posted 17 April 2000 08:41 PM               

The auditor may well expect a date on the schedule to signify the status/currency. They may also ask who gets the schedule.
How often is it updated.

The important thing is that the schedule complies with what your procedure says.

Cheers.

posted 26 May 2000 12:36 PM               

In fact, the second paragraph of 4.17 (the only mention of scheduling in the Standard) gives us leeway to initiate or postpone audits according to perceived need rather than use a dated list. (This relates to the flexibility to changes in circumstances mentioned by David and Lurker above) For example; I can imagine an organisation where the decision to hold, or not hold an internal audit, is made at Management Review, depending on the current situation and imminent events. This method might have become the conventional approach from the time the first edition of ISO 9001 was introduced, had most of us not already become bound by the chains of bureaucracy. There is nothing in the Standard to prevent this approach and it has a lot to commend it. It would align the implementation of ISO 9001 more closely with Deming, particularly regards items; 2,3,5 and 7 of his 14 Points For Management and conform to Shonbergerâs advice to eliminate waste throughout the organisation.
In such a case, the minutes of the meeting, filed anyway as the quality record of Management Review, would provide both the schedule and the quality record of scheduling. (Note; the control of quality records is a different subject entirely)

Please donât hesitate to call me mad, if that is what you think, but be sure to tell me where Iâm wrong, and donât let it be just your opinion; back it up with evidence from your experience and, most of all, evidence taken directly from ISO 9001 since that is the document under consideration and furthering of our understanding of compliance with that document is the object of these discussions. Whatever else we get from these discussions, we all want to learn.
Respectfully yours,
John C

posted 22 June 2000 04:27 AM               

We use an Access application to run our entire audit process. That includes reports, checklists and schedule as well as follow ups. Once a year we enter the audit schedule, print it out and sign it.

This application also sends the audit plan to our intranet. Any changes or additions to the plan is relayed to the intranet.

Our procedures refer to the application.

Claes Gefvenberg

posted 24 June 2000 05:15 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by David Mullins:
It's amazing what happens when you remove the blinkers and look at how the standard (any standard or system model for that matter) can be applied to best suit an organisation, and still be compliant. For those people who are establishing a new quality management system, I would say: don't make the hurdles too high from day one, make them achievable and then progressively improve the system, thus raising the bar.

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posted 14 July 2000 07:38 AM               

Glad you asked that question. Our last audit had an observation that we should show how audits are re-scheduled. I went back to the standard, and . . .

"The supplier shall establish and maintain documented procedures for planning and implementing internal quality audits to verify whether quality activities and related results comply with *PLANNED* arrangements...

This is where our auditor must have gotten his observation, and may be where the talk of controlling the schedule comes from.

posted 14 July 2000 05:21 PM               

It was an observation on our auditor's part, not a finding. And it might have been prompted by the fact that due to a vacancy and change in QMs we missed at least one internal audit.

Under that condition, I think we got scrutinized more closely.