Lean manufacturing (or thinking) can help companies gain a competitive advantage. The core idea is to maximize customer value while minimizing waste (and not compromising productivity).

Lean approaches are helpful for the development and maintenance of documentation compliant with ISO Management System Standards (MSS). These standards include ISO 9001, ISO 13485, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, and many others.

Shane Collins often hears people say that there aren’t any additive manufacturing standards. This is frustrating because he’s worked on additive standards for more than 10 years and there are dozens out now.

Since the rise of additive manufacturing (AM) in the 2010s, many businesses across the world are now looking at this method of manufacturing to see where it can add benefits across the supply chain.

Conversations around quality in metal additive manufacturing often focus on the flashy application of high-frequency, in situ, real-time monitoring systems and the neural networks or machine learning required for map-reduction of the mountains of data generated. There is, however, an often-overlooked aspect of consistently making high-quality parts: calibration.

Standards and regulations rule the aerospace industry. Inspections and reviews are crucial to passenger and flight safety, but compliance with these standards can become time consuming and expensive. 

Looking back at my quality career since 1984, I remember contributing to a quality manual of a Motorola Division in 1987-88 for ISO 9001 certification.