Supplier Quality Requirements | Multiscale Systems

Document: SQR-001 Revision: A Effective date: July 10, 2026

Contract notice. These requirements apply only when incorporated into a purchase order or other written agreement issued by Multiscale Systems, Inc. or Hybrid CNC Parts. “Buyer” means the entity identified as buyer on the order. “Supplier” includes the order recipient and its applicable sub-tier external providers. The Supplier shall contact Buyer before accepting the order if any requirement is unclear, unavailable, or cannot be met.

Order Scope and Contract Controls

1. Applicability and order of precedence

Requirements marked (Baseline) apply to every order that incorporates this document. Requirements marked (When invoked) apply only when the purchase order, drawing, specification, statement of work, quality-clause code, or other contract document makes them applicable.

If requirements conflict, the Supplier shall stop and obtain written direction from Buyer. Unless Buyer directs otherwise, the following order of precedence applies: (1) applicable law and regulation; (2) Buyer’s customer or government requirements expressly flowed down on the order; (3) the purchase order and its change orders; (4) drawings and specifications identified on the order; (5) this document; and (6) Supplier’s standard terms. Supplier terms that conflict with these requirements do not apply unless Buyer accepts them expressly in writing.

Acceptance of the order, beginning work, or shipment constitutes acceptance of the incorporated requirements. Buyer’s approval, inspection, or source verification does not relieve Supplier of responsibility for conformity.

2. Purchase-order and technical-data review

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Before beginning work, Supplier shall review the order and all referenced technical data and confirm that it can meet the specified requirements, delivery date, documentation, qualifications, and approvals. Supplier shall use only the drawing, model, specification, work instruction, and revision identified by the order. When a revision is not stated or the documents conflict, Supplier shall request written clarification; Supplier shall not select a revision by assumption.

No material, part, process, source, method, software-controlled output, or design substitution is permitted without Buyer’s prior written approval. Supplier shall maintain configuration control and identify the configuration delivered.

Quality System and Personnel

3. Quality management and responsibility

3.1 Quality system

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall maintain controls appropriate to the complexity and risk of the product or service and sufficient to ensure conformity to the order. Supplier remains responsible for all work performed by its sub-tier providers.

3.2 Certified quality system

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

When the order specifies ISO 9001, AS9100, ISO/IEC 17025, Nadcap, or another approval or certification, Supplier shall maintain that approval for the duration of performance and provide objective evidence upon request. Supplier shall notify Buyer promptly of suspension, expiration, withdrawal, major nonconformity affecting the work, or change in certification scope.

4. Personnel competence, awareness, and ethics

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall assign competent personnel and maintain evidence of education, training, skills, experience, and any qualification required by the order or applicable process specification. Personnel performing the work shall be aware of:

their contribution to product and service conformity;
their contribution to product safety, including reporting actual or potential safety concerns; and
the importance of ethical behavior.

Supplier shall comply with applicable laws; avoid bribery, fraud, falsification, conflicts of interest, and unauthorized use or disclosure of information; and ensure that records and certifications are accurate, complete, and not misleading. Suspected falsification or an integrity concern affecting Buyer’s order shall be reported immediately.

Design and Production Controls

5. Design and development

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

Design responsibility exists only when expressly assigned by the order. Supplier shall plan and control design and development; define inputs and outputs; perform competent reviews, verification, and validation; control interfaces and changes; address safety, reliability, manufacturability, obsolescence, and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements; and retain objective evidence. Buyer approval of a design does not transfer design responsibility unless agreed in writing.

6. Special requirements, critical items, and key characteristics

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

Supplier shall identify and control special requirements, critical items, and key characteristics designated in the order or technical data. Controls shall be proportionate to risk and may include process-capability monitoring, control plans, inspection frequency, traceability, mistake-proofing, and documented reaction plans. Supplier shall not change or remove a designated control without prior written approval.

7. Production and process control

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall perform work under controlled conditions using suitable equipment, maintained tooling, current work instructions, defined acceptance criteria, and appropriate in-process and final verification. Supplier shall control production equipment, numerical-control programs, inspection software, and other digital manufacturing data to prevent unintended use or alteration. Work shall be traceable to the personnel or release authority when required by the order.

