Mythbuster: “CoP test and quality test are the same”.
The CoP (Conformity of Production) area is often assigned to the quality assurance area of the plants. And this is the case with many vehicle manufacturers, but also with suppliers. These organizational structures have often grown over many decades.
But have you noticed that there are also many companies where CoP is assigned to the area of type testing? Does that make sense?
When I talk to training participants about this, the thought is often relatively simple: “I’m testing in the current series. Just like in the context of quality assurance.” Even “initial sampling” and “series release” are buzzwords used in connection with CoP and QA.
But are CoP and QS really the same thing?
Let’s look at the objective of each test.
As part of quality assurance, I typically test against “self-imposed goals.” These can be customer specifications or internal requirements.
In the context of product compliance, however, the focus is now on a legal requirement. Products must be compliant with this.
But there are many more differences, in terms of the timing of the audit, the objective, the sampling. However, there are also deviating archiving regulations and further deviating requirements regarding the documentation and control of information.
Learn more in our training“Conformity of Production – Level 1” and“Conformity of Production – Level 2“.