The Time Is Now – Preparing for a Successful IATF 16949 Transition

The transition to IATF 16949 has been a rough one according to industry experts.  More than 68,000 organizations certified to IATF 16949:2009 (and 6,382 companies in the US) will need to undergo a transition audit to IATF 16949:2016. As of April 2017, 181 upgrade audits had been completed, resulting in an average of 5.3 nonconformities and approximately one major nonconformity (.73) per audit.

The top five nonconformities overall are “total productive maintenance” (48 nonconformities), “control plan” (38), “contingency plans” (37), “control of production service provision” (26), and “internal auditor competency” (23). Based on automotive industry data, the top-five major nonconformance clauses are customer-specific requirements (7 nonconformities), internal auditor competency (7), quality management system (QMS) audit (7), TPM (6), and management review inputs (6).

For companies that have yet to transition to IATF 16949, you do not want to wait any longer. The deadline for suppliers to transition to the new standard is your next scheduled annual audit.  All audits as of October 2017 have to be to the new IATF standard.   And note that the IATF will not be granting waivers for organizations that can’t meet the transition plan timing.

According to Russ Hopkins, head of supplier technical assistance for Ford Motor Company, “Globally, over 1,200 audits need to take place each week, which averages out to about one per week per auditor,” he said. “This is doable with the proper planning.  It’s doable as long as people do not wait until the last minute.”

This process can seem daunting to suppliers, but Hopkins notes there are several steps to a successful IATF 16949 transition:

• Confirm dates for the transition audit with your certification body. Upgrade has to occur at your next scheduled audit.
• Develop a work plan back from the date of the transition audit
• Review the requirements and provide feedback regarding any concerns (suppliers contact AIAG, certification bodies contact their oversight offices, and OEM through their IATF representative)
• Allow enough time after the transition audit to address any non-conformances. All findings must be closed in 60 days.

For those with an existing IATF 16949 certificate with one or more nonconformities of the audit to IATF 16949 which are not either 100% resolved or closed within the required timeframe, the transition audit will be considered “failed” and the IATF database will be updated accordingly.  The certification decision shall be negative which means the IATF 16949:2009 certificate is withdrawn and the client has to start over with an initial certification audit. (International Automotive Task Force)

For more information on transitioning to IATF 16949 visit our website.