S³ ’s Seaport–NxG Quality Control/Assurance (QC/A) Program applies our ISO 9001:2015 and AS9100 Revision D registered/certified Quality Management System (QMS) to deliver effective, prevention based QC/A at both the contract and awarded Task Order (TO) levels. AS9100 is the standard for aerospace industry quality management, and was developed by the Society of Automotive Engineers and the European Association of Aerospace Industries as an industry specific expansion of the ISO 9001:2015 International Quality Standards, which is focused on preventing quality problems and continuously improving performance and processes. Since 2007, S³ has continuously operated in full compliance with our ISO 9001:2015/AS9100 registered/certified QMS, which is specifically tailored to delivering quality services and products to our customers.
At the contract level, S³ ensures SeaPort–NxG Program QC/A by auditing conformance with the requirements of the awarded IDIQ contract, contract modifications if applicable, and established S3 policies and procedures. From these requirements, we develop specific Work Instructions to standardize and control business operations and manage the configuration of the work performed.
The S³ Corporate Quality Manager schedules internal quality audits, which are conducted by our trained internal audit team in accordance with established Quality Operating Procedures (QOP). S³ augments the corporate internal reviews with an annual external audit conducted by our ISO 9001:2015/AS9100 Registrar, NSF International Strategic Registrations. Our internal and external audits ensure our policies/processes conform to ISO/AS quality standards; that we follow and measure the performance of our policies/processes against established key performance indicators (KPI); and, based on the results of audits and KPI performance metrics, take and document appropriate corrective and preventive actions. The results of our internal and external audits are continuous process and performance monitoring which allow us to prevent quality issues from impacting performance and share lessons learned to prevent recurrence or similar problems on other contracts.
Designated TO personnel perform QC/A at the SeaPort–NxG Task Order level in accordance with the specific PWS requirements and the TO Performance Requirements Summary (PRS) metrics, as detailed in the TO Quality Control Plan (QCP). Reporting directly to the responsible S³ Technical Unit Executive to ensure objectivity and freedom of effort, designated QC/A personnel monitor TO performance using the PRS to ensure continuity of evaluation with customer requirements. The QC/A also tracks the team’s performance using self-assessments included in monthly reports and quarterly reviews of performance against KPI. This approach ensures the on-time delivery of quality services that meet customer requirements within awarded costs, while providing effective performance management and aggressively pursuing continuous performance and process improvements. Our QC/A personnel help achieve needed improvements by accomplishing deficiency root cause analysis and implementing corrective/preventive actions designed to guarantee customer satisfaction. The result is S³ ’s prevention based SeaPort-e QC/A program that focuses on fixing performance responsibility using customer defined metrics to deliver quality performance in support of mission requirements. Desired outcome is to routinely guarantee complete and comprehensive Customer Satisfaction.
