Layered process auditing (LPA) is a quality management approach increasingly used by manufacturing and service companies alike to address a gap in traditional product-oriented approaches. When properly implemented, layered auditing is the most effective way to ensure that processes consistently follow approved standards, which reduces waste and rework, improves quality, and drives cultural change throughout an organization.

LPA can put organizations on the path to increased profitability, but it’s critical to implement the right systems to keep track of these activities and their results to truly realize the benefits. LPA systems must address three essential elements:

1. Focus audits to address high-risk processes, and adapt to changes. Audits are essentially a series of questions to examine a process. In an LPA system, audits should focus on areas in the manufacturing process where variability, or process changes, represent a high-risk potential for producing defective products.

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