Every roll, load and part gets a permanent record.
Quality signs it. Rejects never ship.
PulseMQ builds the record for each unit you make directly from the PLC, gates it behind a first article and calibrated instruments, and lets only Quality release it, by electronic signature. The certificate of conformance comes from the signed record, and every unit traces back to its raw material.
The problem: the evidence lives in five places
In most AS9100 plants the evidence for a single unit is spread across a paper traveler, a material log, a spreadsheet of lab results, a calibration register on one person's laptop, and a PLC trend nobody exported. Each part is kept carefully. Putting them together for one roll or one part takes hours, and it happens at the worst time: during an audit, a customer complaint or a supplier notice.
Paper also cannot enforce anything. A release box can be signed with a lab result outstanding. A gauge can be used a week after its calibration lapsed. A rejected part can end up in a shipment because its status was changed back. Procedures say none of this should happen; the records cannot show that it did not.
What PulseMQ is, and is not. PulseMQ keeps the records and evidence an auditor asks for under AS9100D clauses 7.1.5, 7.5, 8.4, 8.5.1.3, 8.5.2, 8.6 and 8.7. It does not certify a plant or make it compliant: certification is the manufacturer's, granted by its registrar. PulseMQ is qualified on your own line during a pilot.
From released material to a signed certificate
The worked example is a prepreg roll line. The steps are the same for a cure load, a heat-treat batch or a serial-numbered part; see one example line, many applications below.
- Released material in 8.4Material is received into quarantine with supplier, PO and certificate references, tested, and released by a second person: whoever received a lot can never release it. For prepreg and film adhesives, take-out from the freezer and return are recorded, with out-time used and remaining.
- Material bound to the line 8.5.2The operator scans each lot onto its letoff or station. The scan is checked: the lot must be released, in date and within out-time. Consumables that touch the product, such as release paper and poly film, are tracked by lot like any other input.
- A permanent record per unit, built from the PLC 7.5When a roll closes, PulseMQ writes its record automatically: recipe and revision, critical parameters (speed, zone temperatures, tensions) against limits with a verdict, the lots that fed each stretch of the roll including both lots across a splice, the signed-in operator who took the job, and the alarms and stops during the roll. A data-integrity line states whether every source was complete. No limits declared means not evaluated, never a quiet pass.
- First article before production 8.5.1.3AS9102 forms 1 to 3 are filled in on screen and pass or fail is computed from the numbers. The preparer submits; a different Quality user approves by signature. The preparer can never approve. A recipe can require an approved first article for its revision before anything made to it is released.
- Calibrated instruments only 7.1.5An instrument register with a due list. Each calibration records as-found and as-left readings and is approved by a second person. An instrument not in calibration cannot be chosen for a result.
- Lab results on the recordAreal weight, resin content or whatever your specification calls for, each stored with the instrument used and its calibration status at the time of the test.
- Holds and nonconformances 8.7A hold or nonconformance report on the unit, with a two-person disposition by Quality and Engineering acting as the review board.
- Quality release by electronic signature 8.6Only Quality can release, and never the operator, creator or anyone who took over the job. The signature asks for the password, a code from an authenticator app and a reason, and it binds the exact stored version of the record. The release check lists every blocker and refuses. There is no override.
- Rejected units can never ship 8.7A rejection is signed with a reason and is final: no certificate and no later release. The finished goods lot shows each unit as released, rejected or awaiting QA.
- Certificate of conformance from the signed recordGenerated from the signed record, not typed afterwards: unit identity, recipe revision, results, instruments and the person who released it. If the record changes after release, the certificate is refused until it is signed again.
- Traceability and audit trail 8.5.2 7.5Find any unit by its ID, a job number, a material lot, a recipe or a date, and trace it back to raw material. Records cannot be deleted, retention is declared in years, and every action is in a hash-chained audit trail with who, when, and before and after. Export as CSV, JSON and the certificate PDF.
The release check: every blocker, in plain words
When Quality opens a release, the server checks everything below, and checks again at the moment of signing. If any one fails, the reasons are listed and nothing is signed.
A unit is refused when:
- its record is missing, or its alarm and downtime data is partial or unavailable;
- a critical parameter failed, or was not evaluated because no limits were declared;
- a quality hold is open, or was dispositioned rejected or scrapped;
- a lab result is missing, failed or unreviewed, or the recipe has no quality specification;
- a result used an instrument that was not in calibration when used;
- an input lot was over its out-time or shelf life, or its history is unknown;
- a nonconformance report is open;
- the recipe requires a first article and none is approved for this revision;
- the signer is not Quality, is the job's operator or creator, or does not re-authenticate.
Each blocker has an owner and a recorded route to clear it. Read more in who can release a nonconforming roll.
