Documented information
Plain-language summary
Keep the documents the standard and your own processes need — created properly, identified, current, available where the work happens, protected, and with records that cannot quietly change.
What the clause is really asking
Three parts: maintain what the standard requires plus what YOUR system needs (no minimum binder count); create and update with identification, format and review/approval; control so documents are available and suitable where needed, protected from loss and unintended alteration, with external documents identified and obsolete versions dealt with. Records (retained documented information) get protection and retention rules.
What auditors look for
Auditors test at the point of use: the instruction at the machine against the master — same revision? Obsolete forms still circulating? Who approved this procedure and when last reviewed? For records: legible, retrievable, retention defined, protected from amendment.
Typical evidence
Master document register; controlled copies at workstations; approval/revision records; external document register; records retention schedule; backup arrangements.
How to comply — recommendations
Go digital-first even simply: master PDFs in one controlled folder, printed copies stamped or dated as uncontrolled. One register, one owner, a yearly purge walk for zombie documents on notice boards and toolboxes.
Common nonconformities
Old revisions at workstations; forms photocopied for years outside control; no retention schedule; shared-drive chaos where anyone can edit the 'master'.
Related clauses
IATF 16949: extended by 7.5.1.1, 7.5.3.2.1, 7.5.3.2.2; ISO 14001/45001 7.5
In the book
Chapter 7 — Support — People, Kit and the Truth About Documents treats this clause family in full: what it is really asking, what auditors look for, the evidence that satisfies, how to make it work on a real floor, and where companies stumble.
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Qlause provides interpretive guidance only and is not a substitute for the standard. Refer to your licensed copy of the relevant standard for the authoritative text.