First article inspection report: what the FAI report must prove

A first article inspection report documents that the first part made by a production process meets every requirement on the drawing and specification. It is not a check of one good part; it is evidence that the process, tooling, materials and methods as set up can produce conforming parts. First article inspection is standard in aerospace, defence and automotive supply chains, and customers routinely reject shipments whose FAI report is missing or incomplete.

What a first article inspection report (FAI report) contains

• Part identification: part number, revision, drawing number, and the organisation that made it.
• A record of every design characteristic — each dimension, note and tolerance, usually numbered on a ballooned drawing.
• The measured result for each characteristic, with pass or fail.
• Materials and special processes: certificates of conformity, heat treatment, plating, and the approved sources used.
• Functional test results where the specification requires them.
• The measuring equipment used and its calibration status.
• Sign-off by the inspector and approval by the responsible quality representative.

AS9102 and the three-part structure

In aerospace, AS9102 defines a common format with three forms: part number accountability (what the part is and how it breaks down), product accountability for raw material, special processes and functional testing, and characteristic accountability, where every drawing requirement is listed with its result. Other industries use similar structures under different names, and the automotive equivalent sits within production part approval. Even where no standard is mandated, following this structure makes an FAI report easy for a customer to review.

Balloon every requirement on the drawing, including notes and general tolerances. Most rejected FAI reports fail on an unnumbered note, not on a dimension.

When a new first article inspection is required

1. A new part, or the first production run from a new supplier.
2. A design change that affects form, fit or function — a partial FAI covering the changed characteristics is often accepted.
3. A change of manufacturing location, process, tooling or special process source.
4. A production gap long enough that the customer or your procedure requires re-verification, often two years.
5. A corrective action following a non-conformance that changed the process.

Keeping FAI records manageable

Each first article inspection produces a bundle: the ballooned drawing, measurement data, certificates and approvals. Filed as loose documents, they are hard to find when a customer or auditor asks for the FAI behind a shipment. Ettex Records keeps one record per part and revision with the report, certificates and approval status attached, so "which parts need a new FAI after this change" becomes a filter. Ettex is not dedicated FAI software — there is no automatic ballooning of drawings and no direct capture from coordinate measuring machines — but it holds the evidence and its status reliably.

Common reasons FAI reports are rejected

• Characteristics missing from the report, especially drawing notes.
• Measured values recorded as "OK" instead of actual numbers.
• Material or special process certificates missing or from unapproved sources.
• Wrong drawing revision referenced.
• Calibration of measuring equipment not traceable.

An FAI sits alongside routine controls rather than replacing them: ongoing checks are recorded on a quality control sheet, failures raise a non-conformance report, and supplier certificates are reviewed as part of incoming inspection.