1. Scope

1.1

This International Standard provides guidelines to assist suppliers in the preparation, review, acceptance and revision of quality plans.

It is intended for use in two situations:

(a) as guidance to a supplier organization in meeting the requirements of ISO 9001, ISO 9002 or ISO 9003 relative to the preparation of a quality plan; or

(b) as guidance to a supplier organization in preparing a quality plan when the supplier does not have such a quality system.

In both situations, the quality plan is supplemental to the supplier's generic quality system documentation and should not duplicate the generic documentation. For convenience in situations of type (b), this International Standard includes features t hat are covered in the generic requirements of ISO 9001, ISO 9002 and ISO 9003.

Quality plans provide a mechanism to tie specific requirements of the product, project or contract to existing generic quality system procedures. They do not require the development of a comprehensive set of procedures or instructions over and above those already existing, although some additional documented procedures may be necessary.

1.2

This International Standard is applicable where a quality plan is to be used for a particular product, project or contract. A quality plan may be applicable to any product of the generic product categories (hardware, software, processed materials and services) or industry/economic sectors.

A quality plan may be used to monitor and assess adherence to the requirements for quality, but these guidelines are not inte nded to be used as a checklist for compliance with requirements. A quality plan may also be used where a documented quality system does not exist, in which case procedures may need to be developed to support the quality plan.

NOTE 1 - Annex B contains a bibliography of International Standards which provide information that may prove helpful to those involved in the preparation and review of quality plans.