Quality management systems in the aerospace industry
Standards for quality management systems in the aerospace industry include AS 9100, AS 9110 and AS 9120.
The AS 9100 standard is a standard designed to certify organizations that develop, design and/or supply products and services for the aerospace industry.
The AS 9110 standard contains requirements for service organizations of the aerospace industry.
The AS 9120 standard sets out requirements for distributors in the aerospace and defense industries. Although the standard is usually used by raw material distribution organizations, it can be used by all distributors in a given industry.
The AS 9100 standard contains requirements for the quality management system established by ISO 9001, as well as additional requirements for the aerospace and defense industries. Initially, the aerospace industry organizations used the ISO 9001 standard along with additional requirements of organizations, for example, Boeing had the D1-9000 standard and the automotive Q standard. As this created confusion, a separate AS 9100 standard was developed in the United States. After its release, companies stopped using their ISO 9001 add-ons.
The supply chain in the aerospace and defense industry is global, and the development of the AS 9100 series of standards has ensured that requirements are met to maintain a high level of security in the industry. The International Aerospace Quality Group (IAQG) is made up of representatives from 64 leading companies in the industry, including Airbus and Boeing, and enforces the standards.
Members of the International Aerospace Quality Group (IAQG) ensure the implementation of AS 9100 requirements throughout the supply chain. In general, an organization can be certified to meet the requirements of the AS 9100 standard if the turnover obtained from activities related to the aerospace industry exceeds 10% of the total turnover of the organization or in any other cases where the organization itself considers it necessary to undergo certification . Organizations can also be certified to AS 9100 without having an aerospace-related activity, but waiting to do so while obtaining an AS 9100 certificate of compliance.
Benefits of implementation and certification:
- inclusion of the organization in the international database of suppliers of the aerospace sector (OASIS);
- increasing staff motivation due to transparency and clarity of performed functional duties;
- enrichment of staff knowledge in the field of quality;
- increasing the efficiency of internal processes of the organization;
- cost reduction due to increased productivity, improved quality of manufactured products, services and reduced defect rate;
- constant improvement of the organization’s processes due to the detection and elimination of losses during the implementation of activities;
- improvement of internal communications, the mechanism of planning and distribution of material resources;
- increase customer satisfaction by meeting their requirements;
- continuous improvement of the organization’s activities through the use of modern quality management tools;
- improving the organization’s competitiveness in the national and global markets.