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N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R
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FEATURE
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cases, the auditor is required to be on-site for four to five
full days. Therefore, you are required to inform the audi-
tor at the start of the audit about the Primes for which
you want to be approved, as well as what is scheduled
with production over the next few days (e.g., if there are
any upcoming furnace cycles). This enables the auditor
to effectively evaluate your processes while maximizing
productivity.
THE AUDIT PROCESS
The official audit is generally divided into two seg-
ments—the Quality System Audit and the Process Audit.
The Quality System Audit
is approximately one day
long. According to Performance Review Institute (PRI), the
auditor will not perform this audit if you provided sufficient
evidence of an acceptable quality systemwhen scheduling
the audit. If you do not have an acceptable quality system,
the auditor will perform the Quality System Audit, which
involves verifying that you meet all the requirements for a
quality specification.
The Process Audit
is approximately four days long.
However, the Process segment could be longer, depend-
ing on the number of Primes for which you are being
accredited, the scope of accreditation, and other factors.
Typically, the auditor spends a significant portion of time
reviewing specification checklists and both historical and
live jobs, so a large number of both should be available
for review (as defined on the eAuditNet website). Auditors
typically request different historical jobs besides the ones
prepared, as well as perform live job audits.
Interacting with the auditor
occurs in various ways
throughout the official audit process, from discussing your
understanding of specifications to reviewing findings. A
key part of the audit process is providing credible informa-
tion and data on how the process is controlled, as well as
explaining it in a clear, concise manner. Nadcap auditors
are extensively trained to identify nonconformances and
ensure adherence to all specifications within the set stan-
dards. Discussing nonconformances you received with the
auditor enables you to better understand all aspects of the
finding, as well as why you received it.
Recommended methods for interacting with the
auditor include presenting your reasons for executing
a particular process a certain way in a factual manner
and discussing how you interpret a certain specification
to determine where any misunderstanding might have
occurred. We found it is vital to keep a few key best prac-
tices in mind to ensure interactions with the auditor are
calm and professional, including:
•
Balancing the auditor’s time.
The auditor’s time is
divided between the office and shop floor. Because
there are only a few days for the auditor to review
everything, and because each job audit can con-
sume a lot of time, it is helpful to provide a daily
reminder of when loads are being run and what
times certain personnel are available. Being pre-
pared, regardless of when the auditor wants to
review a certain area or job audit, helps avoid any
delays in the audit process.
•
Explaining your interpretation of a specification
.
There may be times when you need to explain how
you interpreted a specification. Others recommend
having collected data, documented procedures, and
additional information on hand for discussions. In
addition, being able to provide an explanation for
why you do things a certain way not only helps you
better understand the nuances of various specifica-
tions, but also helps you decide if any refinements
need to be made in your process.
FINISHING THE AUDIT PROCESS
Based on discussions with aerospace suppliers and
information from PRI, it is recommended that you fol-
low the proper steps after the official audit, regardless of
whether you pass or fail. These steps are nearly identical
to those followed after the internal audit, but with a few
key differences.
Reviewing findings
. The first and most important step
is to review all findings with the auditor andmake sure you
understand each one. This step is vital because if you do
not understand why you received a finding, you will not be
able to determine the corrective action. After the audit is
concluded, you must respond to all findings, making sure
to include:
It is important to informall personnel of the audit process
and confirm that they understand their role inmaking the
audit successful as the auditor may choose to talk with one of
themduring the official audit.