The evidence an AS9100D auditor asks for
This is evidence for your own audit. Whether the plant meets the standard is decided by your registrar.
| Clause | What the plant has to show | Evidence kept in PulseMQ |
|---|---|---|
| 7.1.5 | Instruments used to accept product were in calibration when used. | Instrument register, as-found and as-left readings, second-person approval; results refuse an instrument not in calibration and store its status. |
| 7.5 | Records are identified, controlled, retained and protected. | Unit records nobody can delete, a declared retention period, a hash-chained audit trail. |
| 8.4 | Externally provided material is verified before use. | Quarantine on receipt, supplier and certificate references, release by a second person, out-time and shelf life. |
| 8.5.1.3 | A first article is inspected and approved before production. | AS9102 forms 1 to 3, computed pass/fail, signed approval by someone other than the preparer, a per-revision gate on release. |
| 8.5.2 | Each output is identified and traced to its materials. | A record per unit with its input lots per position, including splices and liners; search by unit, job, lot, recipe or date. |
| 8.6 | Release only after planned checks, by an authorised person. | Signed Quality release behind a check with no override, bound to the exact record version. |
| 8.7 | Nonconforming output is identified, segregated and dispositioned. | Holds, nonconformance reports with a two-person disposition, rejections that are final. |
Not just composites
Our worked example is a prepreg roll line, because the details are concrete. Nothing in the flow is specific to prepreg. What changes from plant to plant is the unit of output and the process data; the record, the signed release and the traceability work the same way.
Prepreg rolls, layup kits, cure loads
A record per roll with recipe revision, zone temperatures and tensions, and every input lot including liners. Layup kits and autoclave or oven cure loads follow the same pattern; for a cure load, cure temperature and pressure are the critical parameters.
Serial-numbered parts or lots
A record per serial number or lot, a first article per part number and revision, and gauges and CMMs from the calibration register.
Heat treatment, plating, NDT
A record per furnace or bath load with its process data and results, and a signed release per load.
Serial-numbered assemblies
Each assembly with the lots and serials of every component behind it, inspection results, and a signed release.
What counts as one unit, which signals are recorded and which limits apply are set up for your line during the pilot, not assumed out of the box.
Beyond aerospace
The same flow applies to space and defence suppliers. The same records also support the traceability and release evidence asked for in medical device manufacturing (ISO 13485) and automotive (IATF 16949). For the general case of lot genealogy, see batch tracking and traceability in manufacturing.
How it connects
- A small edge gateway beside the line reads the PLC over Allen-Bradley EtherNet/IP or OPC UA. No new controllers are needed.
- If the network drops, the gateway keeps reading, buffers the data and replays it when the connection returns. If a source is still incomplete for a unit, its record says so in the data-integrity line, and that unit cannot be released until it is resolved.
- Where it runs. PulseMQ runs as a hosted cloud service today. An on-premises option for these records is being worked on; if your data has to stay on your site, raise it when we scope the pilot.
- Other systems. ERP and other integrations can be scoped and built during a pilot. Records export as CSV and JSON, certificates as PDF.
More on the gateway and topologies on the deployment page and the platform overview.
Pilot it on one of your lines
We are looking for a small number of AS9100 manufacturers, composites first but also machining, special processes and assembly, to work with us as design partners.
- One line. You pick the line where paperwork or audit preparation costs you the most.
- We connect to your PLC with the edge gateway and set up what counts as one unit, which signals matter and which limits apply.
- We qualify it on your process. Your Quality team signs real releases on your own products, and you judge whether the records stand up to your auditors and customers.
- You shape what comes next. Design partners tell us which reports, integrations and checks matter most on their floor.
Apply as a design partner
Tell us what you make, your unit of output (roll, load, part, assembly), and the PLCs on the line. Choose Engineering Pilot on the contact form.
Further reading
Roll-level traceability for composite and prepreg lines
AS9100D 8.5.2: what a roll record holds, splices and liners.Who can release a nonconforming roll?
AS9100D 8.6 and 8.7: signatures, blockers, separation of duties.First article (AS9102) and calibration (7.1.5)
FAI forms, computed pass/fail, the instrument register.Frequently asked
Is PulseMQ AS9100 certified?
No. AS9100 certification of a plant belongs to the manufacturer and is granted by its registrar. PulseMQ keeps the records and evidence an auditor asks for under clauses 7.1.5, 7.5, 8.4, 8.5.1.3, 8.5.2, 8.6 and 8.7. PulseMQ is qualified on your own line during a pilot.
Does PulseMQ only work for prepreg?
No. Prepreg is our worked example. The same flow applies to layup kits and autoclave cure loads, machined serial parts, special-process loads such as heat treatment, plating and NDT, and assemblies. What counts as one unit, which signals are recorded and which limits apply are set up for your line during the pilot.
What happens if the network drops?
The edge gateway beside the line keeps reading the PLC and buffers the data, then replays it when the connection returns. If any source is still incomplete for a unit, its record states that in a data-integrity line, and a unit with partial data cannot be released until it is resolved.
Can Quality override a blocked release?
No. The release check lists every blocker in plain words and refuses to sign until the list is empty. Each blocker has an owner and a recorded route to resolve it, including a two-person nonconformance disposition.
Does PulseMQ integrate with our ERP?
ERP and other system integrations can be scoped and built during a pilot. Records can be exported as CSV and JSON, and certificates as PDF.