Standard Purchase Order Quality Terms and Conditions
1. Quality Management System Requirements
The Supplier shall establish and maintain a Quality Management System (QMS) compliant with AS9100, ISO 9001, or equivalent standards appropriate to the product or service provided. The Supplier shall maintain its QMS certification status and immediately notify MRL of any changes, loss, or suspension of quality certifications.
2. Right of Access
The Supplier shall grant MRL Materials Resources LLC, MRL’s customers (including the Department of War / U.S. Armed Forces and government agencies), regulatory authorities, and certification bodies the right of access to all applicable facilities and to all applicable records involved in the execution of this Purchase Order.
3. Flow-Down Requirements
The Supplier shall flow down all applicable requirements, including key characteristics, critical items, product safety, statutory/regulatory, and customer-specific requirements, to lower-tier suppliers throughout their supply chain.
4. Competency & Personnel Qualification
The Supplier shall ensure that personnel performing work affecting product or service conformity are properly qualified, trained, and competent based on appropriate education, training, skills, or experience.
5. Process, Material, and Organizational Changes
The Supplier shall notify MRL in writing prior to implementing any changes to products, materials, manufacturing processes, equipment, sub-tier suppliers, or manufacturing facility locations. Approval must be obtained from MRL prior to shipping affected products.
6. Control of Nonconforming Output & Notification
Notification: The Supplier must immediately notify MRL upon discovering nonconforming material or processes that may affect previously delivered or currently processing items.
Disposition: Nonconforming material shall not be shipped or processed without explicit, written disposition/approval from MRL Engineering or Quality.
7. Prevention of Counterfeit Parts
The Supplier shall plan, implement, and maintain processes to prevent the use or inclusion of counterfeit or suspect counterfeit parts, materials, raw metal stock, or powders. Raw materials must be purchased directly from Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) or authorized distributors.
8. Record Retention
The Supplier shall retain all records associated with the fulfillment of this order (including inspection, test, raw material certifications, calibration, and traceability records) for a minimum of 10 years unless otherwise specified on the Purchase Order or Technical Data Package (TDP). Records must remain legible and retrievable upon request and be securely destroyed upon expiration.
9. Certificate of Conformance (C of C) & Traceability
Each shipment must include a Certificate of Conformance (C of C) stating that items meet all applicable drawings, specifications, TDPs, and PO requirements. Full traceability (e.g., heat lot, batch number, melt/powder lot, or serialization) must be maintained and documented throughout processing.
10. Foreign Object Debris (FOD) Prevention
The Supplier shall establish and maintain a Foreign Object Debris (FOD) prevention program to protect products from contamination, damage, or foreign objects during manufacturing, inspection, packaging, and shipping.
11. Product Safety, Conformity, and Ethical Behavior
The Supplier shall ensure that its personnel are aware of:
Their contribution to product and service conformity.
Their contribution to product safety.
The importance of ethical behavior and product integrity.
12. Performance Control & Monitoring
MRL continuously monitors supplier performance regarding product conformity (quality) and on-time delivery (OTD). Failure to meet acceptable performance metrics may result in the issuance of a Supplier Corrective Action Report (SCAR) or removal from MRL’s Approved Supplier List (ASL).