Difference Between ISO 9001 and IATF 16949 Clauses: A Complete Clause-by-Clause Comparison

Difference between ISO and IATF clauses

ISO 9001:2015 defines the fundamental quality management system requirements for all organizations. It was prepared and managed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). IATF 16949 is an automotive QMS standard along with applicable customer-specific requirements. It was developed by the International Automotive Task Force (IATF). However, IATF 16949 is not a stand-alone standard, but … Read more

4M Change Management in Automotive Industry: Guide, Examples & Benefits

4M CHANGE MANAGEMENT

In the fast-paced automotive industry, small changes in Man, Machine, Material, or Method (4M) can have a big impact on product quality and customer satisfaction. Managing these changes systematically helps organizations reduce risks, improve traceability, and comply with standards like IATF 16949. This article explains the purpose, scope, examples, tools, and benefits of 4M Change … Read more

Layered Process Audit (LPA): A Proactive Quality Management Tool

Layered process audit

Introduction In today’s competitive manufacturing environment, ensuring consistent product quality and process compliance is critical. Traditional audits often occur too late in the process, catching defects only after they have occurred. Layered Process Audit (LPA) addresses this by proactively checking processes at multiple organizational levels, including operators, supervisors, managers, and executives. What is a Layered … Read more

A Day in the Life of a Quality Manager: Balancing Quality, People, and Processes

Quality Manager daily routine

Introduction A Quality Manager’s role is often misunderstood as simply “preparing documents or checking for defects.” In reality, it’s a dynamic position that requires balancing quality assurance, people management, and process optimization. Whether in manufacturing, automotive, healthcare, or services, a Quality Manager is the glue that holds the quality management system (QMS) together. Every day … Read more

Dock Audit in the manufacturing industry: Why it matters

Dock audit

In the fast-paced world of manufacturing, ensuring product quality doesn’t stop once the item leaves the production line. One of the final—but most crucial—steps in the quality control process is the dock audit. What is a Dock Audit? A dock audit is a final inspection conducted at the shipping or receiving dock of a manufacturing … Read more

MTTR and MTBF | Meaning and Formula with examples

MTTR and MTBF Calculation

MTTR (Mean Time To Repair) and MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures) are key maintenance metrics. They help measure machine performance and reliability. Lean Manufacturing and IATF 16949-certified automotive industries use them widely. These metrics support efforts to improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).” MTTR and MTBF are very useful Lean Tools of manufacturing industries. These two key performance … Read more

Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) in Lean Manufacturing

single minute exchange of dies

The Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) concept was developed by Shigeo Shingo, an industrial engineer at Toyota. It refers to the process of reducing the time required to change over a machine or production line from one product to another to under 10 minutes. The primary goal of SMED is to do for faster … Read more

Occupational Health & Safety Management System | ISO 45001 Clauses

ISO 45001 CLAUSES

The Occupational Health and Safety management system (ISO 45001:2018) is for health and safety in an industry. There are 10 clauses in this standard as per the ISO 9001:2015 standard. The first 3 clauses provide the background of the standard. The remaining 7 clauses deliver the requirements of the ISO 45001:2018 standard. This standard is based … Read more

How to implement business plan in manufacturing industry

Business plan

Process Scope This process is applicable for establishing a system for strategic business plan and monitoring relevant measurable objectives to enhance the organization’s performance to achieve business goals and to ensure overall business growth. Process Owner Top Management (MD/Plant Head) Process Description Identify all the internal and external issues that affect the company’s business policies … Read more

Process of handling, storage, packaging and delivery of products

Handling, storage, packaging & delivery of products

Process Scope This process is applicable for maintaining a system for timely receipt, storage and issue of materials from Stores and on-time delivery of products to the customer as per their requirement. Process Owner STORE-IN CHARGE Process description Handling of BOP/Raw Material: Colour coding of Raw Material Issue of Raw Material/ BOP Components to Production … Read more