Record retention (IATF only)
Plain-language summary
A defined retention policy sized to automotive reality: production part approvals, tooling records, design records and purchase orders kept for the production life plus one calendar year — minimum — unless the customer or law says longer.
What the clause is really asking
Records must satisfy statutory, regulatory, organisational AND customer requirements. The floor: PPAP records, tooling maintenance, product/process design records and amendments, POs and contracts — length of active production plus one year, customer/legal requirements may extend.
What auditors look for
Auditors ask for the retention schedule and then request an old record inside the window: PPAP for a part launched years ago, tooling records for an active tool. Cannot produce it = finding, regardless of what the schedule claims.
Typical evidence
Retention schedule listing record types and periods; archive (physical/electronic) with retrieval capability; disposal records.
How to comply — recommendations
One retention table in your document procedure: record type, period, where stored, owner. Archive PPAPs electronically per part number — they must outlive personnel, servers and office moves. Test retrieval annually with one random old record.
Common nonconformities
Retention schedule silent on PPAP/tooling; records destroyed while the part still runs; archive exists but nothing findable inside it.
Related clauses
Builds on ISO 9001 7.5.3
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. This IATF requirement is covered in the Automotive Edition, in the same six blocks as the ISO clause around it.
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