AS 9100 – Quality Management system - Aerospace Industry

The Society for Automotive Engineers has developed a Quality Management System (QMS) Standard to be used by organizations selling products or services to the Aerospace Industry.

AS9100 is a document that defines requirements for the Quality Management System Standard. The current revision is Rev. B. It contains the actual requirements an organization must be in compliance with to become ISO 9001 Registered.

AS 9100 is the aerospace industry harmonized standard for quality systems for quality assurance in design, development, production, installation and servicing. AS 9100 standardizes the quality management system requirements for the aerospace industry. The purpose and objectives of AS 9100 is to:

• provide increased consistency in the expectations of the industry,
• reduce verification requirements, methods and audits, by organizations around the world and,
• improve quality and safety, and decrease costs and waste.

AS 9100 is an International Aerospace standard governed by the International Aerospace Quality Group (IAQG), which consists of three primary regional sector groups, the Americas Aerospace Quality Group (AAQG), the European Aerospace Quality Group (EAQG), and the Asia Pacific Aerospace Quality Group (APAQG).

Why do companies want AS9100?

Many organizations decide to Implement AS9100 and obtain registration because it assures customers that the company has a good Quality Management System (QMS) in place. An organization with an effective QMS will typically meet customer expectations better than an organization that does not have an effective QMS. Many aerospace organizations require their suppliers to have AS9100 Registration.

Internal effectiveness and productivity benefits. Other organizations implement a quality management system because it has proven over the years that it leads companies to better operations, improved performance, and improved profitability.

AS 9100 - The Benefits

• Well defined and documented procedures improve the consistency of output
• Quality is constantly measured
• Procedures ensure corrective action is taken whenever defects occur
• Defect rates decrease
• Defects are caught earlier and are corrected at a lower cost
• Defining procedures identifies current practices that are obsolete or inefficient
• Documented procedures are easier for new employees to follow
• Organizations retain or increase market share, increasing sales or revenues
Top reasons given for registration:
• Internal operational efficiency
• Lower production costs because of fewer nonconforming products, less rework, lowered rejection rates, streamlined processes and fewer mistakes.
• Access to new markets
• Some markets require AS 9100 Registration, some markets favor companies with Registration
• Customer request
• Many organizations are asked by a customer to obtain registration as a requirement to continue or to start doing business with them.
• Reducing costs
• Organizations are recognizing that an effective Quality Management System leads to reduced