Hardness inspection Audit Finding Employee error

[J Allen]

During a recent audit, the auditor witnessed our inspector performing hardness inspection using a brinnel portable tester. There is a requirement that the load duration time will be at least 10 to 15 seconds. My inspector waited only 6 seconds. After being issued a finding, I began the root cause investigation. Our procedure clearly calls out the requirement. The employee was trained to the procedure. When asked why, he shrugged his shoulders with a response of "I don't know," yet he told me he was aware of the requirement and that he "counted" too fast. This is a case where the inspector failed to perform the inspection per the procedure and not a case of lack of training. AS9100 now requires to take human factors into consideration.
I plan to do re-enforcement training and perhaps add at note to the inspection record to wait 15 seconds.
What is a reasonable root cause?

 

[Kronos147]

sounds to me like there should be some sort of time scale available to remove the chance it may happen again to another person.

 

[Golfman25]

If time is such an issue I would think you need some type of electronic timing device as opposed to individual counting. So root cause could be lack of accurate timing device.

 

[Bev D]

The cause was simple - humans are not accurate timing devices. We either ‘count’ time too quickly or too slowly. The solution to this is to add an accurate timing device. This may be manually triggered (cheaper) by the inspector OR it can be incorporated into the testing device to automatically trigger at the initiation of the test (or process) and complete the test (or process) at the end of hte proscribed time (this is more expensive especially if it must be added to the test device after purchase but it is more robust to human error)

Writing requirements into a procedure is not a very robust solution to anything. Teaching the ‘why’ of a requirement and utilizing mistake proofing concepts is far more robust...

 

[Eredhel]

When I was inspecting quench times for in house heat treat I had a digital stop watch as well as a wall clock. I'm guessing you just need something similar.

 

[QuinnM]

Hi J Allen,

As stated above the root cause is noted. What I will add, is the idea that the timing device get incorporated into the brinnel portable tester. I know nothing about this tester, so I do not know if possible, but having the 10 to 15 seconds automatically controlled would be your desired option.

Quinn

 

[John Broomfield]

During a recent audit, the auditor witnessed our inspector performing hardness inspection using a brinnel portable tester. There is a requirement that the load duration time will be at least 10 to 15 seconds. My inspector waited only 6 seconds. After being issued a finding, I began the root cause investigation. Our procedure clearly calls out the requirement. The employee was trained to the procedure. When asked why, he shrugged his shoulders with a response of "I don't know," yet he told me he was aware of the requirement and that he "counted" too fast. This is a case where the inspector failed to perform the inspection per the procedure and not a case of lack of training. AS9100 now requires to take human factors into consideration.
I plan to do re-enforcement training and perhaps add at note to the inspection record to wait 15 seconds.
What is a reasonable root cause?

J Allen,

Root cause:

Failure of the organization to provide a timing device and to ensure it is used.

You could ask why again, but what’s the point of blaming the manager you now want to sign the P.O.?

John