Each industry and manufacturer has specific quality assurance terms and techniques. We created this quick reference glossary to define quality assurance terms & acronyms specific to Groschopp and the motor/gearmotor industry. For more information on these terms or our products, contact us.
Term |
Definition |
| 6S | Used for improving organization of the workplace, the name comes from the six steps required to implement and the words (each starting with “S”) used to describe each step: sort, set in order, scrub, safety, standardize, and sustain. |
| Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) | QA Inspector’s Rule used to determine sampling plans for QA audits. Conforms to ANSI / ASQ Z1.4 and MIL-STD-105E Standards. |
| Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) | A framework of procedures and techniques used to develop products in industry. |
| Approved Supplier | Any supplier that has met the set criteria and is active and current in the Business Management Software. |
| Audit | A systematic and/or independent evaluation of a process for compliance to a designated standard. |
| Audit Guide | A person assigned to be available to facilitate the auditor during an audit. |
| Auditor | A person who performs a quality audit. |
| Benchmark | The comparison of the performance of a process against another process: it determines the effectiveness of existing processes and finds ways to improve those processes quickly. |
| Calibration | A comparison of measuring equipment with standards traceable to the National Institute of Standards and Testing (NIST). Measuring equipment is verified for accuracy, adjusted or repaired as needed, and results are documented. |
| Conformance | A judgment that a product, material, or service has conformed to a pre-determined set of requirements. |
| Containment Action | Initial action taken to ensure that a potential non-conforming product/material is segregated while awaiting disposition. |
| Continual Improvement | Recurring activity to increase the ability to fulfill requirements. All processes and activities can be improved on a regular basis through the application of systematic techniques. |
| Corrective Action | Any action taken to prevent the occurrence or recurrence of a defect or deficiency implemented trough a Corrective Action Request (CAR) |
| Date Code | Character designation signifying the date the part was manufactured. |
| Defects Per Million (DPM) | Number of defects found divided by the total number of parts made, then that result multiplied by one million. |
| Deterioration | Decline in usability due to improper storage. |
| Deviation | Written authorization for a product or process to depart from the manufacturer’s requirements for a specified time or quantity, provided the change does not compromise customer requirements. May also be used to authorize a departure from customer requirements with customer approval. |
| Design Failure Mode Effects Analysis (DFMEA) | The Application of the Failure Mode and Effects Analysis method specifically to product design. |
| Discrepancy | The feature that creates a non-conformance. |
| Defective Materials Report (DMR) | A form sent to the supplier and entered in the a DMR Log summarizing reason for rejection of material or corrective action. |
| Design Specification Review (DSR) | A form used by the Engineering department to review prints with suppliers. |
| Engineering Change Notice (ECN) | The approval and routing notice for all changes to engineering drawings. |
| Engineering Drawing Release (EDR) | Document advising release of drawings for a new product. |
| Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) | A structural activity intended to do the following:1) Recognize and evaluate the potential failure of a product or process and its effects.2) Identify action which could eliminate or reduce the chance of the potential failure occurring.3) Document the process |
| First Piece Approval (FPA) | Process used to approve the initial shipment or samples to customers or from suppliers. |
| Four Level Approach | Level 1: Quality ManualLevel 2: ProceduresLevel 3: Work Instructions, blank forms, set-up sheets, & computer generated documents, etc.Level 4: Quality Records |
| Gages | Pass/Fail measuring devices used to evaluate the dimensional extremes of product or material characteristics. |
| Growler | Test equipment used to check armature connections (bar advance) & detect internal shorts. |
| Hi-Pot (High Voltage Test) | A test for determining the breakdown point for insulating material by applying a voltage across the insulator. |
| Initial Sample Inspection Report (ISIR) | Form used to document actual measurements of the initial samples during the FPA process of otherwise requested. |
| Inspection | The process of measuring, examining, testing, and gauging a product to verify its conformance to specifications. |
| International Materials Data System (IMDS) | A globally assessable database used to track ingredients of automotive parts and assemblies across the entire automotive supply chain. |
| International Standards Organization (ISO) | Worldwide federation of national standards bodies from some 140 countries, one from each country. |
| ISO Certification | A certification used to implement quality standards. |
| ISO 9000 | Quality system standards and guidelines for manufacturers. |
| ISO 13485 | Quality system standards and guidelines for the development of medical devices. |
| ISO 14000 | Quality system standards and guidelines for environmental management systems. |
