Welcome to the IAQG!

The IAQG is proud to release the very first episode of The Quality Horizon. This podcast was developed exclusively for professionals in the aerospace and defense industry with a specific focus on bringing relevant, up-to-date information and educational data to IAQG members.

To kick off this first podcast we sat down with Andy Maher, quality director for BAE Systems Air Sector and current president of the IAQG.

This episode is all about defining what the IAQG does, who its members are, and what the future looks like for this organization.

The IAQG stands for International Aerospace Quality Group. This global organization’s members are made up of three sectors, divisible geographically (the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific). Within these sectors, there are almost 100 large and small organizations that represent both space and defense industries.

In Maher's words the IAQG, “Brings together the industry to be able to harmonize the requirements and therefore we can make sure we’re delivering value and delivering that value efficiently and effectively but making sure that we meet the quality.” 

Maher goes on to talk more about harmonizing and what that means for its members. The IAQG harmonizes the requirements of all individual member companies to publish a single standard. From that single standard or standards, the industry can agree on a mechanism and method that we can assess the supply chain against and assess that quality management system. That creates value because there is a common set of standards, we’re all using.

Listeners will gain a further understanding of the current membership and answer the question of why an individual or company should join the IAQG. There are also initiatives in place to educate younger professionals on the benefits of membership.  

Maher has been involved with the IAQG for eight years. We asked him, why someone should get involved in the IAQG? Maher commented that it’s twofold, as a member company participant you have influence and a voice around standards which helps change networks across the aviation defense and space arena. 

The IAQG is a volunteer organization on the cusp of great things. We wanted to know more about what’s on the horizon for the organization. Maher shared with us that there are new improvements taking place that will enable the IAQG to be more agile. With an enhanced digital thread, the organization will become more predictive and bring products to market faster.

Maher also shared insights into a new product that is ready to be launched that will put the IAQG at the forefront of the aerospace and defense industry.

Tune in to hear about the new and exciting things happening with the IAQG. Or go to IAQG.org to learn more about the organization. 

IAQG sets the standard for quality within the worldwide supply chain within the aviation, space, and defense industry. IAQG currently maintains 26 active standards that establish common/shared tools and methods for quality improvement. To learn more, visit https://iaqg.org.  

Transcript

The Quality Horizon – Welcome to IAQG!

[00:00:00] 

Susan: Good day and welcome to the IAQG Quality Horizons Podcast. I'm your host, Susan Matson, and with me today is Andy Maher, Quality Director for BAE Systems Air Sector and also the President for the IAQG. Welcome, Andy.

Maher: Thanks very much for having me. I'm looking forward to doing the first podcast for the IAQG. 

Susan: That is absolutely correct. This is the first podcast. And for those of us who are listening today and don't really know what the IAQG is, can you give them a little insight? What does it stand for? Why does it exist?

Maher: So, the IAQG is the International Aerospace Quality Group. It exists to harmonize requirements for the industry and make sure that we deliver on time products in full that meet our requirements so that for example, you and me as consumers, when we go on our holidays, we can know that [00:01:00] we're going to fly safely and arrive ready for that earned vacation.

Susan: Safety is a huge factor here. And who is part of this system? Is it individuals? Is it companies? Who is this? 

Maher: So, the IAQG is made up of approximately 70 organizations from large aerospace primes to organizations that conduct maintenance organizations that are within the defense arena and some organizations that are within the Space arena. And really the advantage of having large and small organizations or contributing to the organization is that one day, one organization might be a prime on a program.

Maher: Another day, it might be a partner to some of the other organizations and in some instances, organizations that are members might be a customer [00:02:00] to those organizations. So, it really brings together the industry to be able to harmonize the requirements and therefore we can make sure that we're delivering value and we're delivering that value efficiently and effectively but making sure that we meet the quality.

Susan: So, you said this now twice, harmonize. What do you mean by harmonizing? Was there something that didn't exist before the IAQG? 

Maher: The IAQG harmonizes the requirements from all the individual member companies to be able to publish a single standard from that single standard or standards. The industry doesn't have to send everyone into the supply chain because we've agreed a mechanism and a method that we can assess the supply chain against and assess that quality management system against..

Maher: So that creates value in terms of each individual organization not going into each supplier. It creates value because there's a common set of standards that we're all meeting. And then beyond that. Beyond the industry control scheme, [00:03:00] we've also introduced additional standards and those standards again harmonize so organizations can conduct it using the same methodologies and techniques.

Maher: We harmonize additional things like root cause analysis, like advanced product quality planning and these types of standards effectively raising the game in the industry in order to make sure that we can consistently deliver zero defects. 

Susan: Consistency sounds really key, huge, also safety, but the thing that I found most interesting is global is the IAQG global?

Maher: It is globally encompasses the globe. So, we have three sectors. We have the European sector, the American sector and the Asia Pacific sector. And within those sectors we span across the majority of countries. From that perspective, it is truly a global scheme that has involvement, not only from those countries [00:04:00] in terms of country groups, but also from the individuals from the organizations and then further from the whole supply chain that feeds into aviation, space and defense.

