LEARN / GLOSSARY
Qualification
The demonstration that a specific process, on specific equipment, using specific material, produces parts meeting specification repeatably. Equipment that has been delivered and installed is not yet capacity until this is done.
Definition
Qualification is the process by which a producer demonstrates that a product, process or facility meets the requirements of a specification before its output can be accepted. Federal acquisition regulation provides for qualification requirements and qualified products lists precisely because, for some items, examination of the finished article is not sufficient to establish acceptability.
Why the dictionary version is insufficient
Qualification sounds like a credential a firm obtains once. It is narrower than that in every dimension that matters. A welding procedure is qualified for a material at a thickness in a position. A coating line is qualified for a substrate and a specification. A machining cell is qualified for a part number. Changing any parameter can require requalification, which is why a plant with idle equipment can be unable to take work that appears to sit within its physical capability.
Why it matters for capacity
Qualification sits after every other lead time. A firm that has cleared permitting, secured power, hired its trades and taken delivery of equipment still cannot ship a part until qualification is complete, and for regulated products that interval is measured in months. Capacity schedules built from construction milestones routinely omit it.
Related terms
Tooling · Yield · Sub-tier supplier
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Sources
- Federal Acquisition Regulation Part 9.2, Qualifications Requirements. acquisition.gov
- Federal Acquisition Regulation Part 46, Quality Assurance. acquisition.gov