E-Archive

Nadcap Column

in Vol. 7 - May Issue - Year 2006
Nadcap Customer Support Initiative
Joanna Leigh - Operations Specialist (Europe)

Joanna Leigh - Operations Specialist (Europe)

Jennifer Gallagher - Associate Program Developer (Americas)

Jennifer Gallagher - Associate Program Developer (Americas)

The path to Nadcap accreditation was never designed to be easy. Nadcap challenges aerospace special process and products suppliers to achieve the highest industry consensus standards, ensuring the quality and integrity of supplies to the major aerospace companies that subscribe to the Nadcap program.

But there are no tricks to Nadcap accreditation. Effective preparation and a solid understanding of how the Nadcap process works and the expectations of the participants are vital to Nadcap audit success. Aerospace suppliers are not alone: the Performance Review Institute (PRI), a not-for-profit organization that administers the Nadcap program, provides assistance to those pursuing Nadcap accreditation.

The Nadcap Customer Support Initiative (NCSI) is a free, web-based training program designed to explain the Nadcap process to aerospace suppliers. The program was developed for supplier companies and contacts new to the Nadcap process, but all interested parties are welcome to participate in this free training. Since its inauguration, a new type of NCSI has been designed to focus on currently accredited Nadcap suppliers.

The purpose of NCSI is to enhance the supplier experience of Nadcap through education. By introducing suppliers to all the available tools and clearly explaining the expectations of the Nadcap participants, PRI aims to improve supplier audit performance and enable more suppliers to take advantage of the merit program. Dependent on audit performance, the merit program allows suppliers to extend their audit frequency from 12 months to 18 months or longer.

The NCSI training reviews, amongst other topics:

• Overview on PRI / Nadcap
Nadcap definition, PRI / Nadcap organizational structure, Nadcap subscribers list

• The Nadcap Audit Process
Introduction to eAuditNet www.eAuditNet.com and Nadcap procedures including accreditation term, ITAR / EAR, non-conformance classifications

• How to prepare for a Nadcap audit
Basic quality system requirements, common non-conformances, Nadcap staff engineer advice

• What to expect after a Nadcap audit
Exit interview, submitting post-audit feedback, deadline and requirements for responding to non-conformances, how to handle observations, Nadcap procedures including early review, supplier advisory

• Where to find more information
Guidance on using eAuditNet www.eAuditNet.com and the PRI corporate website www.pri-network.org as well as contact information

With the support of the Nadcap Management Council, PRI schedules these trainings every month at different times and in different languages, to suit the different geographical sectors.

NCSI was first introduced in the Americas in August 2004, followed by Europe in November 2004. To date, nearly 1000 delegates have participated in this training. Most of these have attended the sessions for new suppliers and their audits are tracked to determine how their performance compares with those suppliers who did not attend NCSI.

On average for initial audits in 2004 – 2005, suppliers who took part in the NCSI training program incurred 33% fewer major non-conformances during their Nadcap audits and gained their accreditation ten days in advance of the suppliers who did not participate.

The future is bright for NCSI. PRI is continuing to schedule these training sessions and the program is continuing to grow, with the first training session anticipated in the Asia sector this year. Data is tracked on an ongoing basis and is already indicating the benefits of attendance for suppliers.

For more information on NCSI, please contact Jennifer Gallagher at jgall@sae.org (Americas) or Joanna Leigh at Joanna.leigh@pri-europe.org.uk (Europe / Asia)

Author: Joanna Leigh & Jennifer Gallagher