8. Special processes and approved sources

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

Processes whose output cannot be fully verified by later inspection or test—including, as applicable, welding, brazing, heat treatment, plating, coating, nondestructive testing, chemical processing, and additive-manufacturing processes—shall be validated and periodically revalidated. Supplier shall use qualified personnel, approved procedures, suitable equipment, and required process controls and records.

When Buyer or Buyer’s customer designates an approved source or requires Nadcap or another process approval, Supplier shall use only that source and approval. Use of a designated source does not relieve Supplier of responsibility for conformity.

Inspection, Measurement, and Traceability

9. Inspection, test, and acceptance

9.1 Verification

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall inspect and test as necessary to demonstrate conformity to all requirements before release. Acceptance records shall identify the item or lot, requirement or acceptance criteria, actual result where required, inspection or test method, date, and authorized release person. Supplier shall not rely on Buyer’s receiving inspection as its product-acceptance system.

9.2 Sampling and statistical techniques

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall define an inspection strategy appropriate to product risk and process capability. When sampling or statistical acceptance is used, the plan shall be statistically valid, documented, and consistent with the order and specification. Buyer may require 100% verification or a specified sampling plan for identified characteristics. Sampling shall not be used for a designated critical characteristic unless expressly authorized by the order or approved in writing.

9.3 First article or production process verification

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

When required, Supplier shall perform first article inspection or production process verification in the form and to the standard stated on the order, including AS9102 when expressly specified. A new or partial verification may be required after a lapse in production or a change to design, process, tooling, numerical-control program, manufacturing source, or location that could affect conformity. Buyer acceptance of a first article does not authorize deviations on later production.

9.4 Test specimens

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

Supplier shall provide test specimens, coupons, sample material, or destructive-test articles in the quantity and condition required for design approval, qualification, inspection, verification, investigation, or audit.

10. Monitoring and measuring resources

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Inspection, measuring, and test equipment used for acceptance shall be suitable for the required accuracy and calibrated or verified at defined intervals against standards traceable to SI units through NIST or another recognized national metrology institute, where such standards exist. Calibration records shall identify results, standards used, environmental conditions when relevant, and measurement uncertainty or accuracy sufficient for the intended use.

Supplier shall protect equipment from damage and unauthorized adjustment. If equipment is found out of tolerance, Supplier shall assess and document the validity of prior results, identify affected Buyer product, and notify Buyer promptly when delivered product may be affected.

Calibration-service providers shall supply a certificate identifying the item, as-found and as-left condition where requested, results, traceability, uncertainty when required, standards used, and authorization.

11. Identification, material control, and traceability

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall maintain identification and inspection status throughout processing and delivery and prevent commingling of materials, lots, or configurations. When traceability is required by the order, Supplier shall maintain an unbroken link from delivered items to the original manufacturer or mill, material heat or lot, processing lots, and applicable inspection and test records.

Raw material and purchased components shall conform exactly to the order. Supplier shall not substitute alloy, temper, condition, specification, manufacturer, or source without prior written approval. Material certifications and test reports shall be legible, complete, and traceable to the delivered material; alterations shall be controlled and evident.

12. Certificate of conformity and shipment documentation

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

For raw material, manufactured product, calibration, testing, or processing that affects deliverable conformity, each shipment shall include a certificate of conformity signed or otherwise authenticated by an authorized representative and stating that the delivered products or services conform to the order, unless the order expressly waives it. For catalog commercial items, a manufacturer’s or authorized distributor’s packing documentation may satisfy this requirement when it provides the traceability required by the order. The certificate shall include at least:

Supplier name and address;
Buyer purchase-order number and line item;
part or service identification, revision, quantity, and serial/lot/heat numbers as applicable;
applicable specifications and process certifications, including revision when required;
approved-deviation or nonconformance references, if any; and
name/title or unique identification of the authorized release person and release date.

Supplier shall include all other records required by the order, such as material certifications, test reports, inspection reports, FAI records, calibration certificates, or special-process certificates. Missing or incorrect documentation may cause rejection or payment delay.