| Job Specific Work Instruction (JSWI) | A detailed explanation of how to do a specific hob along with training requirements for that job. |
| Long Term Corrective/Preventive Action | Action taken to permanently correct the cause of a non-conformance or potential non-conformance. |
| Major Non-conformity | The absence of a required procedure/system or the total breakdown of a procedure/system. |
| Management Review | The review process to assure the effectiveness of the quality system. |
| Master List Report | Summary of controlled documents in Master Control. |
| Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) | Information received from suppliers on the safe handling of specific materials or machines. |
| Measurement System Analysis (MSA) | A specially designed experiment used to identify the components of variation in measurements. |
| Minor Non-conformity | A single observed lapse in a procedure. |
| Non-Conformance | Non-fulfillment of specified requirements. |
| Observation | A statement of fact made during an audit and substantiated by objective evidence. |
| Offset (armature tester) | The reject term that usually indicates incorrect polarity, commutator line-up, or connection. |
| Part Per Million (PPM) | The number of parts rejected divided by the total number of parts and then multiplied by one million. |
| Preventive Action (PAR) | Action taken to prevent the possibility of a non-conformance, defect, or other undesirable situation from occurring initiated by a Preventive Action Request. |
| Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA) | The application of the Failure Mode and Effects Analysis method specifically to production processes. |
| Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) | A process used in the automotive supply chain to establish confidence in component suppliers and their production processes. |
| Quality | The total features or characteristics of a product of service necessary to satisfy all requirements. |
| Quality Assurance | The actions taken to prevent non-conformance. |
| Quality Control | The actions taken to detect non-conformities. |
| Quality Cost | Includes all costs related to the prevention of defects, assessments of process performance, and the measurement of financial consequences. |
| Quality Records Master List (QRML) | List of all quality records kept physically or electronically, their storage locations, the length of time to be stored, and any other general notes. |
| Quality System | The organizational structure, responsibilities, procedures, processes, and resources for implementing quality management. |
| Record | Documents containing verification of conformity, effectiveness, or release authorization about a product, material, or process as required by ISO and company management. |
| Reference Only Labels | Label applied to instruments that are not used either directly or indirectly to determine the acceptability of the product. |
| Reference Standards | Standards of the higher accuracy in the calibration system which are used to determine the accuracy of instruments and gages and are certified to the National Institute of Standards and Testing (NIST). |
| Returned Goods Analysis | Quality Assurance Technicians’ evaluation of the cause of complaint. |
| Returned Goods Authorization (RGA) | Permission to return parts to the manufacturer against a specific order number. |
| Returned Goods Customer Report | A report sent to the customer that summarizes the manufacturer’s findings and results of a Returned Goods Analysis. |
| Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) | A directive that applies to the materials used in all products marketed in the European Union. This directive restricts the use of six hazardous materials in the manufacture of various types of electronic and electrical equipment. |
| Rotation (Fields/Stators) | The reject term for incorrect polarity. In Fields is it usually a result of being connected incorrectly, formed backwards, or inserted incorrectly. In Stators it is usually a result of incorrect coil placement or incorrect connection. |
| Serial Number | The unique identification number assigned to each motor for traceability and warranty. |
| Sigma | Standard Deviation or the spread of the process. |
| Six Sigma | A statistical term used to refer to a process that generates a maximum defect probability of 3.4 parts per million (PPM) when the amount of processes shifts and drifts are controlled over the long term to less than +1.5 standard deviations from the centered mean. |
| Short Term Corrective/Preventive Action | Temporary measures taken to prevent further non-conformance, until permanent action can be implemented. |
| Stock Gages | Standard measuring equipment purchased and stocked until issued to production upon request. |
| Systems Audit | An audit of the manufacturer’s Quality Manual to ensure it meets the requirements of ISO standards. |
| Toll-Gate Audit | In-process audit by Quality Assurance at specific points in the overall process. |
| Total Indicator Reading (TIR) | The measured variation in the form and location of a surface as a part rotates on a specified axis. |
| Traceability | The ability to trace the history, application, or location of an item/activity by documentation. |
| Work Instructions (W.I.) | A controlled document that is a detailed explanation on how to perform a task. |
| White Board | A communication and problem solving tool on the production floor. |
