Layered Process Audits (LPA): Digitize With Audit Software and Checklists

Scheduled reviews and audits are not always enough to ensure consistent quality at all levels of the organization. As a result, many manufacturers have introduced Layered Process Audits (LPA) to strengthen their quality management and verify that the standard process is consistently followed on the factory floor.

Many organizations use LPA software for layered process audits to minimize the admin burden for everyone.

Layered Process Audit Software & App: Streamlining LPAs With a Digital Tool

In many cases, the layered audit process happens with various paper checklists filled in by different personnel, many times per day or week. This means the Cost of Quality and quality appraisal costs can quickly escalate.

With this in mind, many plants have implemented LPA software to digitize their layered process audits to cut the paperwork and administrative tasks. 

The good news? There is no need for major IT projects or process changes: an app like GoAudits is user-friendly, easily available on everyone’s phone or tablet, works offline, and can be swiftly rolled out to all locations and personnel within days.

Here are some of the key advantages of digitizing layered audits on the plant floor with layered audit software:

1. Documentation: The user can take a photo and attach it to document the non-conformance. Additional annotations and comments can be added as required.
2. Visibility: Any issues logged are immediately visible to management or the right team members.
3. Scheduling & Compliance: You can set reminders and notifications to ensure your team doesn’t miss out on daily checks.
4. Analysis: See trends, how often a certain issue reoccurs, how frequently the audits take place, and more.
5. Accountability: Assign corrective actions to the right team (or vendors) and track resolution. Receive alerts and set up escalations in case of delays or recurring non-conformances.
6. Efficiencies: Save paper and your team’s time. All the information can be easily captured on a mobile device – no need to move data from paper to emails or spreadsheets.
7. Standardization: Use standard checklists in all locations, and easily update them anytime, on everyone’s device.

LPA Meaning: What is a Layered Process Audit?

Layered process audits (LPAs) are a type of audit that focuses on observing and validating how products are made, rather than inspecting the finished products. 

The primary benefit of an LPA check is that it allows process engineers to identify problems as well as pinpoint their root causes. Additionally, it ensures compliance and helps in enhancing performance over time.

Who Conducts LPA Audits?

LPAs involve not only the working level team members (e.g., team leader or shift supervisor) and internal auditors, but also department managers and ultimately the executive management. This demonstrates that compliance is everyone’s responsibility. 

Manufacturing audit checklists are an integral part of LPA audits as they are used by different “layers,” or management levels, and production personnel to perform quick and frequent audits.

Why Conduct Layered Audits: Importance & Benefits 

Largely, a layered process audit helps management teams continuously improve and strengthen their quality control plan: identifying recurring issues, correcting them right at the source, and standardizing processes to eliminate non-conformances.

An effective layered process audit will help you:

• increase product uniformity
• reduce wastage, rework, and scrap materials
• promote communication between working-level teams and management
• establish a roadmap for continuous improvement

LPA and the CQI-8 Guideline

While LPAs benefit any manufacturer, the structure and best practices are largely defined by the Automotive Industry Action Group’s (AIAG) CQI-8 Layered Process Audit Guideline. Understanding CQI-8 principles ensures your program is robust:

• Closed-Loop Corrective Action: A core CQI-8 principle is that every non-conformance (a “No” answer) must trigger a documented and verified corrective action. This process must ensure the root cause is addressed, not just the symptom.
• Frequent Verification: CQI-8 emphasizes that checks are more frequent closer to the shop floor. This high frequency is key to catching process drift before it results in a product defect.
• Compliance is Not the Goal: The primary purpose of CQI-8 is to drive continuous improvement, not merely compliance. The LPA data collected should be used by managers to identify systemic training or process standardization opportunities.

Layered Process Audit Procedure: How to Conduct Layered Process Audits?

Layered audits help process engineers ensure quality and efficiency in their organization. Here’s a step-by-step guide to conducting an LPA process audit:

Step 1: Define Objectives and Scope

Clearly define what you want to achieve with LPAs. Is it improving a specific process, reducing errors, or enhancing compliance? Determine which areas or processes will be audited based on risk and importance.

Step 2: Assemble Cross-Functional Teams

Define workflow and involve employees from different levels – frontline, supervisors, and management to conduct audits at all levels of the operations.

