Mini Quality System Audit

Y

ears ago, when I was a field quality rep (source inspector), part of my job was to audit prospective suppliers. The basis of the audits was MIL-Q-9858A, the military quality system. Most audits were simply me sitting across the desk from the head guy or gal asking questions. Do you do this? Do you do that? Of course the answers were always correct.

After the audit, I would tour the facility to get an idea if the person was telling the truth. The tour was actually more effective than the sit-down question and answer period. I became very good at judging the quality of the work we could expect just by looking around. I called it Audit by Looking Around (ABLA). You can actually say ABLA. It has kind of a Latin ring to it. I became very skilled at ABLA and to this day I can spot an outdated calibration sticker at 20 yards. I also discovered that you can learn a lot about a supplier by peeking into the dumpster. One other trick: When visiting a supplier, watch what people are carrying around. It’s probably the problem of the day.

The only problem with ABLA is that it doesn’t produce a report. So, I created a 20-statement audit system. I couldn’t come up with a nifty acronym like ABLA, but it works just the same. It’s a method to get some ideas about the quality system a company is using. I called it the Quality Index Rater. You’re free to use it, but don’t forget that I invented it.

How the Quality Index Rater works

As I mentioned, there are 20 statements. You answer each statement with a word that has a numeric value: Never = 1, Rarely = 2, Occasionally = 3, Usually = 4, Always = 5.

You score each statement and add up the scores. The total is your score expressed as a percentage. (Naturally, 100 percent is the best possible score.) To make certain that you understand the statements, I’ve include remarks here and there.

Audit statements

1. We use inspection and test to measure the process, not sort good from bad.
Remark: If you’re running control charts, or collecting and analyzing inspection data to take corrective action, that’s process stuff. If you're sorting a box of bad parts your customer returned, it’s not. If you’re not recording, reporting, and taking corrective action based on inspection results, you’re just sorting.
Score: _____

2. We have clear, written quality standards and work instructions for each product.
Score: _____

3. The instruments we use to measure the product are calibrated.
Remark: That means at this moment.
Score: _____

4. Our drawings, procedures, and work instructions show the proper level of engineering.
Score: _____

5. Customer complaints are resolved quickly and placed into the corrective action system.
Score: _____

6. Our corrective action system assigns problems to an individual and tracks progress.
Remark: Problems assigned to a group—engineering, purchasing, or some other department—will go unsolved while the blame is passed around. A problem must be assigned to the person who owns it.
Score: _____

7. We review new designs to anticipate problems and special requirements.
Score: _____

8. We can identify the status of all work at any point in the process.
Score: _____

9. If the product doesn’t meet its requirement, we get it out of the system.
Remark: Rejected products—left sitting around—will get better and better as time goes by. Soon, it won’t be defective any more.
Score: _____

10. New products are tested to every requirement before release.
Score: _____

11. Every employee knows exactly what our quality and performance standards are.
Remark: The quality standard is what the product should look like. The performance standard is how often it should look that way. (I prefer zero defects.)
Score: _____

12. We know how much money we spend to prevent and to discover defects; we also know how much we spend because we didn’t prevent defects.
Score: _____

13. We recognize (award) employees who do outstanding work.
Score: _____

14. We audit our quality program against written procedures.
Score: _____

15. Our quality reports highlight recurring, related, and serious problems.
Score: _____

16. We pay attention to quality in our warehouse and shipping operations.
Score: _____

17. We track the performance of our suppliers and hold them responsible for their work.
Score: _____

18. We survey our potential suppliers to make certain they can do the job.
Score: _____

19. Our employees receive training for their job and can demonstrate their skill.
Remark: The key word is demonstrate.
Score: _____

20. We use statistical methods to control our process.
Remark: SPC, gauge R&R, p-paper, etc.
Score: _____

Add up the scores

100% = You’ve got it made.
80% = You need to improve, but you can do it.
70% = You’re bleeding and need serious help.
60% = Shut down and go home.
50% and lower = Lie and cheat. It’s your only hope.

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