A good nonconformance report states the requirement and the measured result side by side, says how much product is affected and where it is now, and records who decided the disposition and why. Below is a complete NCR for a fictional receiving inspection reject, filled in field by field in the order of our free NCR form: header, part and lot, requirement vs actual, containment, disposition, root cause and CAPA reference, corrective action, and sign-off. Each step explains what to enter and what the example entered.
ISO 9001 clause 8.7 asks you to identify and control outputs that do not conform so they are not used or delivered by accident, and to deal with them by correction, segregation, return, informing the customer or accepting them under concession. It also asks you to keep records that describe the nonconformity, the actions taken, any concessions, and who decided what to do. The example covers each of those: the description field, the containment and disposition fields, and the approval.
IATF 16949 and AS9100 add their own requirements, such as customer authorization before shipping product under concession. Medical device makers have similar expectations under FDA’s Quality Management System Regulation. Check your customer requirements before you choose use as is or repair.
A receiving reject is a decision about the whole lot based on a sample, so the NCR should show the plan and the result. Record the sample size, the accept and reject numbers and how many nonconforming pieces were found. Anyone reviewing the NCR can then check the decision without asking. Find the sample size for your lot with the AQL sampling calculator, confirm the accept and reject numbers against ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 or the plan in your receiving procedure, and keep the inspection steps on a receiving inspection checklist.
After a 100% sort, record the sorted count too. It sets the quantity for the return, gives the supplier a fact to work from in their response, and shows whether the problem was a few stray parts or a whole run.
The NCR deals with the product in hand. A SCAR asks the supplier to find and fix their cause. A CAPA is your own corrective action, for causes inside your process or your supplier management. One event can produce all three, each with its own number and closure, cross-referenced on the NCR.
Track open actions in a corrective action log, and treat repeat NCRs on the same part or supplier as a signal that the earlier cause was not fixed. The CAPA guide covers when an NCR should escalate.
Example: NCR-0412, receiving inspection at a fictional assembly shop. Spacer SP-220 rev C, supplier lot 7731, 500 pieces. Requirement: thickness 3.00 ± 0.05 mm (2.95 to 3.05 mm). The receiving procedure’s plan for 281 to 500 pieces at AQL 1.0 is: sample 50, accept on 1 nonconforming, reject on 2.
Result: The NCR shows the requirement and the measurements side by side, the sampling decision, where every one of the 500 pieces went, who authorized the sort, and the link to the supplier corrective action. A reviewer can check each decision from the record alone.
An NCR number and date, the part, revision and lot, the requirement and the measured result, quantity affected, containment, disposition with approval, root cause or a CAPA or SCAR reference, and closure sign-off.
Whoever finds the nonconformance opens it, often an inspector or operator. Quality usually completes the disposition and root cause fields, and an MRB or the customer approves dispositions such as use as is.
No. Open a CAPA when the problem is serious, repeats, or has a cause in your own system. A one-off supplier defect is often handled through a SCAR referenced on the NCR.
Until the affected product has been dispositioned and the evidence is attached. Many companies set a target of days, not weeks, and track the corrective action separately.
Use the free NCR form for the layout and this example as a guide to the level of detail. Replace the fictional numbers with your own requirement, measurements and references.
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