Control Plan: 1st Edition 2024

“If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.” – W. Edwards Deming

Introduction

Just like a chef carefully follows each step of a recipe to create the perfect taste, flavour, and texture, the ultimate goal is to delight customers, satisfying their expectations and delivering true value for their money.

Content: Control Plan

1. What is a Control Plan
2. Key purpose of developing a Control Plan
3. When the Control Plan needs to be reviewed
4. 4 Types of Control Plan
5. Key changes
6. Possible benefits
7. Key challenges
8. Conclusion

Read More: bit.ly/APQP3rdedition2024 (APQP Overview)

Read More: https://bit.ly/APQPPhase1 (APQP Phase 1)

Objective

The key objective of a Control Plan is to list all critical characteristics and control methods, prevent variation in manufacturing processes, specify actions for out-of-control conditions and ensure Compliance by aligning with standards like IATF 16949, APQP, and PPAP.

After reading the article, you will understand the meaning of the Control Plan, details about the new version, its key objective, key industry challenges, key changes from the previous version, and possible benefits.

Read More: https://bit.ly/APQPPhase2 (APQP Phase 2)

Read More: https://bit.ly/StatutoryRegulatory (Difference Between Statutory & Regulatory Requirements)

Definition: IATF 16949 Clause 3.1

APQP: product quality planning process that supports development of a product or service that will satisfy customer requirements; APQP serves as a guide in the development process and also a standard way to share results between organizations and their customers; APQP covers design robustness, design testing and specification compliance, production process design, quality inspection standards, process capability, production capacity, product packaging, product testing and operator training plan, among other items.

Control plan: a documented description of the systems and processes required for controlling the manufacturing of the product.

Read More: https://bit.ly/OpportunityCostTradeOff (Opportunity Cost & Trade-off)

Read More: https://bit.ly/APQP3rdPhase (APQP Phase 3)

Detailed Information

The AIAG, Control Plan, 1st Edition, is a standalone manual released in March 2024, providing comprehensive guidance on creating and managing control plans. Previously, control plan content was part of the APQP manual; however, it now has its own dedicated edition to address evolving industry needs.

It is a documented description of the systems and processes used to control product and process characteristics, ensuring consistent quality throughout production. The minimum requirements should be defined in the template. Any additional requirements can be added or merged with the standard template logically.

The control plan can be individual for each part or a family control plan where the processes, equipment and controls remain the same.

Read more: https://bit.ly/DifferenceCrandCSR (Difference Between Customer Requirement & Customer Specific Requirement)

Read More: https://bit.ly/PDCASDCA (Difference Between PDCA and SDCA)

Types of Control Plan

There are four main types of Control Plans defined in the AIAG Control Plan, 1st Edition. In Appendix B, there is a detailed checklist (21 questions) to verify the effectiveness of the control plan.

Read More: https://bit.ly/DiagramTurtleDiagram (What is a Turtle Diagram)

Key Purpose of a Control Plan

The Control Plan should be developed by a cross-functional team (CFT) with a deep understanding of the process being managed or enhanced.

The key purpose of a Control Plan is to ensure that the manufacturing process consistently produces products that meet customer requirements by:

1. Documenting Process Controls
   • Lists all critical product and process characteristics (VOC – Voice of the Customer and VOP – Voice of the Process), along with the methods used to monitor and control them.
   • Any PTC (Pass Through Characteristics: Controlled at supplier end only and no control at organisation end) should have adequate controls defined in the supplier control plan.
2. Maintaining Process Stability
   • Helps prevent variation by defining checks and controls at each step.
   • Helps to meet the Quality targets defined by the customer and top management, like COPQ- Cost of Poor Quality
3. Providing Reaction Plans
   • Specifies what actions to take if a process goes out of control or a nonconformance occurs.
   • It helps in minimising the waste generated in the process and meeting the overall cost and time target.
4. Supporting Quality Standards
   • Aligns with requirements like IATF 16949, APQP, and PPAP for automotive and related industries.
   • Periodic review and Updation are required to meet the quality standards and customer expectations.
   • The overall objective of the management system is to improve the manufacturing efficiency and bottom line (profitability)
5. Facilitating Communication
   • Serves as a reference for operators, engineers, and auditors to understand control measures.
   • Helps to percolate the voice of the customer to the lowest end of the pyramid (operator)
   • Even when the operator changes, the control plan remains a reference document to run a process.
6. Reducing Risk
   • Incorporates lessons learned, layered audits, and safe launch strategies to minimise defects.
   • Ensure that characteristics with severity 9 and 10 (Safety and Legal requirements) are identified in the control plan as Special Characteristics.
   • Clearly identifying the Rework process, along with the additional controls like re-inspection after Rework, which is an integral part of the manufacturing process, like the Painting process.

