Sample Procedure D

Control of Nonconforming
Product
& Corrective Action

AUDITING SKILLS COURSE

RTA Manufacturing Services Advisory

Unit

Sample Procedures
Please do not mark this
handout
Please hand back at the end
of the course
186203552.doc

Page 1

RTA Manufacturing Services

Advisory Unit
Control of Nonconforming Product &
Corrective Action

Scenario
The RTA (Roads and Traffic Authority) Manufacturing Services Advisory
Unit is involved in manufacture and subcontracting of steelwork for
roadways projects.
Products include steel barriers, fences and structural framework.

Your Task
To audit the procedures for the Control of Nonconforming Product and
Corrective Action at their main workshop facility.
The auditee will be Peter White, the Workshop Supervisor.

Manufacturing
Services Advisory Unit

Roads and Traffic Authority

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Control and Corrective

Action of Non-conforming
Goods and Services

Prepared by:

.................................................
Quality Coordinator MSAU

Date: .......................

Approved by:

.................................................
Technical Supervisor MSAU

Date: .......................

Authorised by: .................................................

Manager MSAU

Date: .......................

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 1 of 10

Purpose
To establish and maintain a system for ensuring that Non
Conforming materials, items, products or services are promptly
detected, documented and allocated a disposition.
To ensure that all non conforming materials, items, products or
services are processed in a consistent manner, which prevents
their use and / or distribution to customers and the resultant
corrective or preventative action is taken.

Scope
This procedure covers identification, segregation, disposition
and corrective action for non conforming materials, items
products or services.
The people who should follow this procedure are:

All employees who detect a non-conformance.

Requirements
You should understand that non-conforming products or
services are any materials or work, items of hardware or
software, parts or assemblies, equipment, electronic or
otherwise and documents that vary in some way from the
specified requirement.
You should refer to the following documents:

TLB-SOP-413001 F01 Non-conformance report

(NCR)
TLB-SOP-413001 F02 Non Conformance Status
log
TLB-SOP-414002 Customer complaints

Non Conformance Status Logs shall be controlled by the MSAU

Quality Coordinator.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 2 of 10

Procedure
1. Identify Non-conforming Products or Services
Responsibility

Action

All people

Any person who detects a non conformance shall

immediately segregate (if possible), the affected
product from any product that is acceptable.
If it cannot be physically segregated then it should
be labelled, taped or otherwise identified as Non
Conforming.
A Non conformance can also be generated from a
customer complaint.
The next step is to:

Fill in box 1 of the NCR

or

contact their supervisor to fill in box 1.

In the bottom half of section 1 describe the

immediate corrective action taken.
When section 1 has been completed, send the NCR
to the line manager in the area from where the non
conforming product or service originated.
Note: If the NCR is the result of an internal audit,
the NCR number is allocated differently according to
procedure TLB-SOP-417001 Quality audits and the
NCR is recorded in the Audit report status log TLBSOP-417001-F02 in lieu of the NCR status log.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 3 of 10

2. Register the NCR

Responsibility

Action

Supervisor

On receipt of the NCR, the relevant Supervisor is to

register the details in the Non-conformance Status
Log, Form TLB-SOP-413001-F02 (held by the quality
coordinator) and take the next consecutive number
for the NCR (Enter in top right corner of NCR).
Ensure the products are labelled as non conforming
and the NCR number is cross referenced on the
label.
Ensure that wherever possible, the products are
separated to stop them from being used.
If there is sufficient information in section 1 of the
NCR to decide on corrective or preventative action,
sign off section 2 of the NCR and go to section 3.
If there is not sufficient information to enable a
decision to be made on the corrective action, appoint
an investigator by completing section 2 of the NCR.
If an investigator is appointed, give the investigator
the NCR form.
Where a non conforming product or service
originates from an external supplier, you must notify
that supplier and note that you have done so on the
NCR (Section 3).

