OTS: Off Tooling Sample Translated as "engineering sample." Definition: A sample produced with production-intent tooling under non-production cycle conditions, used to verify the design capability of the product. The report formed after the engineering sample is approved is called the OTS approval report, also known as the engineering approval report. It mainly includes: 1. Design documents (drawings and other design documents); 2. PSW (Part Submission Warrant); 3. Inspection qualification report (dimensional, performance, and appearance qualification reports); 4. Sample control plan (CP); 5. Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis DFMEA (generally not submitted); 6. Test reports and laboratory qualification certificates; 7. Material certificates or material test reports for materials (such as metal, rubber, plastic); 8. BOM (sub-supplier list); 9. Measurement System Analysis (MSA), etc. All of the above are provided by the supplier and subject to review by the buyer. When the buyer provides feedback to the supplier, the output is the OTS approval report.
SOP: Start Of Production Translated as "start of mass production," meaning the product can be mass-produced.
EOP: End of Production Translated as "end of mass production," referring to the end of the product life cycle and the cessation of mass production. After this, parts are generally no longer mass-produced and supplied, but to meet after-sales needs, production is sometimes organized, usually based on confirmed orders.
APQP: Advanced Product Quality Planning Translated as "advanced product quality planning," it is part of the IATF16949 quality management system. Definition: A structured method used to determine and establish the steps required to ensure a product satisfies the customer. Objectives: 1. Direct resources to achieve customer satisfaction; 2. Promote early identification of required changes; 3. Avoid late changes; 4. Provide quality products on time at the lowest cost.
F M EA: Failure Mode and Effect Analysis Translated as "failure mode and effect analysis," it is an analytical method used to determine potential failure modes and their causes. It is a combination of FMA (Failure Mode Analysis) and FEA (Failure Effect Analysis). It evaluates and analyzes various possible risks in order to eliminate them or reduce them to an acceptable level based on existing technology. Specifically, through the implementation of FMEA, product weaknesses can be identified before product design or production processes are actually realized, and product defects can be determined at the prototype stage or before mass production. FMEA includes: DFMEA and PFMEA DFMEA: Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis Translated as "design failure mode and effects analysis," it begins at or before the formation of the design concept, is revised promptly and continuously during each stage of product development when design changes or other information is obtained, and ends before drawings are completed for processing. Its evaluation and analysis targets are the final product and each related system, subsystem, and component. It should be noted that d-FMEA, while reflecting design intent, should also ensure that manufacturing or assembly can realize the design intent. Therefore, although d-FMEA does not rely on process control to overcome design defects, it can consider technical/objective constraints in the manufacturing/assembly process, thereby providing a good foundation for process control. PFMEA: Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis Translated as "process failure mode and effects analysis," it is an analytical technique mainly used by engineers/teams responsible for manufacturing/assembly to maximize assurance that various potential failure modes and their related causes/mechanisms have been fully considered and addressed. SPC: Statistical Process Control Translated as "statistical process control," it is a process control tool using mathematical statistics methods. It analyzes and evaluates the production process, promptly identifies signs of systematic factors based on feedback information, and takes measures to eliminate their influence, keeping the process in a controlled state affected only by random factors, thereby achieving quality control. MSA: Measurement System Analysis Translated as "measurement system analysis," it uses mathematical statistics and charting methods to analyze the resolution and error of a measurement system, in order to assess whether the resolution and error of the measurement system are appropriate for the parameters being measured, and to determine the main components of measurement system error. PPAP: Production Part Approval Process Translated as "production part approval process," it includes the general requirements for approval of production parts and bulk materials. The purpose of PPAP is to determine whether the supplier has correctly understood all requirements of the customer's engineering design records and specifications, and whether its production process has the potential capability to meet the customer's requirements at the specified production rate during actual production. Objectives: 1. Determine whether the supplier has correctly understood all customer requirements; 2. Determine whether the supplier has the capability to produce at an appropriate rate; 3. Determine whether quality capability is stable. Requirements: 1. Must be 300 or more parts from continuous production within 1 to 8 hours (unless the customer states in writing that this is not mandatory); 2. The production process must be equivalent to formal mass production conditions, taking into account molds, gauges, tooling, etc.; 3. Must be parts from an independent production process, taking into account mold cavities, identical production lines, etc.; PPAP documents include: 1. PSW; 2. BOM; 3. Test reports (4 types); 4. Product special characteristics list; 5. Process flow diagram; 6. PFMEA - Process Potential Failure Mode and Effects Analysis; 7. Process equipment survey form; 8. Tooling and molds list; 9. Inspection equipment list; 10. MSA measurement system analysis; 11. Cpk & Ppk - initial process capability study; 12. Control plan; 13. Packaging approval report; 14. Other customer-specific requirements, such as IMDS, packaging instructions, capacity analysis sheets, qualified laboratory documents (which may be replaced by laboratory personnel qualification certificates), etc. APQP, FMEA, SPC, MSA, and PPAP are the five core tools of quality management, also known as the five core tools of quality control. DFM: Design for manufacturability It means design for manufacturing, i.e., starting from improving the manufacturability of parts, making parts and various processes easy to manufacture, with low manufacturing cost, high efficiency, and a low cost ratio. Note the distinction from DFMEA; many people commonly confuse the two. DFM identifies manufacturable and non-manufacturable aspects at the beginning of product design to increase manufacturability. Today's DFM is a core technology of concurrent engineering, because design and manufacturing are the two most important links in the product life cycle, and concurrent engineering means considering factors such as manufacturability and assemblability at the start of design. Therefore, DFM is also the most important supporting tool in concurrent engineering. Its key elements are process analysis of design information, evaluation of manufacturing rationality, and recommendations for design improvement. DFMEA refers to potential failure mode analysis at the design stage. It is a means of ensuring product quality prevention from the design stage, and a control tool for ensuring how product quality is met during design and development and during formal production and delivery to the customer. Because of the similarity characteristics of the same type of products, the DFMEA stage often draws on the evaluation of design advantages and disadvantages of previously mass-produced or currently produced products before making improvements and enhancements for new products. PSW: Part Submission Warrant A quality term meaning part submission warrant, an item required to be submitted to the customer in PPAP. After completing all required measurements and tests, the supplier must fill in the required content on the part submission warrant. A separate PSW must be completed for each customer part number, unless the customer agrees to another form. If the production parts are produced from more than one cavity, mold, tool, die, or pattern, or from a production process such as a production line or work cell, a dimensional evaluation must be performed on one part from each. In this case, the specific cavity, mold, production line, etc. must be filled in the "Mold/Cavity/Production Process" column on the PSW or its attachment.