production part approval

Production part approval is the formal confirmation that a customer accepts a supplier’s part or assembly for use in series (volume) production. It is typically achieved through a structured submission process that demonstrates the part, its manufacturing process, and its supporting documentation meet agreed requirements before regular production and shipment.

In many industries, especially automotive, this activity is carried out through the Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) defined by customer or sector-specific requirements. Other sectors may use different names or templates, but the underlying goal is the same: to verify that the production design and production process are capable of consistently meeting specifications.

What production part approval includes

Production part approval commonly refers to:

• Submission of defined documentation and evidence (for example drawings, specifications, process flow, FMEA, control plans, measurement data, capability studies, and records of trials or run-at-rate).
• Customer review of the submitted package against contractual, regulatory, and technical requirements.
• Customer decision and documented status, such as “approved,” “conditionally approved,” or “rejected,” often tied to specific part numbers and revisions.
• Linkage to change control, so that design or process changes can require re-approval before shipment of updated parts.

Operationally, production part approval may be supported by quality management systems, PLM, MES, and ERP tools to manage part revisions, evidence records, and traceability of what has been approved, by whom, and under which conditions.

What it does not include

Production part approval is not the same as:

• Initial design approval of a drawing or model without validating the production process.
• Routine incoming inspection or lot-by-lot acceptance of delivered parts.
• Certification to a management-system standard (such as ISO 9001 or IATF 16949).

It is a part- and process-specific acceptance activity, not an overall certification of a site or organization.

Use in regulated and customer-driven environments

In regulated or customer-driven environments, production part approval is typically triggered when:

• A new part or product is introduced.
• An existing part has a significant design change, material change, tooling change, or process relocation.
• A customer specifically requires re-approval after quality or reliability concerns.

Although common in automotive through AIAG PPAP, similar concepts appear in aerospace, medical device, and other sectors using their own formats or additional regulatory documentation. Organizations often integrate production part approval with document control, change management, and nonconformance/corrective action processes to maintain a clear history of what has been approved and under which conditions.

Common confusion

• Production part approval vs. PPAP: The term “production part approval” is the general concept. PPAP (Production Part Approval Process) is a specific, structured method and documentation set widely used in automotive. Not all production part approvals use the PPAP format, but PPAP is one of the most recognized implementations.
• Production part approval vs. process validation: Process validation focuses on proving that a process can consistently produce results meeting requirements. Production part approval usually includes process validation evidence but adds formal customer sign-off on the actual part number, revision, and submitted documentation.
• Production part approval vs. ISO 9001: Production part approval activities and PPAP-style requirements are not built into ISO 9001. They are usually customer or sector requirements that organizations may integrate within an ISO 9001-based quality management system through documented procedures and change control.