3. Terms and definitions
See ISO 9001:2015 requirements

3.1 Terms and definitions for the automotive industry
accessory part

customer-specified additional component(s) that are either mechanically or electronically connected
to the vehicle or powertrain before (or after) delivery to the final customer (e.g., custom floor mats,
truck bed liners, wheel covers, sound system enhancements, sunroofs, spoilers, super-chargers, etc.)

advanced product quality planning (APQP)
product quality planning process that supports development of a product or service that will satisfy
customer requirements; APQP serves as a guide in the development process and also a standard way
to share results between organizations and their customers; APQP covers design robustness, design
testing and specification compliance, production process design, quality inspection standards, process
capability, production capacity, product packaging, product testing and operator training plan, among
other items

aftermarket part
replacement part(s) not procured or released by an OEM for service part applications, which may or
may not be produced to original equipment specifications

authorization
documented permission for a person(s) specifying rights and responsibilities related to giving or
denying permissions or sanctions within an organization

challenge (master) part
part(s) of known specification, calibrated and traceable to standards, with expected results (pass or
fail) that are used to validate the functionality of an error-proofing device or check fixtures (e.g., go /
no-go gauging)

control plan
documented description of the systems and processes required for controlling the manufacturing of
product (see Annex A)

customer requirements
all requirements specified by the customer (e.g., technical, commercial, product and manufacturing
process related requirements, general terms and conditions, customer-specific requirements, etc.)

customer-specific requirements (CSRs)
interpretations of or supplemental requirements linked to a specific clause(s) of this Automotive QMS
Standard

design for assembly (DFA)
process by which products are designed with ease of assembly considerations, (e.g., if a product
contains fewer parts it will take less time to assemble, thereby reducing assembly costs)

design for manufacturing (DFM)
combination of two methodologies: Design for Manufacture (DFM), which is the process of optimizing
the design to be easier to produce, have higher throughput, and improved quality; and Design for
Assembly (DFA), which is the optimization of the design to reduce risk of error, lowering costs, and
making it easier to assemble

design for six sigma (DFSS)
systematic methodology, tools, and techniques with the aim of being a robust design of products or
processes that meets customer expectations and can be produced at a six sigma quality level.

design-responsible organization
organization with authority to establish a new, or change an existing, product specification.
NOTE__This responsibility includes testing and verification of design performance within the customer's specified application

error proofing
product and manufacturing process design and development to prevent manufacture of
nonconforming products

escalation process
process used to highlight or flag certain issues within an organization so that the appropriate -
personnel can respond to these situations and monitor the resolutions

fault tree analysis (FTA)
deductive failure analysis methodology in which an undesired state of a system is analysed; fault tree
analysis maps the relationship between faults, subsystems, and redundant design elements by
creating a logic diagram of the overall system

laboratory
facility for inspection, test, or calibration that may include but is not limited to the following; chemical,
metallurgical, dimensional, physical, electrical, or reliability testing

laboratory scope
controlled document containing
− specific tests, evaluations, and calibrations that a laboratory is qualified to perform; a list of
the
− equipment that the laboratory uses to perform the above; and a list of methods and
standards to
− which the laboratory performs the above

manufacturing
process of making or fabricating production
− materials; production parts or service
− parts;
− assemblies; or
− heat treating, welding, painting, plating, or other finishing services

manufacturing feasibility
an analysis and evaluation of a proposed project to determine if it is technically feasible to
manufacture the product to meet customer requirements. This includes but is not limited to the
following (as applicable): within the estimated costs, and if the necessary resources, facilities, tooling,
capacity, software, and personnel with required skills, including support functions, are or are planned
to be available

manufacturing services
companies that test, manufacture, distribute, and provide repair services for components and
assemblies
multi-disciplinary approach
method to capture input from all interested parties who may influence how a process is administered
by a team whose members include personnel from the organization and may include customer and
supplier representatives; team members may be internal or external to the organization; either
existing teams or ad hoc teams may be used as circumstances warrant; input to the team may include
both organization and customer inputs

no trouble found (NTF)
designation applied to a part replaced during a service event that, when analysed by the vehicle or
parts manufacturer, meets all the requirements of a “good part” (also referred to as “No Fault Found”
or “Trouble Not Found”)

outsourced process
portion of an organization’s function (or processes) that is performed by an external organization

periodic overhaul
maintenance methodology to prevent a major unplanned breakdown where, based on fault or
interruption history, a piece of equipment, or subsystem of the equipment, is proactively taken out of
service and disassembled, repaired, parts replaced, reassembled, and then returned to service

predictive maintenance
an approach and set of techniques to evaluate the condition of in-service equipment by performing
periodic or continuous monitoring of equipment conditions, in order to predict when maintenance
should be performed

premium freight
extra costs or charges incurred in addition to contracted delivery
NOTE__This can be caused by method, quantity, unscheduled or late deliveries,-etc.

preventive maintenance
planned activities at regular intervals (time-based, periodic inspection, and overhaul) to eliminate
causes of equipment failure and unscheduled interruptions to production, as an output of the
manufacturing process design

product
applies to any intended output resulting from the product realization process

product safety
standards relating to the design and manufacturing of products to ensure they do not represent harm
or hazards to customers

production shutdown
condition where manufacturing processes are idle; time span may be a few hours to a few months
reaction plan action or series of steps prescribed in a control plan in the event abnormal or
nonconforming events are detected

remote location
location, that supports manufacturing sites and at which non-production processes occur

service part
replacement part(s) manufactured to OEM specifications that are procured or released by the OEM for
service part applications, including remanufactured parts

Site
location at which value-added manufacturing processes

special characteristic
classification of a product characteristic or manufacturing process parameter that can affect safety or
compliance with regulations, fit, function, performance, requirements, or subsequent processing of
product

special status
notification of a customer-identified classification assigned to an organization where one or more
customer requirements are not being satisfied due to a significant quality or delivery issue

support function
non-production activity (conducted on site or at a remote location) that supports one (or more)
manufacturing sites of the same organization

total productive maintenance
a system of maintaining and improving the integrity of production and quality systems through
machines, equipment, processes, and employees that add value to the organization

trade-off curves
Tool to understand and communicate the relationship of various design characteristics of a product to
each other; a product’s performance on one characteristic is mapped on the Y-axis and another on the
x-axis, then a curve is plotted to illustrate product performance relative to the two characteristics

trade-off process
methodology of developing and using trade-off curves for products and their performance
characteristics that establish the customer, technical, and economic relationship between design
alternatives