrument is protected, what environment it is kept in, how it is handled during storage, and perhaps even some method to verify that the instruments are not changing while stored (this could be a periodic sample check - for example, sending one thread gage out at the end of a storage period each year to check how it changed (or not) while stored). Then perhaps do this once per year for each type of instrument as sample confidence check.

Those are just some thoughts.
 
L

lee.moffatt

#7
Hmm. . .

Personally I would look at your calibration timeframe. If you calibrate it once every 3 months, yet use it only once, then to me your calibration timeframe is a little too small.

I often go into organisations and are told that the calibration of equipment is too much of a cost for the company, then I speak to the Quality Manager who has this strange notion that the ISO standard states he need to calibrate everything every year? Yet when I ask him why someone has just used a gauge without checking its correct, he pulls out a calibration certificate that 4 months old? Hmm how strange?

Put it this way, the way I read the ISO standard I take the following viewpoint: If someone uses a gauge (lets say a micrometer) then he needs to make sure its ‘fit for purpose’ before using it, probably by quickly checking a slip gauge at the size of the part to be checked. Make sure its okay then off we go (irrespective of the official calibration date).

With regards to calibration I would conduct an official calibration based on usage (using the gauge issue control information). That way I will use my own judgement for the official calibration, the operator/ inspector will conduct a quick fit for purpose check, thus adhering to the ISO standard of making sure the gauge is verified fit for use.
 

CHRSCLLNGS

Involved In Discussions
#8
That's how we work ours as well, our plug and ring gauges (all 10,000) of them are calibrated every 50 'working days'. This is a bit of a double edged sword as the frequently used gauges are calibrated frequently, but some of them havent been used for 2 years and therefore havent been and will not be caibrated for the foreseable future.
 
D

DanLan

#9
Re: can calibration due date starts upon issuance to production

I have just become very interested in this thread...
I am in the process of trying to find if there is ANY quality documentation written by a national or international body that addresses this issue of "stopping the clock" on the calibration cycle. If I calibrate, inhouse, a dimensional measuring tool (micrometer, dial indicator, test indicator etc) can I place it in a locked quarantine cabinet in a climate controlled room and only start the calibration clock when it is issued? I am not talking a long storage...1 year at most. I also do this for some pressure gauges, that are used as spares, that have to be calibrated at an outside lab.
This issue also raises its head when you purchase a tool / instrument with certification, and the cert is dated 6 months to 1 year previous. Is the cert still good? Why?
 
J

jfgunn

#10
I agree with others that this practice is perfectly acceptable. As a third party cal lab we will even return caliper and other items in a hat sealed bag if requested to help the customer know if they have used the gage.

In customer visits, I have seen all kind of well documented, well implemented, elaborate plans for calibration intervals.

What I see less often is a system to track where a gage was used. If a gage is found out of tolerance, many people have no real process to go back and see its impact.

Just an observation from many manufacturing facilities. My customers in more regulated environments do have this type of tracking in place.
 
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