Home > News & Analysis > Farnell element14 achieves AS9120 certification in Europe

Analysis

Farnell element14 achieves AS9120 certification in Europe

3rd February 2016

Nat Bowers

0 0

Farnell element14 has achieved AS9120 certification, a global quality management standard developed by the aerospace industry to address complex traceability and quality needs in distribution. By achieving certification, Farnell element14 has proven its adherence to high-level traceability controls and processes for every electronic component stocked and shipped, guaranteeing defence and aerospace customers genuine, quality products and exemplary service.

Based on ISO 9001:2008 but with nearly 100 additional requirements, AS9120 provides Farnell element14 customers with a comprehensive quality system focused on areas directly impacting confidence in product traceability and reliability. Although designed by the aerospace industry, adhering to the AS9120 standard is essential for any business designing high-reliability or mission-critical products.

Jerry Vaughan, Global Director of Operations, Premier Farnell, commented: “Achieving AS9120 certification is far from easy, and this important milestone confirms the strength of our capabilities and service proposition. Meeting the strict criteria of AS9120 is essential for those in the defence and aerospace markets but it also provides extra levels of traceability and control for all our customers. Along with significant investment in inventory and support, Farnell element14 is well equipped to fully support the specific requirements of customers in the defence and aerospace markets from design through to production.”

Additional requirements in AS9120 include:

Splitting - Specific requirements for batch splitting and how conformance to specification is maintained;
Traceability - Defines specific requirements for traceability from receipt until delivery; and
Evidence of Conformance - Specific documents are required by distributors as evidence of conformance. AS9120 defines those requirements.

Achieving AS9120 certification is just one of a number of improvements and investments in inventory and support made by Farnell element14, including offering date and lot codes on up to 200,000 products, provided on fully bar-coded product labels and dispatch notes for ease of receipting and retention by customers.

Alongside AS9120 certification, compliance with legislation such as RoHS and WEEE, plus external certification such as ISO 9001, 14001 and 18001 provides further credibility of Farnell element14 as a trusted source of supply for customers in the defence and security sector.