• Quality Management

  Basics of Material Review Board (MRB) – When and Why is it Required?

  Posted by Smith Brown on October 25, 2022 at 2:04 pm

  Material Review Board (MRB) – A board consisting of authorized Supplier Quality and Engineering members necessary to review, evaluate and determine the proper disposition of nonconforming material referred to it.

  When and Why is MRB Required?

  It is a system of recorded investigative checks done on failed components or processes to improve quality. This is something which you get from your supplier which is of a suspect quality. The MRB module also increases efficiency and cross-functional communication by enabling collaboration, both internally and externally.

  The Materials Review Board (MRB) usually comprises a cross section of functions that would have been involved in design reviews had design and engineering been well planned and well managed. MRB is also important to minimize wasted space and materials caused by collection of suspect products and subsequent degradation. MRB should have a goal for prompt disposition of suspect material.

  Material Review Board (MRB) system requirements for the control and disposition of nonconforming material at a supplier’s facility. This standard is applicable to the production of contract deliverables, including Development contracts unless stated otherwise in the Purchase Order or Intra-company Work Order (IWO) contract.

  The MRB usually finds itself dealing with product nonconformity caused by all sorts of evidence of poor design management:

  • Over specification (for example, tolerances tighter than required)
  • Lack of manufacturability (for example, designs that cannot be ramped-up to mass production)
  • Customers complaining about a lack of maintainability (for example, designs that resulted in products that are difficult or expensive to maintain)
  • Lack of customer focus (for example, user needs ignored as a design input)

  The MRB will also have to deal with the consequences of inadequate supplier selection criteria or poor application of said criteria. The MRB will make decisions on what to do with nonconforming material or nonconforming product, such as:

  • Use-as-is (a design change)
  • Rework
  • Repair (a design change)
  • Regrade for alternative use
  • Reject or scrap
  • Redesign the product

  The MRB Process is primarily a process for the disposition of Non Conforming Product what has already been discussed by fellow Covers. The MRB process is used to attempt to save non conforming parts from scrap by either rework or concession. Root Cause is a systematic method of determining what exactly caused the non conformity and eliminating that from the manufacturing process using a corrective action that prohibits the nonconformity to occurring again. If you want to move toward Zero defect, the cost of preventive action has to escalate to achieve success in this area. In the end, while you do not have case study data to prove your position, you will save more if you depend on an MRB process to reduce nonconformity and waste.

  MRB Specific Requirements:Design Cognizance

  Supplier Designed Material review authorization is intended for Northrop Grumman AS supplier contracts wherein the products being procured are of supplier design. This does not apply to off-the-shelf products.

  Supplier Authority

  The supplier, after approval, will be authorized to process Minor nonconformances. All nonconformances that are considered to be Major shall be submitted to Northrop Grumman in accordance with QOS 0035 and accompanied by a recommended disposition.

  MRB Members

  The supplier’s procedures shall require approval of each MRB member by Quality Assurance and/or Engineering management. Objective evidence of this approval including the resume or equivalent documented MRB experience/MRB training shall be maintained.

  General Requirements

  Changes to procedures for the identification, control and disposition of nonconforming material and concurred within the Letter of Delegation shall be submitted to Northrop Grumman AS for concurrence.

  The job of the Material Review Board is then to analyze the NCR and they then decide about what they need to do. Here are the options:

  Use As Is: ​

  The first option that the Material Review Board can make is to state that the material or part should continue to be used without any change. The Material Review Board can only apply this disposition after they confirm that the part or material won’t affect the rest of the process in any way.

  Repair Or Rework:

  The second option that the Material Review Board can is to order for the part or material to be repaired so it can be used again. In order to make this decision, the Material Review Board needs to first confirm that the part is able to handle all the stress during the process and that it will be able to comply with all the regulations.

  Scrap: ​

  The last option that the Material Review Board has is to simply discard or scrap the part. Usually, this is the last option that the Material Review Board decides to take since it means that the part or material includes a major flaw that just can’t be reworked or repaired and can’t be used as is without interrupting the process.

  Smith Brown replied 1 year, 6 months ago 1 Member · 0 Replies
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