Any software package that fits easily within most tight budgets is not going to do much for your organization. My advice is to consider skipping QS-9000 registration and getting copies of ISO/TS 16949:1999, ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 9004:2000 (call AIAG at 1-248-358-3570 for information about where to obtain TS 16949 and call ASQ at 1-800-248-1946 to purchase copies of the American National Standard equivalents of ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 9004:2000--you might also find some benefits from ISO 9000:2000, which contains the concepts and terminology used in the other two).
The reason is that the DaimlerChrysler/Ford/General Motors Supplier Quality Requirements Task Force (SQRTF) has made clear that it has no plans to revise QS-9000 to align with ISO 9001:2000. The French, German and Italian automotive industries--with their own national QMS sector "catalogs" based on ISO 9001/4:1994--also have no plans to update their catalogs to ISO 9001:2000. Instead, the four national groupings are working with the Japanese and others to revise TS 16949:1999 to align with ISO 9001:2000 and are going to follow the ISO 9001:2000 transition period for TS 16949:2002 (it is expected to be published by the second quarter of 2002). If all the major customers in the auto industry are only revising one set of QMS requirements, don't you think it would make sense to use that set and prepare for the next edition?
As for registration timeframes and finding a quick way to obtain "automotive registration" (all the major OEMs accept TS 16949 as equivalent to QS-9000 and the other catalogs), I really can't give you much advice without knowing more about your company and why it wants/needs QS-9000. Obviously, your company has not YET been rejected for a contract from an automotive customer and it has been more than 2 years since the Big Three deadlines for QS-9000 passed.
However, assuming your company is a supplier to the Big Three, a truck manufacturer or Tier 1 supplier that is requiring QMS registration of its suppliers, you probably already have procedures in place beyond what ISO 9001:1994 requires that meet many of the requirements of QS-9000/TS 16949. The first thing you need to do is find out how "out of conformance" your operations are with TS 16949 AND ISO 9001:2000 (or QS-9000 if you want to waste more money in 2 years).
Since your organization is already registered to ISO 9001:1994, have your internal auditors study ISO 9001:2000 and TS 16949 and then conduct an internal audit that will involve doing gap analysis rather than writing up nonconformances. Once you have taken this difficult but important step, you may find that your company is not that far from conforming to TS 16949 and ISO 9001:2000 (at which point you contact your registrar to find out if it is qualified to do assessments to both) and you need to create an implementation team to close the gaps. If you have large gaps, then you need to talk to management about committing more funds for training of the internal auditors and an implementation team on the new requirements so your company can improve its operations and reduce nonconformances and other costly waste.
If your company is a small to medium-sized business, you may want to contact AIAG, your local ASQ section or your state government to find out if your state has any sort of low-cost program to assist companies with implementation and registration to ISO 9001 and other "standards". A number of states have ISO 9000 consortiums and other programs that are partially subsized by the state government and allow smaller companies to share consultants and training organizations.
Again, a lot depends on what your company has budgeted or is willing to budget for registration to QS-9000. If the amount is so small that you can't do very much without outside help, you need to talk to management about the reality of remaining competitive as an automotive supplier. To paraphrase a speaker at ASQ's Annual Quality Congress last May, "ISO 9001 and QS-9000 registrations are no longer viewed as a benefit for a company, they are viewed as necessity for survival in the market."
Community metadata Could not be loaded. No pre-configured community forum parent found for the incoming fid: . You need to add this forum into custom_code/community.sql
Send to friend
Comments
qdigest 3/12/2001
Any software package that fits easily within most tight budgets is not going to do much for your organization. My advice is to consider skipping QS-9000 registration and getting copies of ISO/TS 16949:1999, ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 9004:2000 (call AIAG at 1-248-358-3570 for information about where to obtain TS 16949 and call ASQ at 1-800-248-1946 to purchase copies of the American National Standard equivalents of ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 9004:2000--you might also find some benefits from ISO 9000:2000, which contains the concepts and terminology used in the other two).
The reason is that the DaimlerChrysler/Ford/General Motors Supplier Quality Requirements Task Force (SQRTF) has made clear that it has no plans to revise QS-9000 to align with ISO 9001:2000. The French, German and Italian automotive industries--with their own national QMS sector "catalogs" based on ISO 9001/4:1994--also have no plans to update their catalogs to ISO 9001:2000. Instead, the four national groupings are working with the Japanese and others to revise TS 16949:1999 to align with ISO 9001:2000 and are going to follow the ISO 9001:2000 transition period for TS 16949:2002 (it is expected to be published by the second quarter of 2002). If all the major customers in the auto industry are only revising one set of QMS requirements, don't you think it would make sense to use that set and prepare for the next edition?
As for registration timeframes and finding a quick way to obtain "automotive registration" (all the major OEMs accept TS 16949 as equivalent to QS-9000 and the other catalogs), I really can't give you much advice without knowing more about your company and why it wants/needs QS-9000. Obviously, your company has not YET been rejected for a contract from an automotive customer and it has been more than 2 years since the Big Three deadlines for QS-9000 passed.
However, assuming your company is a supplier to the Big Three, a truck manufacturer or Tier 1 supplier that is requiring QMS registration of its suppliers, you probably already have procedures in place beyond what ISO 9001:1994 requires that meet many of the requirements of QS-9000/TS 16949. The first thing you need to do is find out how "out of conformance" your operations are with TS 16949 AND ISO 9001:2000 (or QS-9000 if you want to waste more money in 2 years).
Since your organization is already registered to ISO 9001:1994, have your internal auditors study ISO 9001:2000 and TS 16949 and then conduct an internal audit that will involve doing gap analysis rather than writing up nonconformances. Once you have taken this difficult but important step, you may find that your company is not that far from conforming to TS 16949 and ISO 9001:2000 (at which point you contact your registrar to find out if it is qualified to do assessments to both) and you need to create an implementation team to close the gaps. If you have large gaps, then you need to talk to management about committing more funds for training of the internal auditors and an implementation team on the new requirements so your company can improve its operations and reduce nonconformances and other costly waste.
If your company is a small to medium-sized business, you may want to contact AIAG, your local ASQ section or your state government to find out if your state has any sort of low-cost program to assist companies with implementation and registration to ISO 9001 and other "standards". A number of states have ISO 9000 consortiums and other programs that are partially subsized by the state government and allow smaller companies to share consultants and training organizations.
Again, a lot depends on what your company has budgeted or is willing to budget for registration to QS-9000. If the amount is so small that you can't do very much without outside help, you need to talk to management about the reality of remaining competitive as an automotive supplier. To paraphrase a speaker at ASQ's Annual Quality Congress last May, "ISO 9001 and QS-9000 registrations are no longer viewed as a benefit for a company, they are viewed as necessity for survival in the market."