To: Fairchild Controls Supplier
From: Fairchild Controls Procurement
Subject: Quality Bulletin – Fairchild Acceptance Sampling Requirements
Date: 5/27/13
Fairchild Controls is issuing this Quality Bulletin as a preventive action to assist any of our suppliers who
may have difficulty understanding Fairchild Controls’ acceptance sampling requirements. It is our hope
that this bulletin will help clarify any confusion you may have when performing acceptance sampling on
our products and, in turn, safeguard your quality rating by reducing the number of receipts rejected at
Fairchild’s Receiving Inspection.
As of June, 2013 Fairchild adopted a new procedure for supplier acceptance sampling. We are confident
that our suppliers will find this new procedure to be considerably easier to use than the prior procedure
that was based on ANSI/ASQ Z1.4. The required sample size will either remain the same or, in many
cases, will be smaller than in the past.
When Supplier Quality Inspection Code V15 is specified on the Fairchild Controls purchase order, the
supplier is permitted to utilize acceptance sampling as per Fairchild procedure GEN-IP1001, which in
turn is based on Zero Acceptance Number Sampling Plans, Fifth Edition, by N.L. Squeglia, ASQ Quality
Press © 2008 ASQ American Society for Quality, and SAE ARP9013 and ARP 9013/2.
GEN-IP1001 contains a simple 3-column table with all the information required to select a sample size.
Here are a few key points:
o
No sampling is permitted on characteristics identified as CRITICAL – 100% inspection is
required.
o
The lot acceptance number is always zero (C = 0).
o
Fairchild Controls has identified the classification of applicable drawing characteristics as
CRITICAL, MAJOR, or MINOR and will provide this information to the supplier by one of three
methods.
1. A copy of the applicable part specific “Supplier Inspection Data Record” (SIDR) will be
included with the purchase order. The SIDR will list the classification of each applicable
characteristic by listing the corresponding Associated Acceptance Quality Level
(AAQL), i.e. 100% for Critical, less than or equal to 1.0% AAQL for Major, and less
than or equal to 4.0% AAQL for Minor, or
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2. A copy of the applicable Fairchild Controls drawing will be included with the purchase
order. The drawing notes will indicate the classification of each applicable characteristic,
or
3. All applicable Critical and/or Major drawing characteristics will be highlighted on a copy
of the Fairchild Controls drawing and all other characteristics may be considered Minor.
The sampling table in GEN-QAI1001 is very simple and easy to use.
For example, if you were producing parts with a lot size (N) of 250 pieces, and you were measuring a
“minor” characteristic, you would find the row in Table 1 that contains lot size 151 to 280, move over to
the column for minor characteristics (4.0% AAQL) and you would see that the sample size “n” would be
10 pieces. That’s all there is to it!
The acceptance number is always 0, so if you found 0 non-conformances in the 10 piece sample, the lot
may be accepted, and if you find 1 or more non-conformances in the 10 piece sample, the lot must be
rejected. Rejected lots may be scrapped, sorted, or reworked and re-inspected.
Major characteristics would be treated in much the same way, only the 1.0% AAQL column would apply.
So, for a lot size of 250 pieces, the sample size “n” would be 20 pieces. If you found 0 non-conformances
in the 20 piece sample, the lot may be accepted, and if you find 1 or more non-conformances in the 20
piece sample, the lot must be rejected.
Critical characteristics and parameters covered by ATP requirements must be 100% tested.
This Quality Bulletin is intended to support, but not take the place of, GEN-IP1001. All persons
performing acceptance sampling on Fairchild products must read, understand, and follow the
requirements of GEN-IP1001, which includes additional key information such as how to select samples
randomly, training requirements, etc.
If you have any questions or concerns at all about sampling, or any other aspect of the Fairchild purchase
order, please contact your Fairchild Buyer, Program Quality Engineer, or Supplier Quality Engineer.
We’re here to help, and we much prefer that you ask a question rather than risk a rejection. Remember, if
a delivery of your products is rejected because the sampling performed was inadequate, or the required
paperwork was incorrect or missing, the entire lot quantity will show as rejected against your quality
rating. No one wants to see that happen!
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