April 5, 2018 Articles Why is IATF 16949 a good idea for your organisation? The benefits of IATF 16949 cannot be over-stressed, companies large and small have gained great benefits from using the standard by discovering cost and efficiency savings. Some of the other benefits are listed below. Credibility and image IATF 16949 is an internationally recognised standard; it has become the basis for creating a Quality Management System (QMS) around the world and has replaced many previously published requirements. When a customer is looking for a supplier the requirement to have a QMS based on IATF 16949 is often a major consideration if you are competing for work in the automotive industry. Credibility to supply the automotive industry This can be one of the main drives for companies to become registered to IATF 16949. In order to get large customers from the automotive industry, organisations need to demonstrate their ability to provide quality products with no defects. Improvement One of the 7 quality management principles subscribed to by IATF 16949 is to improve customer satisfaction by planning for and striving to meet customer expectations. This can be achieved by improving customer satisfaction which will result in customer retention and repeat business. Happy and satisfied customers are the key to keeping customer loyal. Process approach Through looking at the process sequence and interactions using the process approach of IATF 16949 organisations will be able to identify improvements in efficiency and drive cost savings. Again, the elimination of waste throughout the supply chain that occurs is one of the fundamental goals of IATF 16949. Decision making Another quality management principle of IATF 16949 is the use of evidence-based decision making. By driving your decisions based on factual data, organisations will focus on placing resources in the areas that will give maximum improvement in efficiency and effectiveness. In addition monitoring the process organisations will be able to measure improvement based on actual data. Continual improvement Continual improvement is another quality management principle of IATF 16949. By improving your processes, organisational output efficiencies and cost savings, can be then a measurable benefit. By making continual improvements, year on year, companies can see continuing benefits. Employee motivation and empowerment If employees are involved in the improvements of the processes they become more engaged. Who is better placed than the people working within the processes to identify the areas of improvement. Engaged employees are more productive and will help the company improve and save, especially if they understand how the quality of the process depends on them and the impact it can have on the customer.