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 4 of 10

3. Investigate the Non Conformance

Responsibility
Action
When you receive a NCR you must

Analyse any processes, operations, records or

Investigator

customer complaints that relate to the Non

Conformance.

Assess the seriousness of the defect ie

determine the impact of the non conformance on
other similar items and provisions for service.
There are several types of action available, ie
Return to supplier
Scrap
Rework by RTA
Rework by vendor
Use as is (no action)

Recommend what controls are to be put in place

to ensure that corrective actions are taken. The
results of the investigations are to be
documented in section 3 of the NCR (attach
additional sheets if required).
Note: use as is dispositions can only be used when
the safety/performance of the product cannot be
affected and/or the customer has agreed that the
product is fit to use.
Where required by contract, the proposed use or
repair of product which does not conform to
specified requirements shall be reported to the
customer.
The NCR is then returned to the supervisor who
appointed you as investigator.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 5 of 10

4. Determine corrective/Preventative action

Responsibility

Action

Supervisor

When you receive the NCR form back from the

investigator, decide whether you agree with the
proposed corrective/Preventative action.
If you do not agree or there is insufficient
information on which to act, contact the investigator
for further or more detailed investigation.
When you agree on the corrective/preventative
action, determine who is to take that action and
complete section 4 of the NCR to define:

who must perform the action (the action officer)

the cost centre for the action
the required completion date and delivery point
any progress reporting requirements
Send the action officer(s) a copy of the form.
Note: If the corrective action involves recalling
products which are already being used, you must
use procedure TLB-SOP-402005 Product Recall.
5. How to perform corrective/preventative action
Responsibility

Action
If you are appointed as an action officer, that is,
someone to take corrective action, you must:

complete the action by due dates

Action Officer

report any difficulties to your supervisor

implement and record any changes carried out in
procedures, resulting from corrective action

notify the supervisor when you have completed

the corrective action, using Section 5 of the NCR
form.
Note: In the event that the non-conforming product
requires repair, then appropriate re-inspection and
re-test of the material shall be carried out in
accordance with the documented procedures.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 6 of 10

6. How to verify and record corrective/preventative action

Responsibility

Action

Supervisor

When you receive the NCR form back from the action
officer, you must:

verify that corrective/preventative action(s) has

been completed and is effective.

complete section 6 of the NCR form and deliver it

to your quality coordinator.

fill in the Non conformance status log, to finalise

action, recording relevant dates, name of
investigator etc.

ensure controls are in place to ensure that any

corrective or preventative action taken is
effective.
Quality Coordinator

feedback information to originator

should further action be required another NCR is
to be raised.
Note: If the NCR is a result of an internal audit, the
quality Coordinator would fill out the audit report
status log in lieu of the Non conformance status log.
At monthly intervals the Quality coordinator will
obtain information on the status of any NCRs, and
analyse to detect any trends or recurring problems.
These are to be presented at the management
review meetings.

7. Preventative action
Responsibility

Action

All MSAU staff

Should a potential nonconformity become evident as

the result of quality audits, quality records, process
or operation, a non-conformance report is to be
initiated as per steps 1-6 of this procedure.
This information is to be tabled at the monthly
management review.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 7 of 10

Identify and Investigate a Non Conformance

Detect Non
Conformance

Step 1
Is the NCR a
result of
internal audit

Follow procedure TLBSOP-417004 Auditing

N
Fill in section 1 of the
NCR form
(Tlb-sop-413001-f01)

NCR form
Section 1

Send NCR form to

Section Supervisor

inator/
ervisor

Step 2

Register the NCR on the

Non Conformance Status
Log (TLB-SOP-413001-F02)
or Audit Report Status Log
(TLB-SOP-417001-F02)

Is further
investigation
needed?

