Original Date: 05/01/2000
Revision Date: 01/18/2007

Previously, all material at Northrop Grumman Defensive Systems Division (DSD) was 100% inspected. This approach required significant investment in inspection equipment and labor. Backlog of material awaiting inspection and high failure rates of incoming material were commonplace. In 1996, Northrop Grumman established the Material Acceptance: Dock to Stock. This inspection-free material acceptance system shifted the emphasis for product acceptance from the company to the suppliers.

The automated Material Acceptance: Dock to Stock is integrated with the company’s Supplier Rating System. Dock to Stock provides prioritization of receiving inspection workload, barcoded labels, and standard quality requirements on-line to Receiving Inspection. Commercial and catalog products are no longer inspected or tested. Overhead was reduced by eliminating the inspection of suppliers/part numbers that have excellent historical performance. As of October 1999, Northrop Grumman DSD attained a rate of 75% for all of its material received and processed to stock without inspection.

Cycle time for inspections have been reduced to approximately one hour per lot by focusing on attributes that have been historically problematic or are program critical. Since implementing the Material Acceptance: Dock to Stock, Northrop Grumman DSD has increased its acceptance rate of material by 99%; decreased inspection personnel by 80%; and reduced material backlog from 2,000 lots to less than 25 lots.

For more information see the Point of Contact for this survey.