Product Integrity and Change Control

13. Counterfeit and suspect item prevention

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall implement controls appropriate to the item and risk to prevent counterfeit or suspect parts and materials. Electrical, electronic, and other high-risk commercial parts shall be purchased from the original manufacturer, an authorized/franchised distributor, or a Buyer-approved source unless Buyer provides written authorization otherwise. Controls shall include traceability, supplier selection, verification of documentation, inspection or test when warranted, quarantine, and reporting.

Supplier shall not deliver a suspect or counterfeit item. Supplier shall immediately quarantine affected items, preserve evidence, notify Buyer, and cooperate with investigation and reporting. Supplier shall flow equivalent prevention controls to applicable sub-tier providers.

14. Preservation, packaging, and foreign-object prevention

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall preserve conformity during processing, storage, handling, and shipment. Packaging shall prevent corrosion, contamination, electrostatic damage, deformation, impact damage, and loss of identification, as applicable. Shelf-life-controlled material shall identify manufacture and expiration dates and shall meet any minimum remaining shelf life stated on the order.

Supplier shall maintain housekeeping and foreign object debris/damage controls appropriate to the product and process. Loose items, chips, abrasive residue, wire, tooling, protective media, and other foreign objects shall be removed before closure and shipment.

15. Nonconforming product and requests for deviation

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall identify, segregate, and control nonconforming outputs to prevent unintended use or delivery. Supplier has no independent material-review authority for Buyer product. “Use as is,” repair, deviation, waiver, or departure from specified requirements requires Buyer’s written approval before shipment. Rework to the original requirement is permitted only when the method does not violate the order or alter fit, form, function, safety, reliability, or regulatory compliance.

A deviation request shall describe the requirement, actual condition, affected quantity and identification, technical assessment, cause, proposed disposition, and corrective action. Buyer approval applies only to the identified items and does not change future requirements.

16. Escape notification and recall

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

If Supplier discovers or suspects that nonconforming, counterfeit, unsafe, or incorrectly documented product has been delivered, Supplier shall notify Buyer within 24 hours of discovery, or sooner when safety or regulatory risk exists. Notice shall identify the purchase order, part and revision, serial/lot/heat numbers, quantities and shipment dates, description of the condition, immediate containment, and potential safety or end-use impact. Supplier shall support containment, traceability, investigation, correction, replacement, and any required customer or regulatory reporting.

17. Change control

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall obtain Buyer’s written approval before changing a Buyer- or customer-approved design, material, source, location, qualified/validated process, special-process parameter, inspection or test method, tooling, numerical-control program, or software when the change could affect conformity, interchangeability, safety, reliability, qualification, or traceability. Other production changes shall be reviewed, verified, validated as appropriate, documented, and controlled by Supplier; Buyer approval is required when the order or applicable specification requires it. Supplier shall notify Buyer promptly of changes in ownership, quality-system certification or approval status, or business condition when the change could affect performance of the order.

Sub-tier Control and Supplier Performance

18. Sub-tier providers and flowdown

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall evaluate and control sub-tier providers according to risk and shall flow down every applicable Buyer, customer, statutory, regulatory, technical, quality, safety, security, record-retention, and right-of-access requirement. Supplier shall ensure sub-tier compliance and remains fully responsible for sub-tier work. Buyer may require approval of a sub-tier source before work begins.

19. Performance monitoring and corrective action

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Buyer may monitor Supplier’s quality/conformity, on-time delivery, documentation accuracy, responsiveness, and service. Results may affect approval status, sourcing decisions, inspection level, or required improvement action. Supplier shall respond to a corrective-action request by the due date stated by Buyer, including containment, root cause, corrective action, effectiveness verification, and objective evidence. If no date is stated, Supplier shall provide containment within two business days and a complete response within ten business days, or obtain an agreed schedule.

20. Right of access and verification

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall provide Buyer, Buyer’s customers, and applicable regulatory authorities reasonable access to applicable facilities, work areas, personnel, documented information, materials, and products at any level of the supply chain for surveillance, audit, inspection, verification, or investigation. Buyer will provide reasonable notice when practicable. Supplier shall provide reasonable assistance without charge. Such access or verification does not relieve Supplier of responsibility for conformity.

