Unlike other systems, QA Documents does not charge per-user.

Everyone knows that the only way for a system to be effective is for it to enable all people of the organization to have access should they need access. There is no temptation to reduce costs by sharing user credentials. Since there is no per-user charge, each person should have their own credentials.

When a person has their own credentials, it makes it easy to identify the person who created or changed a document. It also makes it easier to implement security. Since each user is uniquely identified, it makes it easy to block the access of person who has left the organization to pursue other interests.

Documents can advance or retreat along a defined workflow path. At each stage of the workflow, certain document fields may become required or optional.

As a document transitions through the workflow, email messages can be automatically sent to the next person or people in the workflow making them aware of the pending task.

Alarms are configured to help ensure timely completion of a document. If a document resides at a workflow step for too long of a period of time or a certain date on the document is approaching or past, an alarm email message can be sent.

Alarms support a snooze feature whereby the alarm will reoccur at a future interval if necessary. For example, notify the person and then, if work has not been complete, notify the person again every 7 days.

Alarms support escalation. If the work has not been completed by a certain date, the person’s manager can be automatically emailed making them aware of the issue.

Workflow definitions are configurable. Valid workflow step transitions, who get notified after a transition, and detailed alarms, are all settings that can be reconfigured at any time.

As required by certain governments, an email recipient can opt-out or unsubscribe from future email messages simply by clicking a link that appears at the bottom of each email message.

In order to help ensure smooth progress through the workflow, visual indicators are presented next to each person on the form in order to help prevent the selection of people who do not have an active email address or are not authorized to edit the document.

The text of documents and forms is fully searchable making it easy to find virtually any document.

Many uploaded file types can also be searched. The content of files such as Portable Document Format (PDF) and Microsoft Office 2007, 2010, etc. may also be searchable.

QA Documents goes even further by enabling filtering by specific fields in a form or document metadata. In other words, search for words that appear in a specific field of the document. For example, filter the list of documents to show only those where the Audit Date is between January 1st 2014 and July 31st 2014.

Advanced business analysis is enabled for all topics. Dynamic charts provide a unique statistical view of the content of all documents in the topic. Pie, area, and bar are just a few of the many charts available.

The forms being charted may contain very diverse data. Some may contain kilograms while others are contain pounds. Charting can bring them all together. For example, when charting monetary values, you can choose the currency such as U.S. Dollar or Mexican Peso. Likewise, when charting quantity values, you can choose the unit of measure such as kilograms, pounds, or tons.

When charting forms, they may contain very diverse data. Some may contain kilograms while others are contain pounds. Charting can bring them all together. For example, when charting monetary values, you can choose the currency such as U.S. Dollar or Mexican Peso. Likewise, when charting quantity values, you can choose the unit of measure such as kilograms, pounds, or tons.

You can present the data in the unit of measure that you need.

In this example, the system user is presented with a list of valid choices for an observed defect. The screen label, as well as each of the choices must be translated to ensure accurate interpretation.

• Poor
  • Most systems present using only one language. Misinterpretation can easily occur when this language is not the person's primary language.
    • Observed defect: White rust
• Better
  • Other systems only translate the label leaving your master table value un-translated thus increasing possibility of misinterpretation.
    • Defecto observado: White rust
• Best
  • QA Documents translates both label and master table data in order to help ensure an accurate interpretation by all people.
    • Defecto observado: El óxido blanco

Use Your Terminology

You have control of all master file tables and the supported languages. This enables you to change the terminology to match your organization’s needs. This flexibility greatly increases the ability to communicate effectively, increase productivity, reduce training costs, and ultimately reduce errors.

Certain date and time data is stored using the current Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This ensures that locations around the world are all working from the same world clock. These dates and times are adjusted to the time zone of the system user before they are presented. For example, your business computer system goes down and gets reported at 7:00AM in Boston and is also reported at 10:00 AM in Los Angeles. Both of these events actually occurred at the exact same time.

Master tables contain lists of people, places, and things. You choose the people who are authorized to maintain master table data. Authorized master table editors have quick access to manage the master table content even while they are in the middle of filling out a document. For example, if a new person does not appear in the list of people, simply click and add. Other systems may require you to navigate through a cumbersome menu system to reach the desired master table before being able to add the record. Your master table data can be provided in more than one language to ensure effective communication to all people.

