Changing calibration frequency

[qcman]

I am not sure if this belongs here or in the ISO forum. Anyway after reviewing the system I am going to change our annual calibration of some 1100 gages we have in the system to every 2 years. I could do this as each one comes due and change the cal sticker then however, this would take a year to complete. I am wondering if I can just send out a directive to the departments stating that we will be adding 1 year to the due date currently on the calibration stickers of each gage. We would also note this in the software program ( Gagetrak) we use. Would the latter result in a non conformance in our next ISO audit?

 

[Jim Wynne]

I think that somewhere in your documentation you would need to specify that the controlling date is the one found in the calibration record, but I can't help but feel that you're looking for trouble in one way or another. You will also need to be able to justify, for each device, the extension.

 

[Ninja]

If you document the decision and the basis for it...and show it to the auditor if a question comes up...you're clean.

What a wonderful reason to not use calibration stickers...take the next year (or two) to remove them and not replace them as the gages come around for calibration.

 

[Ninja]

...for each device...spot on.

When we extended cal for FOG gages, we did it as a family...but wouldn't extend the "we just don't feel like spending the money, and these haven't failed or drifted in 15 years" across to micrometers without supporting justification.

 

[qcman]

Jim

After reviewing the system as it is now I am comfortable with the justification for the extension. I am curious as to what trouble you think may be ahead with this?

Ninja

I feel the same way about the stickers and they may go as well.

 

[Ninja]

Not answering for Jim...he doesn't need the help...
But your OP can easily be read to think that you are being a bit blase and just extending interval because you feel like it.
Might not be what you meant...but it is short posts on a forum. That's why I also broached the "we just don't feel like spending the money ".

 

[qcman]

Good point Ninja. Looking at previous recalibrations I see virtually no change in the gages. This along with the fact that gages are protected from damage (it does happen) it seems silly to do it annually.

 

[Mike S.]

1100 gages is a lot.

Make sure your controlling internal procedure supports what you're going to do, and as they said above I'd justify the interval increase decision in writing. Make sure you use "risk-based thinking".

Look at the entire process from an auditor's standpoint and the users' standpoint and see if you can find any holes or weaknesses, then address them.

 

[Tagin]

After reviewing the system as it is now I am comfortable with the justification for the extension. I am curious as to what trouble you think may be ahead with this?

Speaking for myself, I see a lot of risk in potentially producing up to 2 years of nonconforming product, and with 1100 gages, well, that sounds like a big volume of potentially nonconforming product. The costs, the impact to customers, damage to reputation could be enormous.

But I don't know the nature of your gages and how impervious they are to change, precisions involved, etc.

Or perhaps, the gages could be categorized into ABC categories, based on usage & product volume; where A gets calibrated every 6mo, B gets calibrated every year, C every 2 years, for example.

An auditor may well query you on your process for the last part of 7.1.5.2:

The organization shall determine if the validity of previous measurement results has been adversely affected when measuring equipment is found to be unfit for its intended purpose, and shall take appropriate action as necessary.

 

[hogheavenfarm]

I had to do this also, I wrote up documentation for each gage showing how it held tight for 5 years, then extended the calibration to 2 years for about 25% of the gages. I also tagged them on the label with a number -00- for master gages, -01- for QC gages, -02 for shop gages, etc. the -02 gages stayed on annual calibration, I extended some of the rarely used QC gages and master gages (gage block sets). The more they are used the closer the calibrations have to be.