We are a second-tier supplier but decided to get QS-9000 registration to align with the quality system of our customers and for competition purposes. Our concern is regarding the requirement of 4.6.2.1 wherein subcontractors shall be certified to the latest version of ISO 9000 by December 2002. So, our concerns are:
1. What if the subcontractors for raw materials will not be able to be certified by Dec. 2002 but have a timing plan until June 2003, will it be acceptable since ISO 9000:1994 will still be valid until Dec. 15, 2003?
2. According to the newly released Informational Update on 4.6.2.1 effective July 1, 2002, "Distributors who do not add manufacturing value to parts or materials are not subject to the requirements of 4.6.2 or C9. Once the supply chain is broken by non-applicability of distributor, 4.6.2 and C9 no longer applies....." In this regard, since some of our subcontractors (i.e., raw materials, subassembly parts) are only distributors of the required materials, does this mean that 4.6.2 and C9 are not applicable to them, or can we still require a certification from the original material maker?
3. Is my understanding correct that 4.6.2 or C9 is not applicable to subcontractors (i.e., packaging materials, freight forwarders) which are not directly involved with the manufacturing process but we have plans of conducting an audit at their site.
Thank you very much in advance.
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forrestbreyfogle 5/6/2005
INITIAL POSTING: "What techniques can I use to effectively engage middle management in Six Sigma projects/deployment?"
RESPONSE: It is more desirable to create a system where projects are pulled for creation, as opposed to being pushed into the system. If we need to work at increasing management's interest in project creation, I view this a push system for project creation.
I like to have 30,000-foot-level metric accountability by management, where these metrics address operational business needs tracked over time without calendar boundaries.
Goals can then be set for these metrics. Targeted metrics for business' goal success are to demonstrate a statistically significant improvement in time; i.e., could be in management's performance plan.
To achieve the desired shift in the 30,000-foot-level metric, one will need to do something different within the process. Six Sigma projects can provide the mechanism for this to occur; i.e., performance metrics pull for the creation of projects.
Contact me off-line if you would like to discuss further.
Forrest Breyfogle
Six Sigma Moderator
forrest@smartersolutions.com
512-918-0280
www.SmarterSolutions.com