If you’re involved in manufacturing or quality management, you’ve probably heard about APQP – the Advanced Product Quality Planning framework. For decades, it has been the go-to resource for ensuring products meet customer expectations and industry standards.
APQP provides a structured approach to product development and quality assurance, offering practical tools and processes to tackle challenges in today’s competitive environment. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or just getting started with it, mastering its methodology is crucial for driving better results and optimizing your projects.
The updated reference manual must be consulted for details regarding the IATF 16949™ quality management standard documentation requirements.
APQP – what is it?
The Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) methodology, as detailed in the AIAG Advanced Product Quality Planning Reference Manual, provides a well-organized, standardized framework aimed at meeting customer quality requirements. This comprehensive process enables a reduction of the complexity of the product quality planning, establishing a common language.
Its primary goal is to create a product quality plan that actively supports the development of a product or service that satisfies the customer expectations.
The APQP process roots in collaboration, encouraging cross-functional teamwork to ensure a seamless integration across all stages of product development. Its methodology includes several key elements, and we outline a few of them below:
- Leadership commitment and support.
- Maintaining an effective communication with the customer
- Implementing simultaneous engineering practices.
- Evaluating suppliers and identifying high-risk ones.
- Establishing control plans and facilitating information exchange.
- Engaging both the customer and the organization in the planning process.
- The guidelines also require to address critical factors like complexity, time, and costs to ensure a streamlined workflow.
Communication plays a pivotal role in the APQP process, ensuring alignment with customer expectations and fostering successful outcomes. Beyond the automotive sector, other industries benefit from the value of the APQP’s structured approach.
It serves as an effective guide for new product introductions, product line relocations, and overall improvements in the quality management function.
APQP stages
The APQP timeline progresses through the following stages:
- Concept initiation and approval
- Program approval
- Development of the Design Model, Prototyping
- Pilot production.
- Final product launching
Each step of the Product Quality Planning process follows a sequential timeline, where the outputs of one step serve as inputs for the next. The Planning and Define step generates key outputs that directly feed into the Product Design & Development step. Similarly, the outputs of the Product Design & Development step, flow into the subsequent step, progressing systematically until reaching the final stage.
It is important to mention that the Product Quality Planning will differ for two type of organizations as follows:
1. Design Responsible : All the APQP guidelines apply.
2. Not Design Responsible : Organizations that are not design-responsible, such as manufacturing or service providers, may find that some of the guidelines for the Plan and Define and the Product Design and Development program are not directly applicable.
However, it is crucial for these organizations to communicate and consult with the customer to ensure alignment on expected outputs and documentation requirements. If a business model does not align with the classifications mentioned, the organization must work with the customer to clarify expectations and establish an appropriate approach.
Notice that the Safe Launch Control Plan was added as a new requirement to review with the customer. Communication with the customer during the overall process shall be enforced. Prelaunch Control Plan must comply with the customer’s expected time without failure.
Gated Management
The six diamond shapes illustrated in the first graph (Fig. 1) represent the gates corresponding to each program milestone. Each of these gates require leadership approval at the conclusion of the respective phase of the product quality planning process (gate review).
In certain instances, we may make changes after the gate has been reviewed. To address such cases, gate 1 approval mandates verification of the change management log, which must be reviewed and confirmed at all subsequent gate reviews. This ensures that all changes have been appropriately managed, including the reapproval of affected items and the validation of previous deliverables
If a gate review is incomplete or yields unacceptable results, it is essential to establish an effective and transparent escalation system, both internally and with the customer. In such situations, the development of a comprehensive action plan is required to address and resolve the identified issues. The information exchange format is key. So the recommendation is always review and work these in proximity with the customer. Below, we list the gates.
0 – Concept Initiation & Approval
1 – Program Approval
2 – Design Feasibility Approval
3 – Process Feasibility Approval
4 – Launch Readiness Approval
5 – Feedback Assessment and Corrective Action
Summary Table
The table shown summarizes the results documentation for each gate. Each gate uses a unique Product Quality Planning Summary and Approval form (consult the reference manual) which contains the confirmed information and decisions made at such gate.
Each of these forms go into detailed information. The table shows below the column title, the minimum information required to be confirmed.
APQP as part of the core tools
The APQP is part of the core tools, as defined by the AIAG (Automotive Industry Action Group) and widely used to support quality management and product development. Those tools are the following listed below.
- Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP)
- Production Part Approval Process (PPAP)
- Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
- Measurement System Analysis (MSA)
- Statistical Process Control (SPC)
- Control Plan
These tools are interrelated as essential components of a comprehensive quality management system, under IATF 16949™.
Final Notes
It is advisable to consult the referred 3rd. Edition of the APQP manual for the complete and detailed set of valuable information aligned to IATF16949, included the latest updates to the requirements.
For other type of industries, the detailed information is, in my experience, always a great standardized resource to complement any operative excellence and continuous improvement program.
Author: Renato Cortes
References:
• AIAG. (2024). Advanced Product Quality Planning Reference Manual (3rd ed.). Ford Motor Company, General Motors Company, and Stellantis.
• IATF 16949™ is a trademark of the International Automotive Task Force (IATF)
• AIAG™is a registered trademark of the Automotive Industry Action Group
