Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
The purpose of this recommendation is to improve the uniform and efficient implementation of the
relevant processes in the automotive industry.
Disclaimer
The VDA recommendations are freely available and are only recommendatory. VDA recommendations
offer cross-company orientation, but do not consider any case-specific parameters. They require the
further interpretation and interpretation of business partners involved in the process.
The VDA Recommendations take into account the standardization level and state of the art prevailing
at the time of publication. Use of the VDA Recommendations does not absolve anyone from
responsibility for his/her own actions, and all users act at their own risk. Liability of VDA and those
involved in the drafting of VDA Recommendations is excluded.
Users are requested to point out deficiencies and outstanding voting subject matters and to
participate in the ongoing standardization process via the VDA.
1. General information
4. Principles of handling
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1. General information
This recommendation contains definitions and best practices for the design and document-
based exchange of customer documents relevant throughout the supply chain.
Input
Input
Client
Client Supplier
Supplier
Tier 1 to n+1
Customer standard: Works standard created by the customer. Customer standards are an
expression of customer documents.
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In order to ensure that all standards are up-to-date, it is recommended, based on DIN 820-4,
to also check the internally developed standards for the state of the art after a maximum of 5
years.
This allows you to store the date of the next inspection as an attribute in the master record of
the document. This gives the possibility to define a corresponding code here, e.g. the
fulfilment of actuality.
The parallel use of different versions of a standard always carries a risk for errors and
increases the effort in the document control. Therefore, the following applies:
If not date is referenced (dynamic reference), the current version at the time of the
contract is applicable.
In the case of a dated reference (fixed reference), the document that bears the
corresponding date of release or issue shall be applied.
If a new version of a referenced document is released, IATF 16949 shall be
applied.
If a new version of a customer document exists, the old version remains valid for
the existing contractual relationship until the relevant change request has been
approved in accordance with the change processes agreed between customer
and supplier.
The entire content of a document must be state of the art (5-year review).
If public and general requirements safeguard customer requirements, no
customer-specific requirements should be created and reference should be made
to compliance with the general requirements (IATF, VDA,…).
The inspection of non-relevant documents causes the supplier avoidable effort for each initial
inspection and for each change. Therefore, the following applies:
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• It is recommended to use PDF/A according to ISO 19005, the global standard for
long-term archiving of documents, for document exchange. Document protection
should be based solely on content changes (for example, stamping of the document
status should be possible).
• PDF documents must not be protected with the Digital Rights Management
Mechanism (DRM) (e.g. for using text modules in the context of requirements
engineering).
• It is recommended to provide documents and meta data in machine-readable formats,
e.g. ReqIF, xml. This can significantly reduce the processing effort for the supplier.
• The structure in the customer documents (template and text format) should be
constant and stable. A document must not be restructured for adjustments. The
numbering and headings of the chapters should be kept constant across all versions
of a document.
• Changes to formulations that are not relevant in terms of content should be avoided.
• Customer documents should bear a uniform copyright notice according to ISO 16016.
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The objective of the division and classification is to focus on the essential contents and the
resulting requirements and tasks.
Splitting/Classifying of
client
documents
Agreed deviations, e.g. in the form of a side letter, should be stored and accessible in the
supplier and customer systems.
Here the recommendation is, to complete a content check within 10 working days after
receipt (similar to IATF 16949) by the supplier.
Agreed deviations, e.g. in the form of a side letter, should be stored and accessible in the
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supplier and customer systems.
This category includes all applicable national and international regulations (e.g. DIN standards,
ISO standards, IATF,...).
Adjustments to comprehensive requirements represent the state of the art. Here, the
transitional periods specified by the public lawmakers should be observed.
4 Principles of handling
The objective of this section is to clearly define basic rules to enable uniform and efficient
handling of customer documents. In principle, communication only takes place in a direct
customer-supplier relationship. The customer should name appropriate contact persons for
this purpose.
For product liability reasons, the documents used by all parties along the supply chain must be
archived in accordance with applicable law.
Push principle
In this case, the customer actively notifies his supplier of new or changed documents.
Pull principle
Here the responsibility for obtaining information about new or changed documents lies with the
supplier.
It is recommended to minimize the effort along the supply chain via a subscription function in
the customer's supplier portal (if available). This means that the customer who makes a new
version available in his portal automatically notifies the suppliers via the subscription function.
If a subscription function is offered, it must, as far as possible, be used by the supplier.
The subscription system should also inform about follow-up documents (dynamic reference).
As an alternative to a subscription system, a newsletter can also inform you about changed
and new documents.
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4.2 Need-to-Know-Principle
The provision of customer documents or their content in supplier systems requires a secure
assignment of rights in these systems.
Access rights must clearly regulate which person(s) are authorized to use documents or their
contents within the scope of their function(s). Only as many access rights may be assigned as
is necessary to perform the task (need-to-know principle).
The group of persons affected by the need-to-know principle comprises all those involved in
compliance and implementation along the entire supply chain.
Responsibility for the timeliness of data and documents in the suppliers' systems and in
cooperation with sub-suppliers lies with the supplier.
The various tasks and the associated time specifications should be carried out in the same
way as shown in image 3. The resulting tasks are to be rolled out at organizational level
according to image 4.
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no
Complete Actions need to
or partial be implemented
rejection at the supplier?
yes
Write No actions
response Perform action needed
to client
Perform activity
management at the plant/
supplier
Supplier
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According to IATF 16949 it is recommended that the documentation of the QM system should
contain a document showing where in the QM system of the organization customer-specific
requirements are addressed. Figure 5 shows an example of a corresponding recommendation.
IATF
16949:2016
Checklist
Client specific requirements OEM PKW
Complaints management
Special characteristics
Process development
Supplier procurement
Product development
Processing capability
Equipment capability
Traceability marking
requalification test
Problem solving
Test planning
Management
QM System
PPF/ PPAP
Production
Laboratory
Evaluation
Archiving
FMEA
Audit
VDA AG CSR During the entire start-up phase, no relocation may take
2017 place. Relocation must be announced 6 months in advance
and requires approval.
VDA AG CSR Initial sample template and document template need to fulfil
2017 all requirements, otherwise deviation permission from the
development is required, before termination of re-sampling.
VDA AG CSR Referred to parts that are not sampled yet as "other
2017 samples" with red sticker
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