AS/EN 9100 First-Time Certification: The 6 Most Common Failures

The Six Most Common AS/EN 9100 Failures

1. Risk management not integrated into product realisation. AS/EN 9100 Clause 8.1.1 requires risk management throughout product realisation — not as a standalone quality system element, but integrated into design, planning and manufacturing processes. Auditors assess whether risk was identified and managed at each product realisation stage, not whether a risk management procedure exists.
2. Configuration management programme inadequate. AS/EN 9100 Clause 8.1.3 requires configuration management throughout the product lifecycle. Aerospace organisations frequently have configuration management for primary products but do not extend it to tooling, fixtures and manufacturing equipment as the standard requires.
3. First article inspection not to AS9102 standard. First article inspection per AS9102 is a specific requirement for new or changed aerospace products. Many organisations conduct something called a first article inspection but do not follow the AS9102 methodology — which requires specific documentation of dimensional verification, material verification and functional testing results in a controlled FAI report format.
4. Counterfeit parts prevention programme absent or inadequate. AS/EN 9100 Clause 8.1.4 requires documented processes to prevent counterfeit or suspect unapproved parts. Organisations with only high-level purchasing procedures without specific counterfeit prevention controls — approved supplier preferences, incoming inspection protocols, GIDEP reporting — receive major findings.
5. Key characteristics not identified and controlled. AS/EN 9100 requires identification of key characteristics — product and process characteristics whose variation significantly affects safety, function, or service life. Key characteristics must be identified, documented, and statistically controlled through the manufacturing process.
6. Internal audit does not cover all AS/EN 9100 clauses. An ISO 9001 internal audit programme extended with AS/EN 9100 clause references but without genuine aerospace-specific auditor competence systematically misses the requirements in clauses 8.1 through 8.1.4.

What OASIS Certification Lapse Means Commercially

Unlike ISO 9001 certification, where a certification lapse may not be immediately visible to customers, AS/EN 9100 lapse is visible to all subscribing primes through the OASIS database. A certification lapse typically triggers immediate notification to customers, a hold on new business awards, and a formal review of existing supply arrangements by the prime's supplier quality team. The commercial consequences of lapse are severe enough to make prevention a commercial priority — not just a quality management one.