Susan: And from the members, who are those members? Are they organizations? Are they individuals? 

Maher: So the members for the IAQG, we have three different levels of membership. We have a full membership, and they make up the 27 voting members. Then we have associate members, which are members of the IAQG. The members of the IAQG are made up from industry.

Maher: So, of those 70 plus companies, we have 27 full members and those are the members that vote at the highest level on on our policies, procedures. We then have associate members and these types of memberships may be, if an organization has a joint venture, not wholly owned [00:05:00] and therefore they could become a member an associate member, or it could be maybe some of the smaller organizations that can't contribute as much to the IAQG vision but still want to be involved.

Maher: And then finally we've got some affiliate members in terms of organizations that that may be a division of another organization, but still want to be able to get the visibility or similarly a trade association for a national, national body and therefore they can join and make sure that they're still informed and involved.

Susan: And why should somebody be involved? 

Maher: The honest answer is it's twofold. So not only do they get to be able to influence, so they can have a voice in terms of the standards that we may develop in the future, they can have a voice around when we change or update or enhance our processes and standards.

Maher: [00:06:00] But I think, secondly, more importantly, I think it's about that network across the aviation space and defense arena. So, I use the membership that we have to be able to make sure that I can see my counterparts in other organizations. And make sure I've got that connection and that allows me to, conduct my job more efficiently than if I wasn't part of this group.

Susan: And how long, Andy, have you been involved with the IAQG? 

Maher: I've been in the IAQG approximately eight years now. I started as a sector member within Europe. I led the European sector for a few years, and the last two and a half years I've been the president of the organization. 

Susan: So, you've obviously seen a lot of things happen over the last eight years. Where do you see the IAQG going? 

Maher: So we've talked a lot about, the sort of collective nature so far and that harmonization and the ability to set the standards. If I look into the future and nobody's got [00:07:00] a crystal ball, but if I was to look into that crystal ball and determine where I'd want the organization to be, I want the organization to be more agile.

Maher: So, we're doing a lot of work already, the digital thread within the IAQG, and you'll see and maybe hear some things around the next version of OASIS and a single balloting and publication process that we're moving to. But that digital thread and that ability to be agile will ensure that the IAQG has got a place in the future because we'll have to be more predictive.

Maher: Rather the current approach, or maybe what people may perceive as we could take a long time to get to market. Some of those things that we're doing, we're trying to improve that agility and make sure that we can get our, you know our efforts of the community out to the wider market in the most expedient way.

Susan: And agility has really been a focus [00:08:00] within the last year. A lot of things have started to come to light. Do you want to expand on some of those getting to market faster? 

Maher: I just mentioned a couple of them, and you know it’s to see some of the work coming together in terms of our digital platform. So, we've moved just before the pandemic to Microsoft Teams that allows people to, to communicate and collaborate. And at the time, people may have been saying why do we need this? We've got email and it's okay. But obviously in the pandemic, it paid dividends, tenfold in allowing our community to be able to continue to communicate effectively.

Maher: I think the other thing I'd mention is around the next version of Oasis. So our online aerospace supplier information system. We're moving from a, what I'd class as a, a hardwired architecture to a cloud. And within that cloud, we're providing some more functionality. You know the user interface is clearer and we can click [00:09:00] through the screens easier.

Maher: Yeah. So that's really beneficial. We're also transporting all the information from previous versions in. So we've still got that search functionality. But I think the thing that really pleases me and adds value is the analytics we'll be able to run when we're in this new system. Really focusing on the future in terms of data and being able to run those analytics to improve the organization that we have.

Maher: And I suppose, you know, with that, some of the other things we've been doing is really looking at the way the IAQG does business in its back office to make that as streamlined as possible. So, there'll be advancements with respect to, the financial transactions and how we operate as a business going forward.

Susan: But you're still a volunteer organization and you're operating as a business. You're you're doing so much work, bringing so much value to the industry. [00:10:00] How is that honestly all getting done? What is the infrastructure in terms of committees and people working? How is that all happening? 

Maher: We've got a great collective of people that come together and provide their expertise into these working groups. We traditionally meet twice a year in terms of a formal international group that come together. And in that week we have a series of meetings, arranging from everything with respect to how we control the scheme to, new standards that we think may be applicable in the future.

Maher: And organizations contribute because they see the value in doing so and making that consistent approach across the industry and the various different sub-sectors within the industry. I think the other thing to bring out is as we launch initiatives, we get a call for volunteers through the roster, the member roster.

Maher: So, If your organization's a member [00:11:00] and you're on that roster, you'll see the initiatives that come through. So yeah, really pleased with the work that we've done to digitize that. Only a few years ago, that was a paper file that used to get passed around and people checked to make sure the names were on. And now we're in a, what I'd class as a modern equivalent in terms of being controlled through a database and being able to send emails automatically, et cetera, and all the things that you'd expect to have in this day and age. 

