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Change is brewing: The AS9100 standard is set to become IA9100, and several changes to the requirements are expected. The summary theme of the new version of the IA9100 standard is “elevating quality requirements based on industry needs,” and the release is expected in 2026.
Why the change from AS to IA?
The International Aerospace Quality Group (IAQG) is the organization that issues the AS9100 standard (based on the ISO 9001 standard), through the global standards development group SAE International. The IAQC includes three global sectors of the aerospace community: the Americas Aerospace Quality Group (AAQG), the Asia-Pacific Aerospace Quality Group (APAQG), and the European Aerospace Quality Group (EAQG).
Until now, the IAQC has used the numbering AS9100, where the AS stands for “Aerospace Standard.” This change to using the distinction IA9100, where IA stands for “International Aerospace,” is a rebranding that the IAQG is using to indicate the international nature of the standard, and to be more consistent with other aerospace standards that are in place.
What can we expect in the changes?
The IAQG has issued some information on the key changes to expect in their upcoming release, although details are not yet available. The information is included in a presentation titled “IA9100 Key Change Summary” dated November 2023. According to the key changes article, the reasons for the changes are to expand product safety requirements, incorporate quality culture and ethics, link to the new Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) process, and expand counterfeit parts requirements and sub-tier supplier controls.
It is expected that the clauses of the standard will remain as they are currently, so here is what to expect based on the existing clauses:
Introduction, Scope, Normative References & Definitions
These do not include any requirements, but there is additional information included here on implementing and maintaining the system. There are expected to be some updates on important aspects of aerospace such as organizational culture, ethical behavior, and quality culture and how these fit into the QMS.
Context of the organization (clause 4)
Not much change here, expect a note to clarify that the identification of processes is an organizational decision.
Leadership (clause 5)
Additional wording around the role of leadership in an ethical work environment and quality culture in the workplace.
Planning (clause 6)
An additional note to link operational risk from clause 8.1.1 to the risks and opportunities in clause 6.1.
Support (clause 7)
Some additional notes on culture as part of the work environment, and measurement system analysis (MSA) as part of monitoring and measurement resource control. There is also a new requirement in this section around Information Security (clause 7.1.7), which is required to safeguard the QMS information. This is in addition to thinking about the infrastructure side of information security, which is already included in clause 7.1.3.
Operation (clause 8)
While this is the major part of the QMS standard, most of the changes revolve around updating notes to add clarification to the requirements. These note updates revolve around the new information security and MSA requirements, and more clarification on major aerospace additions such as product safety and counterfeit parts prevention. Other changes include updates to clarify requirements already in the standard to increase understanding.
Performance evaluation (clause 9)
There is a minor update to the internal audit process to ensure that risks are included in the audit program, and to change the previous note about using performance indicators in the audit into a requirement.
Improvement (clause 10)
An additional note to plan a periodic QMS maturity assessment so that the organization can set improvement goals and objectives.
How do you prepare for the change?
As can be seen above, the major change seems to be the addition of information security to the requirements, so a review of your company’s information security processes, including IT infrastructure and security, would be a good place to start. The remaining changes are expected to be minor in nature, and as with all standard requirements updates, you will have three years to comply with the changes after the new standard is released before your certification will be invalid.
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