August 2026
Latest issue- How to choose a third-party inspection companyMost inspection proposals look identical on price and say nothing about the things that decide whether defects get caught. Here is what to compare, what to ask, and where proposals quietly differ.
- Welding inspection to AWS D1.1 and CSA W59AWS D1.1 and CSA W59 look interchangeable until a fabricator is certified to the wrong one. Here is the inspection scope, the documents that must exist before the first arc, and the rejects that show up again and again.
- Manufacturing Record Book (MRB): what goes in a turnover data bookThe MRB is the deliverable that decides whether a fabricated package is accepted or held. Here is what belongs in it, a reusable index, and the rejections that push turnover past the milestone date.
- Project quality plan: what a quality management plan must containThe quality management plan is the document a client reads first and the one most often written to be filed rather than used. Here is the section-by-section outline, and what separates a plan that governs execution from a plan that sits in a folder.
- Types of NDT methods: RT, UT, PT, MT, VT and ECTRadiography, ultrasonics, penetrant, magnetic particle, visual and eddy current each find a different family of defects. Here is how each method works, its limitations, and how specifications decide which one applies.
- ISO 9001 vs AS9100, IATF 16949 and ISO 13485AS9100, IATF 16949 and ISO 13485 all descend from ISO 9001 but add sector requirements — and one of them no longer follows ISO 9001 at all. Here is what each adds, and which one your customers will require.
- ISO 9001:2026 changes and transition timelineThe sixth edition of ISO 9001 is scheduled for 16 September 2026. Here is a clause-by-clause view of what is changing from ISO 9001:2015, what is confirmed, what is still certification-body commentary, and a practical transition plan.
- QA vs QC: Quality Assurance vs Quality ControlQuality assurance builds the process that should produce a conforming result. Quality control checks whether it actually did. Here is the difference in plain language, with a comparison table and real examples from fabrication, construction and vendor work.
- What is an ITP (Inspection and Test Plan)?A plain-English definition of the Inspection and Test Plan, with a worked pipe-spool example and a column-by-column template you can copy.
- ISO 9001 Internal Audit Checklist (Clause by Clause)Clauses 4 to 10 in one working checklist: what to ask, what evidence to sample and how to write the finding so it holds up at surveillance.
- How much does ISO 9001 certification cost?A plain-English breakdown of ISO 9001 certification cost — certification-body audit days, consulting support, internal time and the three-year cycle — with the cost drivers that actually move your quote.
- Supplier Quality Audit Checklist (With Scoring Criteria)Ten audit sections, the evidence to sample in each, and a 0–4 scoring model that converts the audit into a defensible approve, conditional or reject decision.
- What is CAPA? Corrective and Preventive Action ExplainedA plain-English explanation of CAPA — what corrective and preventive action means, the eight stages of the process, worked examples, and where most CAPA systems fail.
- What is a Non-Conformance Report (NCR)?A plain-English guide to non-conformance reports — what an NCR is, what goes on the form, the lifecycle from detection to closure, the five disposition options, and where the NCR stops and CAPA begins.
- Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT): Scope, Checklist and WitnessingWhat a factory acceptance test covers, how FAT differs from SAT, a stage-by-stage witnessing checklist, punch-list categories, and the failure modes that let non-conforming equipment ship.