Mandatory Requirements of IATF 16949 Certification

 

 

“IATF 16949” represents the amended Automotive Quality Management System standard developed by the International Automotive Task Force (IATF). This revised standard cancels and replaces ISO/TS 16949:2009.

 

The IATF 16949 mandatory requirements are divided into 10 major clauses as per the High-Level Structure also called Annexure SL. Here is what the 10 main clauses are about:

 

Section 0: Introduction – This section introduces the purpose, scope, principles, methods, procedures, and key concepts of the standard IATF 16949, including risk-based thinking and the process approach to solving all relative risks and errors for applying IATF 16949 Certification.

 

Section 1: Scope –This section of the standard defines the scope of the IATF 16949 Certification. In summary, the scope includes specifying requirements for a QMS of any organization to comply with the conformities of the standard.

 

Section 2: Normative References –The supporting standard referenced in ISO 9001:2015 and is crucial for its application. The IATF 16949 2016 covers terminology and fundamentals for an organization. This IATF 16949 and other supporting standards make up the 16949 series.

Also, Check >>> IATF 16949 Certification in India 

 

Section 4: Context of the organization – This section requires the organization to determine its context (Internal and external Issues or errors) in terms of the Quality Management System QMS, including interested parties such as clients, stakeholders, and customers' needs and expectations. It also defines the requirements for determining the scope of the QMS, as well as general QMS requirements- processes and process interaction in an organization.

 

Section 5: Leadership – This clause of the standard requires top and middle management to communicate and demonstrate leadership and commitment to the QMS in an organization, along with defining collective responsibility and the quality policy of each heading department. The top management must also appoint process leaders along with other authorities and responsibilities. The basic focus is customer needs and satisfaction with continual improvement.

 

 Section 6: Planning –The section on planning defines requirements for addressing risks and opportunities and the risk analysis. This clause also includes requirements for operational controls- to mitigate contingency, implement contingency plans, and improve quality to achieve objectives and plans, including responsibilities.

 

Section 7: Support – In this clause of standard IATF 16949, the organization can find requirements for the relevant resources and supporting processes needed for the manufacturing procedure for an effective QMS- Resource Management. It defines requirements for people, infrastructure, work environment, monitoring and measuring resources, organizational knowledge, competence, training/awareness, communication, and documented information.

 

Section 8: Operation – The product requirements deal with all aspects of the planning, creation, and process of the product or service needs to achieve the final product as per customer requirements. This section includes requirements on planning the procedures and policies, product requirements needed to fulfill, design of the product, procurement, production and service provision, and controlling the equipment used to monitor and measure the product or service performance in a quantitative way. IATF 16949 allows for requirements in clause 8.3, regarding the design and development of products, to be excluded if they do not apply to the company.

 

Section 9: Performance evaluation – This the clause includes the requirements to monitor whether your QMS is functioning well to make sure that the Organization's performance can be evaluated in measuring terms. It includes assessing customer requirements by achieving customer satisfaction, conducting internal audits, monitoring products in regular terms and processes, and management review.

 

Section 10: Improvement –The last section of the standard defines the requirements of the standard IATF 16949 for continual improvement of the QMS, including requirements for overcoming nonconformities and implement corrective actions, problem-solving techniques, and error-proofing processes.

These clauses are based on a Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle, which uses these elements to implement change within the processes of the organization to drive and maintain improvements within the processes.

 

Steps to acquire IATF 16949 Certification

Now getting IATF 16949 Certification is not hard to digest. The IATF 16949 is just a two-step certification process.

 Step 1 Internal audit Stage-(Verification of legal requirements and the closure of observations of the standard with an organization)

Step 2 External audit-(Review of Internal Audit Report & Certificate issuance)

IATF Certification validity is for 3 years and requires to undertake yearly Surveillance Audit and Re-Certification after the expiry of Certification. Obtaining the Certificate clearly states that you value the resources and environment closely.