Overview
FAR Subpart 46.1 establishes the foundational policies, definitions, and responsibilities governing quality assurance for government acquisitions. It ensures that the government receives supplies and services that meet contract specifications by defining the roles of contracting offices, administration offices, and contractors in the inspection and acceptance process.
Key Rules
- Quality Assurance (QA) Requirement: Agencies must include inspection and quality requirements in all contracts to protect the Government’s interest. Generally, QA must be performed by or under the direction of Government personnel before acceptance.
- Strict Nonconformance Policy: The Government is generally required to reject supplies or services that do not meet contract requirements, though "conditional acceptance" is permitted if the contractor agrees to correct deficiencies by a specific date.
- Classification of Defects: Nonconformances are categorized into three levels:
- Critical: Likely to result in hazardous conditions or prevent performance of a vital mission.
- Major: Likely to result in failure or materially reduce usability.
- Minor: Unlikely to materially reduce usability or has little bearing on operation.
- Commercial Products: For commercial acquisitions, the Government should rely on the contractor's existing quality system rather than imposing unique government inspection requirements, unless in-process inspection is a customary market practice.
- Counterfeit Prevention: The subpart provides rigorous definitions for "counterfeit" and "suspect counterfeit" items to help identify and mitigate the risks of unauthorized or misrepresented parts entering the supply chain.
Responsibilities
Contracting Office
- Obtains technical specifications and inspection requirements from the relevant technical activity.
- Includes appropriate quality control clauses in solicitations and contracts.
- Determines the significance of nonconformances when considering whether to accept or reject items.
Contract Administration Office (CAO)
- Develops and executes QA procedures based on the contracting office's direction.
- Maintains detailed performance records, including the number of observations and types of defects found.
- Reports design or technical defects back to the contracting office and recommends cost-saving improvements.
Contractor
- Primary Responsibility: The contractor is responsible for controlling quality and may only tender items to the Government that conform to all contract requirements.
- Sub-tier Management: Contractors must ensure their vendors and suppliers maintain acceptable quality control systems.
- Documentation: Must maintain and provide substantiating evidence of inspections and tests when required by the contract.
- Operations: Responsible for performing all inspections and tests except those specifically reserved for the Government.
Practical Implications
- Due Diligence on Subcontractors: Prime contractors cannot blame "bad parts" on a subcontractor; under FAR 46.105, the Prime is explicitly responsible for the quality of all raw materials and components provided by their supply chain.
- Commercial vs. Non-Commercial: In commercial contracts (FAR Part 12), contractors have more autonomy over their quality systems, whereas in complex defense or space contracts, the Government may exercise its right to perform much more intrusive in-process inspections.
- Risk Mitigation for "Critical Items": If a product is designated as a "Critical Item," the threshold for acceptance is near zero. Any "Critical Nonconformance" identified during inspection will almost certainly lead to immediate rejection and potentially a "Cure Notice" or "Show Cause" letter, as these defects threaten safety or mission success.
- Audit Trail Requirements: Contractors must treat quality records as formal contract documents. In the event of a product failure or legal dispute, the "substantiating evidence" mentioned in 46.105(a)(4) becomes the primary defense for the contractor.