A PPAP package is only as strong as its weakest element. One study run on the wrong gauge, one drawing at an old revision or one unsigned warrant can turn weeks of supplier work into a rejection notice just before start of production. For a buyer managing dozens of parts, the harder job is knowing which packages are close and which are quietly stuck. This checklist lists the evidence reviewers accept for each element and shows how to track every submission in one place. Watch the board run with sample suppliers in a short PPAP tracker demo.
See Which PPAP Elements Are Done, Pending or Sent Back
iFactory PPAP Tracker gives every part its own element checklist, lets suppliers upload evidence and keeps reviewer comments on each element. A kanban shows every PPAP from requested to approved, so nothing waits unnoticed.
18 Elements, Each With the Evidence Reviewers Accept
The AIAG PPAP manual, 4th edition, defines 18 elements. The customer decides which ones are submitted and which are kept on file, but a complete file is expected either way. Each line below pairs an element with the kind of evidence that usually passes review. It reflects common reviewer practice, so check every line against your customer's own requirements. Tick items as you go. For a copy loaded with your part numbers, contact our support team.
Why Packages Come Back, and What to Check First
Rejections rarely come from a part that can't be made. They come from evidence that doesn't line up. The reasons below appear again and again in supplier manuals and in reviewer comments. One supplier manual, for example, treats a submission at the wrong revision or part number as an automatic rejection, and many customers want one part measured from each cavity of a multi-cavity tool. Review a returned package with us in a rejection review session.
What You Declare When You Sign the Warrant
The PSW is the one element required at every level. It names the part, the change level, the reason for submission and the level the customer asked for, from Level 1, the warrant alone, up to Level 5, with everything reviewed at your plant. Level 3 is the usual default. The signature says the results meet every customer requirement and the records are ready. Ask our PPAP specialists about customer-specific warrant forms.
Initial submission, engineering change, tooling transfer, replacement, refurbishment or addition, correction of a discrepancy, tooling inactive for more than a year, optional construction or material, sub-supplier or material source change, change in part processing, parts made at an additional location, and other.
Ask Which Launches Are at Risk and Get a Straight Answer
iFactory reads every element, upload and reviewer comment across your suppliers. Ask in plain language which PPAPs threaten a start-of-production date and why.
Every Supplier PPAP on One Board
Spreadsheets show what was planned. A board shows where each package is right now. Each card is one part from one supplier, and it moves only when its evidence moves. Cards that sit too long in one column are flagged before they threaten a build date. The board below is illustrative, with 22 cards in all. See it with your own suppliers in a board walkthrough.
A card moves to Submitted only when every element required at its level has an upload. A returned element sends the card back to In preparation with the reviewer's comment attached. Each column has an age limit, and cards past it show on the weekly launch review.
Approved, Interim or Rejected: What Each One Allows
The customer's decision sets what you may ship. Supplier manuals define the three outcomes in similar terms. Interim approval is a bridge, not an approval, and it needs a dated plan to reach full approval. Track every expiry date on the board, because an interim that lapses quietly can stop shipments overnight. Agree status rules with suppliers up front using help from our supplier quality team.
Five Habits of Suppliers Whose PPAPs Pass First Time
Teams that pass first time treat PPAP as a planned launch task, not an end-of-project document hunt. These habits cost little and save whole resubmission cycles. See them built into a workflow in a PPAP workflow demo.
Three Submissions, Three Different Reasons
The cards below are made-up illustrations rather than customer stories. Each one starts from a different reason on the warrant, and each changes what the package must contain. Your customer's requirements decide the real scope. Talk through one of your own parts with our support team.
PPAP Tracker, Supplier Portal and NVIDIA Server in One Package
iFactory delivers the PPAP Tracker as a turnkey bundle. A pre-configured NVIDIA AI server ships racked and ready with the element checklists, supplier portal and review workflows pre-loaded, so drawings and supplier data stay on your site. You rack it, plug in power and Ethernet, and the AI is live. To size it for your supplier network, ask for a turnkey quote.
- Pre-configured NVIDIA AI edge server, racked and ready
- 18-element checklist per part, by submission level
- Supplier portal for evidence uploads
- Reviewer comments kept on each element
- Kanban from requested to approved, with age flags
- Revision and gauge ID checks before review
- 24×7 remote monitoring of models and hardware
Server installed, part and supplier lists loaded from ERP, customer levels and forms configured.
Open PPAPs for one program moved onto the board, first suppliers invited to the portal.
All active programs on the board, buyers and reviewers trained, weekly risk review started.
PPAP Management Built for Buyers and Reviewers
iFactory gives suppliers, buyers and quality reviewers the same view of every package, so status meetings turn into decisions. Our support team can outline a pilot plan.
What Buyers and Quality Engineers Ask About PPAP
Get Every PPAP to Approved Without the Chase
Element checklists, supplier uploads, reviewer comments and one kanban for every package. Delivered turnkey and live in 6 to 12 weeks.
