Nonconforming Steel Lot: Isolation and Written Disposition
Once a result is confirmed outside the order requirement, the larger risk is the material you have not yet traced. Hold every affected unit, then get a written decision from the person the order makes responsible before anything is used, reworked or sent back.
Pin Down the Finding Before Acting on It
This guide starts after a nonconformance is confirmed, so first write down what was confirmed and on what basis. Quote the PO line, the product standard and edition, the drawing revision and the exact limit that was not met. Add the measured or tested value, the method, the test unit or piece identifier, and who confirmed the result and when. Then separate units shown to fail from units held only because they share a heat, coil or pack with them. ZIVO confirms the specification with you before the order and keeps that confirmed version on file, which helps when the requirement wording itself is questioned. If identity, method or edition is still uncertain, settle that first; the certificate guide explains how a report links to the steel it describes.
- RequirementQuote the order clause, standard and edition, drawing revision and the limit not met.
- ResultRecord the value, method, test unit or piece ID, and who confirmed it and when.
- ScopeList units shown to fail apart from units held only because they share an identifier.
Quarantine Every Unit That Shares the Problem
Holding only the piece that was tested leaves the rest of the lot free to be used. Trace the affected heat, lot or coil identifier through every place it could now be: unopened packs in the warehouse, pieces already cut or slit, work in process, material transferred to another site and anything already dispatched to your own client. Count what sits at each location. Move the units to a marked hold area where that is safe, or tag them in place where they cannot be moved, using a hold label that carries the nonconformance record number while the original labels stay attached. Block the identifiers in the stock or production system so nobody can issue them. Never mix held units with released stock, and do not process them to see whether the problem goes away.
Trace
Search stock, work in process, other sites and onward shipments for the identifier.
Mark
Attach a hold label with the record number and leave the original labels in place.
Block
Stop the identifiers being issued, cut or shipped until a written decision exists.
Have a Specification Ready?
Send what you already know, such as grade, finish, size or quantity. Inquiries are answered within 2 hours.
Write the Disposition Record Before Material Moves
No held unit should leave quarantine on a verbal agreement. The written disposition record carries the nonconformance record number, the PO line, the affected identifiers and quantities at each location, the requirement and the confirmed result, the option chosen, and any conditions such as a quantity limit, a restricted use or an expiry. Add the approver's name, role and date, and whether re-inspection is required before release. If a document is corrected or a new report is issued, link it to the original lot and to the earlier version instead of replacing it silently, so the file still shows what was first delivered and what was later decided.
- DecisionOption chosen, its conditions, the approver's name and role, and the date.
- MaterialIdentifiers and quantities at each location the decision covers.
- DocumentsCorrected or new documents linked to the original lot and its earlier versions.
Move Material Only as the Record Allows
Carry out the disposition exactly as written. Units released under a concession should keep a label or record that ties them to it, so later users see its limits. Reworked units need the agreed re-inspection, by the agreed method and selection, before the hold is lifted; a repair that looks right has not yet shown that it meets the requirement. Units going back should leave with their original identifiers, the packing agreed for the return and a packing list tied to the record number. Scrapped units are recorded by identifier and quantity. Close the record only when every held unit has a recorded outcome, and keep the file with the purchase records for as long as your quality system requires.
Concession use
Keep the concession reference with the units and respect its limits.
Rework check
Re-inspect reworked units by the agreed method before lifting the hold.
Return or scrap
Send back or scrap units by identifier and record each outcome.
Request a Disposition From the Supplier in Writing
Quality problems found after delivery are handled by ZIVO from written feedback with photos, followed by a resolution. For a confirmed nonconformance, that feedback works best as a disposition request rather than a complaint alone. Send the PO line, the requirement and the confirmed result with its method, the affected identifiers and the quantities held at each location, photographs of labels and of the condition where relevant, and the option you are asking for together with the person who can approve it on your side. State any date imposed by your own production plan or contract. The resolution depends on the evidence and the terms of the actual order; this guide does not promise a concession, return, refund, retest or repair.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. A concession takes effect only when the person the order makes responsible, often the purchaser together with the design or engineering owner, approves it in writing with its limits.
Only where the contract or product standard permits it. Check the retest rule, how specimens are chosen and who witnesses before agreeing one, and keep the original result on file.
Not without a written decision. Keep it tagged, blocked and apart from released stock; using it early can destroy evidence and bypass the person who must approve.
Tell Us What You Need
Send the product form, grade, finish, thickness, width, length and quantity. Inquiries are answered within 2 hours.
Send a nonconformance disposition request
Share the PO line, failed requirement and confirmed result, held identifiers and quantities by location, photos, the option you are requesting and your approver.
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