When does a material change require FAI resubmission?

A material change usually requires FAI resubmission when the change affects, or could reasonably affect, the approved design baseline, fit, form, function, manufacturability, inspection results, or any drawing or specification characteristic. In AS9102 environments, this is commonly handled as a full or partial FAI, depending on the scope of the change. A routine change from one raw material lot or heat to another, using the same approved material specification and controls, normally does not require FAI by itself unless the customer, purchase order, quality plan, or program flowdown requires it.

Changes that commonly trigger FAI resubmission

A material-related FAI resubmission is commonly required when there is a change to the material called out by the engineering definition or approved planning. Examples include:

• A change in material specification, grade, alloy, temper, condition, thickness, form, or finish.
• Use of an alternate material that was not already approved in the drawing, specification, bill of material, or customer authorization.
• A change in material processing that can affect product characteristics, such as heat treatment, coating, plating, curing, or surface treatment.
• A change in material source when the source is controlled by the customer, drawing, specification, approved supplier list, or special process requirements.
• A design revision or engineering change that modifies the material requirement or related inspection characteristics.
• A corrective action or nonconformance disposition that changes how the material is selected, processed, verified, or accepted.

In these cases, the organization normally needs to evaluate whether a partial FAI is sufficient or whether a full FAI is required. The answer depends on the engineering change, customer requirements, risk assessment, and how tightly the changed material interacts with downstream operations and characteristics.

Changes that usually do not trigger FAI by themselves

Not every material event is an FAI event. A new material lot, heat, batch, or certificate of conformance for the same approved material specification usually remains a normal traceability and receiving inspection matter, not a first article matter. The same is often true for a supplier shipment change where the approved material, approved source requirements, and manufacturing process are unchanged.

That said, this depends on the contract and program rules. Some customers require FAI updates for source changes, special process changes, or long production gaps even when the drawing did not change. Those requirements should be checked before assuming that no FAI activity is needed.

Partial FAI versus full FAI

A material change does not automatically mean every characteristic must be revalidated. A partial FAI is commonly used when the impact can be bounded to specific characteristics, operations, or assemblies. The FAI package should clearly identify the reason for resubmission, the affected characteristics, the drawing or planning revision, and the prior approved FAI baseline.

A full FAI may be appropriate when the material change is broad, the affected characteristics cannot be isolated, the manufacturing route has changed significantly, or customer requirements call for a complete resubmission. In practice, weak traceability, incomplete prior FAI records, or unclear planning history can force more work than the technical change alone would suggest.

Brownfield system considerations

In brownfield environments, the decision is often complicated by how material master data, engineering changes, routings, inspection plans, and supplier approvals are split across PLM, ERP, MES, QMS, and document control systems. If those systems do not share a clean change history, the FAI decision may require manual review by quality, engineering, manufacturing engineering, and supply chain.

The main failure mode is treating the change as a purchasing substitution while the engineering, inspection, or customer baseline still requires formal review. Another common failure mode is updating the FAI form but not updating the router, work instructions, inspection plan, material certification requirements, or supplier controls. That creates traceability gaps even if the FAI document itself appears complete.

Practical rule

If the material change alters the approved requirement or could affect an inspected characteristic, assume that at least a documented FAI impact assessment is needed. If the impact is confirmed, submit a partial or full FAI according to AS9102, customer flowdowns, and internal change control. If the change is only a new lot of the same approved material, maintain traceability and acceptance records, but FAI resubmission is usually not required unless a specific requirement says otherwise.