Clause 8.5.3 Preventive action

One of the true tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency.” 

Definition:
Actions taken to eliminate the cause of a potential nonconformity or other undesirable potential situation.

It is better to prevent a problem than to correct a problem. Based on the information available to them, organizations must identify ways of preventing problems from occurring in the first place.

Examples of preventive actions are:

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  purchasing additional tools or machinery, because of an expected increase in activities or production;


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  checking computer systems to see if they are capable of handling information from a new customer;


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  introducing a new identification system for nonconforming product, so that any potential misunderstanding can be avoided.

Preventive actions should be handled in the same way as corrective actions. There should be a disciplined approach for ensuring that they are implemented and effective (see 8.5.2).

The standard requires organizations to have documented procedure to:

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  identify potential non conformities


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  determine the causes of non conformity


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  evaluate the need for actions


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  determining and implementing the actions (actions should be appropriate to the impact of potential problems) 


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  recording results


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  reviewing the effectiveness of action taken (effectiveness is added in 2008)

External Document Reference: Documentation Kit

Procedure for Corrective and Preventive Actions

Action Request (AR)

Corrective and Preventive Actions (CPA)

Action Request (AR) with Corrective and Preventive Actions

Supplier Corrective Action Request form (SCAR)

Additional Key words: prevent, prevention, correct, correction