Non Conformance
Status Log

NO
NCR form

Yes

ection Supervisor

or

Audit Report
Status Log

Section 2

Appoint Investigator

Investigate problem

Step 3
Investigator

NCR form

Recommend
solution

Section 3
If product
recall
required
then use
procedure
TLB-SOP402005
NCR form

Step 4
No

Agree with
investigators
findings?
Yes

Supervisor

Appoint action
officer

Section 4

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 8 of 10

Taking corrective and preventative action

Step 5

Undertake corrective/
Preventative action

NCR form

Verify corrective/
preventative action

NCR form

Section 5

Action officer

Step 6

Section 6

or
Sign NCR form and record
details on Non
Conformance Status Log

Supervisor

Audit Report
Status Log
Non Conformance
Status Log

Compare NCR to others

for trends, common
problems, etc

Quality
Coordinator
Step 7

Preventative action

MSAU Staff

Go
to
step
1

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 9 of 10

Document file name: LB413001.DOC

Roads and Traffic Authority 1995
For further information regarding this procedure please contact:
MSAU Quality Co-ordinator
Level 2 Southern Office Block
52 Rothschild Avenue, Rosebery NSW 2018
Phone: (02) 9662 5033

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure No: TLB-SOP-413001

Issue No: 2.2 (Sept-95)

Page 10 of 10

NON-CONFORMANCE STATUS LOG

Manufacturing Services Advisory Unit
Location:
NCR
No.

File
No.

Manager:
Date
Raise
d

Investigator

Action Officer

ISSUE No 1.1 (April 95)

Description

Completio
n Verified

TLB-SOP-413001-F02

New NCR No
(if applicable)

Non-conformance Report

Manufacturing
Services
Advisory Unit
NC
R
No:

Nonconformance Quality System

Process Improvement

Suggestion

Non conformance Goods or Services

Document Change

Request/Suggestion

Potential Non-conformance (preventive action

Customer Complaint

required)

1. ORIGINATOR
The person who discovers the non-conformance, receives the customer complaint, or
makes a suggestion writes the details in this section

Your name:

Describe the
problem,
suggestion or
complaint.

(attach a
separate sheet
if you need
more room)

Your signature:

Date:

2. SUPERVISOR
Register the NCR, Customer Complaint or Suggestion with the Quality Coordinator &
appoint an Investigator. The Supervisor is the supervisor or manager in charge of the
activity, service or product which is non-conforming, or about which a customer
complaint or suggestion has been made.

Register the NCR (Record

number on top right of form
Is further investigation
required

Date:

No- use box 3 to

describe action

Yes

(Name investigator either yourself or

you can appoint someone else

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

TLB-SOP-413001-F01

Issue No 1.3 (Nov-95)

Page 1 of 2

required

Response
required
by

Date:

Your signature:

Date:

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

TLB-SOP-413001-F01

Issue No 1.3 (Nov-95)

Page 1 of 2

3. INVESTIGATOR
Investigate the non-conformance, customer complaint or suggestion. This is done by a
person nominated by the supervisor.

Describe the
proposed
disposition.

Describe the
proposed
corrective
action

Describe the
proposed
preventive
action

(Attach a
separate sheet
if you need
more room)

Your signature:

Date:

4. SUPERVISOR

If there has been an investigation and you dont agree with the investigators
findings, send the NCR back to the investigator.

If you agree with the investigators findings or if an investigation was not needed,
appoint an Action Officer fix the problem or complaint, or Implement the suggestion.
Appoint
Action required by Date: /
/
action officer
Determine
cost centre
(optional)

Progress report
required by
(optional)

Your
signature

Date:

Date:

5. ACTION OFFICER

The action Officer signs here to confirm that the action is complete.

Your signature:

Date:

6. SUPERVISOR
The supervisor signs here to verify that all investigations and subsequent action is
complete.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

TLB-SOP-413001-F01

Issue No 1.3 (Nov-95)

Page 2 of 2

Your signature:

Date:

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

TLB-SOP-413001-F01

Issue No 1.3 (Nov-95)

Page 2 of 2