Records, Property, and Information Security

21. Records

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall create and retain legible, identifiable, retrievable, and protected records that demonstrate conformity. Unless the order, customer requirement, or applicable law requires a longer period, records shall be retained for at least ten years after final delivery under the order. Records include, as applicable, purchase and sub-tier records, certifications, material and process records, inspection and test results, calibration records, personnel qualifications, nonconformance and corrective-action records, configuration/change records, and FAI or production-process-verification records.

Electronic records and signatures are acceptable when controlled for authenticity, integrity, security, backup, and retrieval. Records shall be supplied to Buyer in English or with an accurate English translation upon request. At the end of the retention period, Supplier shall not destroy records subject to an open investigation, claim, hold, or continuing legal/customer requirement. Other records shall be destroyed securely. When the order expressly requires Buyer approval before disposition, Supplier shall request that approval in writing.

22. Buyer and customer property; confidentiality

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall identify, verify, protect, and safeguard Buyer or customer property, including material, tooling, fixtures, measuring equipment, drawings, models, software, data, and intellectual property. Loss, damage, unauthorized disclosure, or unsuitability shall be reported promptly. Supplier shall use confidential information only to perform the order, disclose it only to personnel and approved sub-tier providers with a need to know and equivalent obligations, and return or securely dispose of it as directed. No publicity, photography, reverse engineering, or use of Buyer’s or its customer’s name or marks is permitted without written approval.

23. Export-controlled information and items

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

When the order or furnished information identifies export-control requirements, Supplier shall comply with all applicable U.S. export-control laws and order-specific restrictions, including restrictions on access by foreign persons, transfer, retransfer, export, temporary import, and storage. Supplier shall not provide controlled information or items to any person, country, or sub-tier provider without the authorization required by law and Buyer’s prior written approval. Supplier shall notify Buyer before any transfer that may require a license or other authorization.

24. Federal Contract Information and Controlled Unclassified Information

APPLIES ONLY WHEN INVOKED BY THE PURCHASE ORDER

This clause applies only when the order states that Federal Contract Information (FCI), Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), or a specified cybersecurity clause applies. Supplier shall meet the safeguarding, incident-reporting, assessment, marking, dissemination, media, system, and flowdown requirements identified in the order before receiving or handling the information. Supplier shall not process, store, or transmit covered information in a system or with a sub-tier provider that does not meet the applicable contract requirements. Supplier shall immediately contact Buyer if it cannot comply or if the information appears incorrectly marked.

Product Safety and Communications

25. Product safety and reporting

BASELINE REQUIREMENT

Supplier shall identify and communicate actual or potential product-safety concerns affecting the order, including hazards introduced by product, process, material, software, counterfeit item, or nonconformance. Supplier shall take immediate containment action within its control and notify Buyer without delay. Supplier shall not conceal or minimize a safety concern because conformity has not yet been conclusively disproved.

26. Communications

Supplier shall direct purchase-order questions, deviation requests, nonconformance and escape notifications, delivery communications, and security or export-control questions to the Buyer contact identified on the applicable purchase order. Communications shall identify the Buyer purchase-order number and affected line item. If the named contact is unavailable and delay could affect product safety, regulatory reporting, containment, or delivery, Supplier shall use the general contact information published on the Buyer website.

Supplemental PO quality-clause codes

Code	Requirement invoked
`Q01`	Certified QMS requirement identified on the purchase order
`Q02`	Supplier design responsibility and design controls
`Q03`	Special requirements / critical items / key characteristics as identified
`Q04`	Special process or approved source identified on the purchase order
`Q05`	First article or production process verification in the standard or format identified on the purchase order
`Q06`	Test specimens or coupons as specified on the purchase order
`Q07`	Source inspection, witness point, or hold point as specified on the purchase order
`Q08`	Customer-designated sub-tier source identified on the purchase order
`Q09`	Export-control classification and handling instructions identified on the purchase order
`Q10`	FCI/CUI/cybersecurity clauses and handling instructions identified on order
`Q11`	Extended record-retention period or approval-before-disposition instructions identified on the purchase order
`Q12`	Buyer-approved sampling plan and applicable characteristics identified on the purchase order

Controlled copy is the revision identified on the purchase order. Printed or downloaded copies are uncontrolled unless separately identified as controlled.