Read More: https://bit.ly/APQPPhase4 (APQP Phase 4)

Read More: https://bit.ly/APQPPhase5  (APQP Phase 5)

When does the Control Plan need to be reviewed and updated?

The organisation shall review the Control Plan and update it as required for any of the following:

1. The organisation determines it has shipped a nonconforming product to the customer. Why the NC product was shipped, and what needs to be reviewed in detection and prevention.
2. when any change occurs affecting product, manufacturing process, measurement, logistics, supply sources, production volume changes, or risk analysis (FMEA). Example: Inspection frequency increased, Error proofing added, measuring system changed, special characteristic or a legal requirement added.
3. after a customer complaint and implementation of the associated corrective action, when applicable. Example: Any complaint may lead to increased inspection frequency, temporary controls, additional rework, a change in the gauge, a change in the competency of the inspector, etc.
4. at a set frequency based on risk analysis. Example: As per any customer-specific requirement (supplier manual), warranty/rejection/complaint in the last 6 months, past history, etc.

Read More: https://bit.ly/SWOTAnalysisEV (SWOT Analysis)

Read More: https://bit.ly/OEECalculation (What is OEE?)

Key Changes from the Previous Version

Here are the key changes in the AIAG Control Plan 1st Edition compared to the previous version (which was part of APQP 2nd Edition):

• Standalone Manual: Previously integrated within APQP; now published as a separate manual for easier updates and flexibility.
• New Control Plan Phase: Safe Launch Control Plan introduced to add extra checks and containment actions during early production after launch.
• Ownership Column: A new column in the Control Plan format to identify the person responsible for each process step.
• Advanced Control Methods: Integration of Reverse FMEA and Layered Process Audits (LPAs) for better risk management and verification.
• Guidance for Modern Manufacturing: Clarifications for highly automated environments, Pass-through characteristics, and Black box processes.
• Digital Enablement: Recommendations for using software tools to develop and manage control plans.
• Updated Templates & Checklists: Revised examples, tables, and forms. New checklist to verify the accuracy of prepared control plans.
• Expanded Guidelines: Additional guidance for special characteristics and lessons learned integration.
• Blackbox Processes: Where the organisation does not want to share the proprietary information, there should be an agreement with the customer, and the basic information can be provided in the control plan. The remaining information can be reviewed by the customer in person or in a secure virtual environment.

Key Benefits:

• Consistent Quality
• Risk Reduction
• Compliance
• Improved Communication
• Continuous Improvement
• Customer Satisfaction

Read More: https://bit.ly/PESTLEANALYSIS (What is PESTLE?)

Conclusion:

A Control Plan is a vital quality tool that ensures consistent product and process performance by defining controls, responsibilities, and reaction plans. It supports compliance with industry standards, reduces risk, and enhances customer satisfaction.

By implementing and maintaining effective control plans, organisations can achieve stable processes, continuous improvement, and long-term success in quality management.

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Read More: https://bit.ly/4MChanges (What is 4M change?)

Present Challenges:

• How often Control plan not merely a piece of document to fulfil customer and auditor requirements, but to improve manufacturing efficiency?
• How often does a Control Plan embody the Voice of the Customer and Process (VOC and VOP) and not just a format filled to satisfy a PPAP requirement?
• How often does the Control plan become a LIVE document which keeps on changing, rather than a piece of paper fulfilling an obligation?

References:

APQP 3rd Edition March 2024

Control Plan 1^st Edition March 2024

IATF 16949

Industry Experts

This is the 242^nd article of this Quality Management series. Every weekend, you will find useful information that will make your Management System journey Productive. Please share it with your colleagues too.

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