People of certain business roles may be required to have specialized training or certification. These requirements can be a one-time requirement or a recurring requirement. Recurring training or certification must again be completed after an elapsed period of time. A history of successful completion of these events is maintained for each person. Email reminders are automatically sent about those who need to complete training or certification due to their membership in a certain business role.

Custom forms are nicely formatted web pages. The page is designed to resemble a form. A person simply fills in the blanks and then routes the form to the next person. A notification email containing a link to the form is then sent to the next person.

Many forms enable file attachments. Attachments may be photographs, scans, documents, or other files that provide supporting documentation for the respective section of the form. Many attachment file types are also searchable when performing a full text search for a document.

We will work with you to design and create custom forms. Each form can have a custom layout, validation, and advanced workflow that includes notifications and alarms. The cost of a custom form can be paid using a single payment or through a small increase in the monthly subscription fee.

The following generic custom forms have already been created for you and are ready for your use today.

Incident recording is handled from the initial report through closure. Investigate incidents, near-misses, and dangerous areas across your organization. An accident recording form has been created for you and is ready for your use. If this form does not meet your needs, we can create a custom form for you.

This form can be used to track any type of general request such as washing the office windows. This form has a formal workflow and enables anybody in the organization to request that a certain action be performed. The workflow has an approver, a record of the actual action taken, and then a final review to ensure that the action was effective. If this form does not meet your needs, we can create a custom form for you.

Forms for corrective and preventive action recording have been created for you and are ready for your use. Corrective actions may have impacted the customer while internal corrective actions most likely did not impact the customer. A form is provided for each. Both have an advanced workflow to help ensure timely and correct completion of each. If these forms do not meet your needs, we can create a custom form for you.

A form has been provided to guide you through the advance product quality planning process. This form is most often used with automotive customers but it is a best practice to use it with all customers to help ensure that their products can be produced correctly and efficiently. If this form does not meet your needs, we can create a custom form for you.

A form exists to guide you through the production part approval process is provided. This form is most often used with automotive customers but it is a best practice to use it with all customers to help ensure that their products can be produced correctly and efficiently. If this form does not meet your needs, we can create a custom form for you.

The Customer Quality Requirement form enables recording of all critical information pertaining to a customer's part, engineering drawing, stocking unit, etc. Use this form to determine whether the raw materials can be sourced, manufacturing can occur, and that the desired result can be produced while meeting the customer's specification. This form can be used as a detailed template to gather customer requirements and then later used to enter the data into your ERP system. More importantly, it serves as a permanent record as to the original agreed upon requirements in the unlikely event that the ERP system contains inaccurate information that was later determined to be the root cause of a quality issue.

First Article Inspection is an important step the Production Part Approval Process as it provides a formal permanent record and evidence of the ability to accurately produce the customers product.

Failure Mode Effects Analysis is an important step in the production part approval process. Use this form to calculate the likelihood of product or service failure and the adverse effect of such a failure. This form helps rank potential risk and assists in prioritization when addressing those risks.

The Part Submission Warrant summarizes the entire Production Part Approval Process package. This form shows the reason for submission (design change, annual revalidation, etc.) and the level of documents submitted to the customer. If there are any deviations, the supplier should make note on the warrant or inform as to why the Production Part Approval Process cannot be submitted.

To help ensure privacy, certain data is automatically encrypted before it is stored in the database. All email addresses are encrypted as well as the entire content of certain confidential forms such as those used to record an accident.

In addition, the database as a whole is encrypted to help ensure that all backup copies are protected no matter where they are stored.

For additional security, you can also encrypt or password protect your file before storing it in the site.

You have full control of the content of the master tables that are presented as selection lists throughout the system.

In addition, the system behaviors, workflows and notifications are highly configurable.

You can easily organize, classify, and group your documents.

You can control security and access to documents.

You can design your own documents, document templates, and workflows for those documents.

You can request us to create professionally developed forms, each with an advanced workflow.

If offered by your organization, each system user can choose and alternate language for their sessions.

Each user can customize their toolbar to best fit on the device they are using whether it be a phone, tablet or desktop computer.

The system user is also empowered to change their own password, time-zone, name and email address.

Communication directly with the support team is built into QA Documents. Simply press the Help button and then the Request Support button.