How to Transition to IATF 16949:2016

IATF 16949:2016 was released in October 2016. This new standard supersedes and replaces ISO/TS 16949:2009 and its certificates. The deadline for transitioning to this standard is September 14 2018. As this deadline gets closer, organization may start to panic. To avoid the panic, here are some of the most important requirements to assist organizations in developing their strategy.

Timing requirements

• By now, no organization should be conducting any type of audits regarding ISO ISO/TS 16949:2009. October 1st was the deadline for performing initial, surveillance or recertification audits to this standard.
• Only organizations that currently hold an ISO ISO/TS 16949:2009 can take a transition audit to seek IATF 16949:2016 certification. This transition audit should follow the organization’s audit schedule, for example, it should take place at the time when a surveillance or recertification audit was planned.
• The transition audit and a positive VETO approval must be obtained by September 14 2018.
• Organizations undertaking their audits between July and September 2018 will have no more than 120 days for VETO approval after completing their transition audit.

Transition audit requirements

• The transition audit will have to be a full system audit, such as a recertification audit.
• First, a documentary review (off site) has to be conducted for every manufacturing site seeking the transition. A review of the organization’s quality management system must be included in this revision, such as quality manuals, procedures and evidence of conformance to the new IATF 16949 requirements.
• If the organization has any supporting function(s) that are on-site or remote, documentation of these must also be included, and if these function(s) have not already completed a transition audit, a gap analysis and an action plan for meeting IATF 16949 requirements must be included.
• From this review it will be determined if the organization is ready to undertake the transition audit and critical areas will be prioritized.
• If for any reason an organization is unable to conduct the transition audit according to the time requirements, they would have to start again with an initial audit.
• Also, if there’s a negative certification decision from the transition audit, the organization’s ISO/TS 16949:2009 certificate will be withdrawn and they would have to start over with an initial certification audit.
• A very important point for organizations to consider is that in the transition audit the requirements for ISO 9001:2015 will also be verified

Certification body requirements

The certification body performing the audit must have met all the requirements for establishing their audit team. Organizations need to ensure that the auditors have passed all the necessary training and quizzes.

If organizations meet these requirements and obtain a positive decision after their transition audit, their IATF 16949:2016 certificate will be issued, which will include the issue and expiration date and a new IATF number.

ISO Terms Explained

To the novice quality manager, ISO jargon can be extremely overwhelming. What is an NCR? What do you mean by OFI? Are we certified or accredited? But before you go and pull out your hair, let’s take a moment to go over some of the most frequently used terms and their definitions with regards to ISO and Management System Certification.