Category: General

AS9110 Process Effectiveness Assessment Reports are used to identify the effectiveness of a process. PEAR was developed to allow audit personnel to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of a process as performed by the organization. It takes the inputs, outputs, actual steps of the process and recourses and controls in account.

Turtle diagrams are often sued to depict PEARs. The PEARs are a tool to be completed by the auditor in their assessment of the AS9110 system. It is however beneficial to have the process owner complete one as this gives the process owner a good indication of how well their process is working and where, if any, improvements may be made. Often to ease the process for the auditor the internal quality manager will complete the PEARs and keep them prepared for the auditors. It is however not the role of the quality manager to do this and nor does it enable any improvement.

AS9110 asks organizations to conduct internal audits to assess the effectiveness of the processes and system. However, QMII at times finds that the audits are limited to determining conformity only. The PEARs come in handy here by enable a process-based audits and allows for due diligence to be done by the auditor. To identity that the resources and controls assigned are adequate to ensure that conforming inputs deliver conforming outputs while meeting the effectiveness goals of the organization through monitoring and measurement.

So how many PEARs do we need? The organization will need one for every key process it identifies within it system and this can run up to 15 to 20 at times depending on the size of the organization and perhaps even more. There is no preset minimal number of PEAR’s required from an audit. When an auditor is assessing effectiveness, the auditor is essentially measuring how well the organization does this. What metrics are they monitoring to know whether they are meeting objectives or not. What did they take into consideration in setting their objectives e.g., customer requirements, legal requirements etc.

The organization is then scored by the AS9110 auditor based on the guidelines provided in AS9101. AS9101 provides a Process Effectiveness Matrix that scores the organization across two axes. The first being process realization – the extent to which planned activities are realized and the second – process results – the extent to which planned results are achieved. Based on this scoring the lowest grade sates “(a) The process is not defined, implemented, and planned activities not realized, and (b) The process is not delivering the planned results and appropriate action is not being taken.” The highest score equates to “(a) The process is defined, implemented, and planned activities fully realized, and (b) The process is delivering the planned results.

It is said that air travel is statistically one of the safest modes of transportation. The flights that do not land well or go missing make the news more than the 1000’s of those that complete a safe flight. Checklists used in the aviation industry are infamous for how well they assist pilots deal with disasters. However, a lot is to be said for the plane itself, which is built to stringent quality requirements, down to the last rivet. Many aerospace parts manufacturers are certified for AS9100. So, what is AS9100?
It is an internationally accepted standard that defines the requirements for a quality management system for companies. It is built on the foundation of ISO 9001, another globally recognized quality standard. It builds the framework for organizations to identify risks at all stages of the production or service realizations process. The standard sets the baseline for quality and once implemented within an organization is assessed and certified by independent accreditation bodies. So, a part produced by an AS9100 certified organization in India, Brazil or elsewhere will meet the basic quality requirements.
What is AS9100 prescribing that companies do to achieve this? As9100 is not prescriptive in its requirements. It defines the framework, and each company must then interpret the requirements as they best apply to what they do. The leadership of the organization must remain involved and is accountable for the effectiveness of the system. The systems are influenced by regulatory requirements, customer requirements and other business requirements as from various stakeholders. What is AS9100 requirements with respect to control of outsourced processes.
Organizations must control outsourced processes and remain responsible for the output of the process. Based on the performance of the vendor of the criticality of the parts etc., the type and extent of control may vary. AS9100 also requires organizations to determine the competence of personnel needed and then to take steps to achieve this competence. As9100 quality requirements must be flowed down to all suppliers in the supply chain and supply chain risks are to be considered and mitigated as appropriate.
What is AS9100 requirements for audits. External certification audits are conducted on a three-year cycle with annual surveillance audits in the intermediate years. Internal audit frequency is determined and based on the organization needs and the auditors used to conduct the audits must be competent. To achieve this competence, they should compete a certified AS9100 lead auditor training. QMII offers a PROBITAS Authentication lead auditor training in both virtual and on-site format. These stringent quality requirements in the supply chain as advocated by AS9100 help ensure planes meet the highest safety and quality requirements. Thus helping to reduce accidents.