First Article Inspection

Guangzhou Huajian Commodity Inspection Co., Ltd. specializes in providing third-party inspection services, third-party factory audit services, and container loading supervision services. It is a professional third-party inspection company, foreign trade inspection company, third-party quality control company, third-party product inspection company, and third-party testing company.

First Article Inspection

1. The Meaning of First Article and First Article Inspection

Process Change

During the production process, any change in one or more of the 5M1E factors (Man, Machine, Material, Method, Environment, Measurement), such as personnel changes, equipment adjustments and repairs, material and tooling fixture changes, design modifications, line stoppages, etc.

First Article

The first or first few products processed by the production line at the start of each shift/production line or after a process change. For mass production, the "first article" often refers to a certain number of samples.

First Article Inspection

The inspection of the first or first few products processed by the production line at the start of each shift or after a process change. The number of inspections can be determined based on the requirements of different companies or customers. Generally, at least 3-5 consecutively produced products must be inspected and approved before subsequent products can continue to be processed. First article inspection must be strictly conducted after any changes in equipment or manufacturing processes and before the start of processing each work shift.

2. Purpose of First Article Inspection

First article inspection during the production process is mainly to prevent batch deviations, rework, and scrap. It is a means of pre-control in the product production process, an important method for product process quality control, and an effective and essential method for enterprises to ensure product quality and improve economic efficiency.

First article inspection aims to detect factors affecting product quality in the production process as early as possible and prevent batch defects or scrap.

Formal production can only begin after the first article inspection is passed, mainly to prevent the occurrence of batch non-conforming products.

Long-term practical experience has shown that the first article inspection system is an effective measure to detect problems early and prevent batch scrap. Through first article inspection, systematic causes such as severe wear or misinstallation of tools and fixtures, decreased accuracy of measuring instruments, misreading of drawings, errors in material feeding or配方 can be identified, allowing corrective or improvement measures to be taken to prevent batch non-conforming products.

3. Timing and Occasions for First Article Inspection

1) At the start of each work shift

2) When changing operators

3) When replacing or adjusting equipment and process equipment (including replacement or sharpening)

4) When changing technical conditions, process methods, and process parameters (e.g., changes in roughness requirements, changing reaming to boring for inner holes, changes in feed rate or speed in CNC programs)

5) After using new materials or material substitutions (e.g., material changes during processing)

6) After replacing or re-testing tank solutions (e.g., phosphating, nitriding)

4. Requirements for First Article Inspection

First article inspection adopts a three-inspection system: self-inspection, mutual inspection, and specialized inspection:

Products submitted for inspection must first undergo "self-inspection" by the operator, then "mutual inspection" by the team leader or colleagues, and finally "specialized inspection" by the inspector. Only after approval can subsequent products continue to be processed.

Whether the first article inspection is passed must ultimately be approved by a专职 inspector. The inspector should mark the approved first article with a specified symbol and maintain it until the end of the shift or batch processing (all first articles must be retained as samples for comparison with subsequent products to check for process changes and marked with a "√" with a marker pen to indicate passing first article inspection).

If the first article inspection fails, the cause must be identified, measures taken, and the fault resolved before reprocessing and undergoing the three inspections again until it passes and can be designated as the first article.

5. Main Items of First Article Inspection

Whether the drawing number matches the work order

Whether the material, blank, or semi-finished product matches the work task order

Whether the surface treatment, installation, and positioning of the material and blank are correct

Whether the配方 and ingredients meet the specified requirements

Whether the actual quality characteristics of the first article after processing comply with the requirements specified in the drawings or technical documents

6. Standard Procedure for First Article Inspection

Responsibilities

The production department is responsible for organizing and arranging first article inspection work.

If production proceeds without new product first article or batch first article inspection, or if first article inspection fails, resulting in quality incidents, the直接 responsible person shall be held accountable.

Inspectors and production line supervisors are responsible for the accuracy of first article inspection.

If quality certificates are issued by inspectors before first article confirmation is completed, resulting in quality incidents, the inspector shall be responsible.

Control Requirements

The first completed semi-finished and finished products from the production department's initial continuous production must undergo first article inspection and confirmation.

For常规 production products, first article inspection must be conducted by batch.

First article inspection and confirmation are required after停机 caused by equipment or process reasons before restarting.

First article inspection and confirmation are required when product materials or specifications are changed before production.

During new product first article inspection, the production unit must notify relevant inspection personnel to proceed according to the current valid drawings, list (or customer-provided samples), and process documents. The inspector fills out the inspection record, signs the first article card after approval, and attaches the card to the first article product to mark it; if first article inspection fails, the product should be immediately returned, and a new first article made, with records kept. Products that have not passed first article inspection cannot be accepted.

The first article, as a sample for batch production, shall be retained by the production department until the entire batch production is completed before final submission.

First article inspection should check all raw and auxiliary materials used in the product production process to ensure they comply with regulations.