Susan: Oh, that's wonderful. But. I have to say, and I was at, I was there just a little over a month ago, first face-to-face meeting in almost two years right Andy? How did that feel? 

Maher: I commented that all the time with the audience, and it was just so nice to see so many people smiling as they, as they saw people that they hadn't seen for a couple of years. They reconnected. You know as part of this [00:12:00] community, people build friendships over many years as they sit in the, the same teams as each other, et cetera.

Maher: And so, it just felt so good to be able to see people, to be able to interact, to be able to go and have those sidebar moments when people are grabbing a coffee or a lunch and just have that conversation that gets missed in the, the team or the Webex or whatever platform environment. So yeah, really good to see people's faces. Really good to see smiles on people's faces and really really good to see the output of the week where teams felt that they had managed to maximize that contribution while they were face to face. 

Susan: I don't doubt it. I don't doubt it. Andy, if you were to describe the IAQG and all that it does and brings value to the organization , to the industry, and to the general public [00:13:00] worldwide, how would you describe it? What's that one word that you would say? So means the IAQG. 

Maher: I'm not sure I can describe it in one word. I know you're looking for a succinct word, but I think I've mentioned some of them already, so it is a collective. It's definitely about the harmonization. It sets the requirements and produces the standards.

Maher: And I suppose if I was to phrase it, it really is an industry's voice. It's the ability for the industry to be able to say this is the direction we're going and these are the things we want and we can publish as an industry and make sure we get that consistency. 

Susan: That's wonderful. So, as IAQG, you're in your second term, correct?

Maher: That's right, yeah, second, third year. Yeah  

Susan: As some of the biggest accomplishments to date and some of the most exciting works yet to come. I know we talked about this, but if you could rephrase it a little. 

Maher: So I think, [00:14:00]  a lot of people won't see this. In the background, we've done some fantastic work in terms of enabling the business to operate. So, people just take it for granted. So that's a really highlight. I think the digital thread, digital strategies, it may have been known in terms of shifting from individual antiquated platforms. On to new platforms that sets the scene for what we want to do in the future. So that's been really important.

Maher: The ability to get the scheme recognized by the international accreditation forum. So that's just going through the final processes. You'll see more information about that in the near future. That's an important milestone for the IAQG, but I think. Most importantly, when I look forward, I'm really looking forward to that analytic piece, that ability to do digital assurance by the systems and then feed that back into the teams, that [00:15:00] data so that we can make intelligent decisions on how we change the standards and how we add value. To the organization or continue to add value to both the organization that people represent, but also, the industry and the sector at large. 

Susan: And that value, it does include so much human effort and energy. How are you guys, how is the organization bringing in? New people into the industry that early career development.

Maher: Yeah, so really good question and really interesting point. If we look across our own individual organizations, we know that there's a high number of people that are going to retire in the next 10 to 15 years. The industry has a spike of people that will be ready for retirement. So we've got to look at how we bring new talent in and how we bring new individuals in.

Maher: Since we've launched our new website, award winning, when we launched the website, another another good feature to reflect on. We're getting lots of [00:16:00] communications from individuals and other groups that we wouldn't naturally be engaged with, and they want to understand how they get involved.

Maher: So in each of the sectors, pre COVID, we'd launched an early careers piece of work. Those pieces of work have been discussed through the sector meetings recently, and so I'd expect to see a reintroduction of that early careers piece. And what that's trying to do graduate programs or internships is bring a new generation of people into the IAQG so that they can learn understand the processes, learn that knowledge from people that may be looking to retire or exit from the aerospace business in due course. And then we can build, continue to build that momentum and that cadre of people that can continue to carry the IAQG forward. 

Susan: That's wonderful. We always need to be looking forward to the future and it's great to see that is across the board [00:17:00] sectors as well as global any additional comments any thoughts that you'd like to share? I mean this is our first podcast, this is first for many to come. How would you like to acknowledge yet one more thing that the IAQG is doing to share with the industry, all the good that's going on. 

Maher: In summing it up, there's an awful lot of good work that being conducted during the course of individuals days and that's day in, day out. So I would wholeheartedly like to thank all the people that contribute to the organization, because I know that this is often times where they've got other pressures from either their work or their family life. If it was only last week, I was on the phone and it was 10 o'clock in Japan while people were contributing to an executive committee meeting.

Maher: So, we know that it's not a perfect environment, but what I would conclude with, it's a fantastic environment to grow in. It's a fantastic and supportive environment in order to [00:18:00] increase your knowledge base, and it's a really rewarding environment to see, the thoughts and the ideas that maybe you've in you've incubated through the organization finally seed themselves in a requirement or a standard as we go towards publication. So please do keep up the good work. I really do look forward to celebrating some of these successes in the near future. 

Susan: And that’s a great way to end this episode. Thank you to Andy Maher, President of the IAQG. I your host Susan Matson for the IAQG Podcast. Until next time. Stay Safe.