Supplier excellence
We want to work with suppliers that consistently get it right: Getting the right product to the right place in the right quantity and with the right quality and at the right total cost.
- All Eaton suppliers must register on the my.eaton.com supplier portal, which gives you access to powerful online tools and resources with the up-to-date information you need to work smarter, make informed decisions, and streamline your transactions with us.
- All suppliers must read and comply with Eaton’s Supplier Excellence Manual. The SEM defines the minimum requirements, processes, and systems for doing business with Eaton.
The following summarizes key quality processes we expect our suppliers to comply with (expand each section to view more).
Expectations of our suppliers
| QMS Registration | We require suppliers be registered with an internationally recognized quality management system, including but not limited to:
See section 4 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
| SSA (Suppliers Site Assessment) | Comprehensive assessments are conducted at supplier site locations to confirm they meet minimum Eaton requirements. Assessments may be conducted by Eaton or supplier personnel. Any corrective actions identified as a result of the assessment must be addressed within the defined period agreed with Eaton. See sections 6, 7 and 8 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
Product realization
| APQP (Advanced Product Quality Planning) | Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) is a structured method of defining and establishing the steps necessary to assure that a product meets expectations, and that the Supplier’s manufacturing processes have the capability to consistently meet these requirements. See sections 6.2 and 7 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
| PPAP (Production Part Approval Process) | Unless otherwise specified, PPAP submissions are Level 3 and submitted via WISPER or email. See sections 6.2 and 7 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
| FAI (First Article Inspection) | First Article Inspection (FAI) is required upon initial shipment of production components, and at any time a change occurs that invalidates the original results See sections 6.2 and 7 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
| SCR (Supplier Change Request) | We require our suppliers to provide advance notification of planned changes so that we can collaborate with you to mitigate any unintended consequences to our internal operations or our end customers. Examples of changes include, but are not limited to:
See sections 6, 7 and 9 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
Performance evaluation
| Supplier Performance Monitoring (focusing on quality metrics) | We measure supplier performance by evaluating, along with other metrics, DPPM (defective parts per millions) and the number of nonconforming incidents. See section 8 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
| WISPER (Worldwide Interactive Supplier Performance Evaluation Resource) | WISPER is Eaton’s online platform and primary method for evaluating and managing direct material suppliers. See sections 6.1.1 and 9.2 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
| Supplier scorecards | Supplier scorecards are part of the way we review supplier performance. We expect our suppliers to maintain a zero defects culture and zero delivery disruptions through execution of continuous improvement plans. See section 8 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
| DMR Fee & COPQ Chargeback (Cost of Poor Quality) | We expect the product you supply matches what we asked for. If we return product to you because of nonconformance, for each incident we will charge you US$500 to cover our administrative costs as well as any additional actual costs incurred in mitigating the problem. See section 9.2 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
Improvement
| IDEAS (Innovation Drives Excellence, Achievement and Savings) | We require our suppliers to initiate and implement cost-reduction and improvement suggestions. We want to collaborate with you to reduce waste and improve quality. And we’re looking for open, forthright dialogue, creativity, innovation and ingenuity in improving how we do business with you. Learn more about the IDEAS program and submit your IDEAS form on the my.eaton.com supplier portal. See section 9.1 of our Supplier Excellence Manual for more. |
