IATF 16949 Certification Pass Guide – Audit Logic

The core logic of IATF 16949 audit can be summarized as: one center, two basic points, three main lines, and one closed loop.

One core principle: Customer-centricity and risk-averse mindset.

1. Enhance customer satisfaction : Ensure that the products and services provided consistently meet or exceed customer requirements.

2. Preventing defects and risks : Identifying and mitigating risks that may affect product conformity and customer satisfaction in advance.

Two key points: process approach and evidence-based decision-making

1. Process Approach

• The core idea is to view the entire quality management system as a network of numerous interrelated processes. This requires companies to identify and manage these processes and their interactions.

• Key tool : “Turtle Diagram” .

• Input : What enters the process? (e.g., materials, information)

• Output : What goes out of the process? (e.g., product, report)

• Person in charge/resources : Who will do it? What equipment/environment will be used?

• How to do it : What are the methods, procedures, and standards? (SOP, WI)

• Performance indicators : How do we measure the quality of this process? (KPIs, such as pass rate, cycle time)

• Risks and Opportunities : What risks are involved in this process? How can they be controlled?

2. Evidence-based Decision Making

• Core idea : Decisions should not be made based on feelings, but must be based on the analysis of data and facts.

• Audit logic : The auditor will ask you to provide evidence to prove what you say.

• If you say “employees meet the competency standards”, you need to have training records, skills matrix, and assessment evidence.

Three main threads: the review process running throughout.

1. Main Thread 1: Product Implementation Process (Forward Process)

Auditors will simulate the “birth” process of a product:
market/customer demand → product design and development → suppliers and procurement → manufacturing → inspection and testing → delivery and after-sales service.
Along this line, auditors will check the application of core tools such as APQP, PPAP, FMEA, SPC, and MSA.

2. Main Theme Two: Management Support Processes (Support and Assurance)

include:

• Document Management : Are the system documents under control?

• Resource Management : Do the equipment, personnel, and environment meet the requirements? (e.g., predictive maintenance of equipment, employee skills and training)

• Knowledge Management : How can organizational experience be accumulated and passed on?

• Calibration Management : Are the measuring devices accurate and reliable?

3. Main Theme Three: Performance Evaluation and Improvement Process (Reverse Improvement)

This line checks whether a company is “monitoring, measuring, analyzing, and improving”:

• Performance monitoring : Are company-level, process-level, and product-level KPIs being monitored?

• Audit and Review : Were internal audits and management reviews effectively implemented?

• Nonconformities and Corrective and Preventive Actions : When problems occur, are tools such as 8D effectively used for root cause analysis and to prevent recurrence?

• Continuous improvement : Is there evidence that the company is proactively seeking opportunities for improvement?

A closed loop: the PDCA cycle

This is a dynamic logic that connects all the elements. The entire structure of IATF 16949 follows PDCA.

Reposted from: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/zXKLN0bYJxmHM-BoL44IEQ