Pros and cons to transition to AS9100 for non aerospace company

[Smchandler]

Curious if anyone has pros/cons listing for updating a non aerospace company's QMS system from ISO9001 to AS9100?
I have compiled a list for our company to consider but wanted to see if others may have additional things I may have missed.
My lists includes pros improvement of the quality system and of course the ability to bring in aerospace contacts with AS9100. Cons side includes extra cost to the facility to add and execute additional requirements in AS9100, and not being able to pass that cost to non-aerospace customers.
Not looking for questions of "why" we would consider it, only looking for input on pros and cons for going AS9100 for non aerospace facility.
Thanks so much in advance.

 

[Sidney Vianna]

of course the ability to bring in aerospace contacts with AS9100.

Many lower level suppliers dream that they will be awarded aerospace work if they have an AS9100 certificate. Most of the time that never happens and after a few years they drop the AS cert. If you are capable of signing a contract with aerospace OEM and they tell you to be AS9100 certified, they will give you a grace period to achieve that.

 

[Mike S.]

Remember, AS9100 is Quality Management Systems - Requirements for Aviation, Space, and Defense Organizations

There is a heck of a lot of work out there that is not "aerospace" that AS9100 can help unlock the door to.

 

[Randy]

Do a cost benefit analysis and see if you can justify it with the numbers (ROI). To start AS9011 costs more than ISO 9001

 

[Smchandler]

Many lower level suppliers dream that they will be awarded aerospace work if they have an AS9100 certificate. Most of the time that never happens and after a few years they drop the AS cert. If you are capable of signing a contract with aerospace OEM and they tell you to be AS9100 certified, they will give you a grace period to achieve that.

Thank you for your response, however your previous experience is not applicable to our company and really doesn't answer my question, but I do appreciate the time you spent responding to it.

All facilities in our division except for one are AS9100 certified with big government defense and military contracts world wide, so we are definitely not "dreamers", we are planners and very much a forward thinking company.
Many forward thinking companies plan ahead by weighing pros and cons, brainstorming, researching local markets, have discussions with similar industry experts, calculate cost, loss and profitability, and so on...long before the customer comes and asks for it. We may end up determining it isn't a profitable investment for our company but without the facts we won't know for sure. According to the market experts, all things equal Customers will almost always chose a supplier that is already proven and certified compared to one that isn't, many obvious reasons for this including risk of the unknown, time spent to prove out, unknown costs, and so on. I understand it's different than what you have experienced, but it is what sets us apart from other lower level suppliers and has made us an industry leader. Again thanks again for the response.

 

[Smchandler]

Remember, AS9100 is Quality Management Systems - Requirements for Aviation, Space, and Defense Organizations

There is a heck of a lot of work out there that is not "aerospace" that AS9100 can help unlock the door to.

.

Great point, I will add this fact to my list of pros. Thanks so much for the response!

 

[Smchandler]

Do a cost benefit analysis and see if you can justify it with the numbers (ROI). To start AS9011 costs more than ISO 9001

Yes, agree completely, cert body confirmed it costs more to audit to AS9100 vs ISO9001, so we have it on our list of cons as well as other outgoing costs. Pros and cons list is part of our cost benefit analysis, so we are tracking the same thought process. thanks so much.

 

[Big Jim]

Remember, AS9100 is Quality Management Systems - Requirements for Aviation, Space, and Defense Organizations

There is a heck of a lot of work out there that is not "aerospace" that AS9100 can help unlock the door to.

Don't forget that The forward in AS9100D in the last sentence of the third paragraph includes:

"While primarily developed for the aviation, space, and defense industry, this standard can also be used in other industry sectors when a quality management system with additional requirements over an ISO 9001 system is needed."