SC QUALITY GUILDControl plan
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What is checked, how, how often and what happens when it fails, for every characteristic that matters, with checks on the reaction plans.
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What the control plan is for
The control plan is how a process keeps the gains a project made. It lists every characteristic that needs watching, and for each one: the specification, how it is measured, how many and how often, the method of control, and the reaction plan when a check fails. In the Control phase it is the document the project hands to the process owner.
Product and process characteristics
A product characteristic is on the part: a diameter, a burr, a leak rate. A process characteristic is a setting that produces it: a press force, a temperature, a tool's condition. Controlling only product characteristics means finding problems after the parts are made. Controlling the process settings that drive them finds problems before. A good plan has both, and the tool notices when every row is a product characteristic.
Special characteristics
Many customers require certain characteristics to be designated as critical or significant, usually those affecting safety, regulatory compliance or fit and function. Those normally need stronger control than a first-piece visual check: statistical process control, a 100% automated check, or error-proofing that makes the defect impossible. The checks above flag special characteristics controlled only by visual or first-piece checks.
The reaction plan is the point
A reaction plan that says "notify the supervisor" tells you who to call and nothing about what happens next. A useful one says what to do with the process (stop, adjust, change the tool), what to do with the parts (quarantine back to the last good check), and how to confirm it is fixed before restarting. The tool flags reaction plans that are missing, or that only name someone to tell.
Phases
In automotive practice a control plan exists at three main phases: prototype, pre-launch and production. The 2024 AIAG Control Plan manual also describes a safe-launch phase. The checks usually tighten at pre-launch and relax, with evidence, in production.
On the Yellow Belt exam
The control plan is topic V.B.1 of the 2022 CSSYB Body of Knowledge, next to control charts (V.B.2) and document control (V.B.3). Expect questions on what a control plan contains and what a reaction plan is for.
Common questions
What is a reaction plan in a control plan?
The reaction plan is the column that says what the operator does when a check fails or a control chart signals: stop, contain the suspect product, correct the process and record it. It has to name a specific action and who takes it; "notify supervisor" on its own is a weak reaction plan.
What should a good reaction plan include?
Containment (what product is suspect, back to the last good check), a correction to the process, who decides on disposition, when to escalate, and where it is recorded. This template checks each row for those parts.
What is the difference between a reaction plan and an OCAP?
The reaction plan is a short entry in the control plan. An out-of-control action plan (OCAP) expands it into a step-by-step flowchart for a specific chart signal. Build one with the OCAP builder.