Step 3: Choose the Right LPA Process Auditor App

Look for features like customizable checklists, scheduling audits, efficient reporting, real-time collection, and defining workflow.

Step 4: Develop Layered Audit Checklists in Digital Format

The effectiveness of your LPA program hinges on the quality of your checklist questions. To drive results, LPA audit questions must be simple, factual, and based on process risk. Follow these guidelines:

• Focus on Process Inputs, Not Product: An LPA should verify a required step was taken, not inspect a finished product.
  • ❌ Bad Question: “Is the final product free of defects?”
  • ✅ Good Question: “Was the torque tool calibrated at the start of the shift?”
• Keep it Quick & Objective: Questions must be answerable with a simple “Yes,” “No,” or “N/A” within 10–15 seconds. Any question requiring complex calculation or data retrieval should be omitted.
• Tie Back to FMEA: Questions must target high-risk steps identified during your Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) or detailed in the Control Plan. If a control is critical for safety or quality, it needs an LPA check.

Paper checklists can be cumbersome and prone to errors. Consider using an LPA app like GoAudits to create digital factory audit checklists. It offers features like pre-built templates, easy customization, and the ability to attach photos or notes. Also, you can easily update the checklists to ensure they remain relevant.

Step 5: Layered Process Audit Training

Successful LPA procedure implementation is 80% cultural. To avoid the program devolving into a dreaded “check-box exercise” (or “pencil whipping”), focus on these three behavioral pillars:

1. Eliminate the Blame Game: Train auditors and operators that the LPA is a “process check, not a person check.” When a non-conformance is found, the audit should focus on why the process failed, not who made the mistake.
2. Ensure Management Visibility: When Layer 2 and Layer 3 managers consistently conduct their audits, it shows the frontline team that quality is a business priority, driving buy-in and accountability across the organization.
3. Prevent Pencil Whipping: Digital tools like GoAudits are critical here. Utilize features such as:
   • Photo Evidence: Require a photo attachment for non-conformances.
   • GPS/Time Stamps: Verify the auditor was physically at the correct location at the scheduled time.
   • Checklist Randomization: Randomly rotate the order of questions to prevent auditors from completing checks from memory.

Step 6: Conduct Audits

Schedule daily, weekly, and monthly or quarterly audits. Equip auditors with digital checklists and require them to observe processes, verify adherence, and document deviations. Use a layered process audit platform like GoAudits to access checklists on your mobile device, even offline in remote factory locations.

Step 7: Reporting

Analyze audit data to identify trends and recurring issues. Generate reports that include findings, propose corrective actions, and track progress. Use GoAudits to assign corrective actions and send reports to external parties, like contractors or vendors, with no extra charges.

Free Layered Process Audit Checklist Template Form

Here’s our free LPA audit checklist template that you can use to conduct your next LPA audit:

Either use the layered audit check sheet as is or customize it to include more layered process audit questions. Once configured, let your team use it to complete the audit through the GoAudits mobile app and generate an instant LPA audit report, which can be shared immediately with all the stakeholders.

Layered Process Audit Checklists & More

Other audit areas typically include daily, weekly, or monthly checks. We offer a library with 100s of checklist templates for different types of audits.

• Production Quality Control Checklist for Manufacturing
• Monthly Manufacturing Risk Assessment Checklist
• Pre-Start Safety Review (PSSR) Checklist
• Manufacturing Process Audit Checklist
• ISO 9001 Self-Assessment Checklist
• Process Safety Management Audit
• Industrial Housekeeping Checklist
• Contract Permit to Work Checklist
• Manufacturing Audit Checklist
• General Gemba Walk Checklist
• Safety Walkthrough Checklist
• Cold Work Permit Template
• Hot Work Permit Checklist
• GMP Inspection Checklist
• Process Audit Template
• ISO 13485 Checklist
• 5S Audit Template
• 6S Audit Checklist
• New Miss Log

What is Audited During an LPA Audit?

The audit commences with an in-depth look at the work instructions for each production layer. After this initial assessment, the audit team evaluates the effectiveness of each layer. Furthermore, LPA audits also encompass:

1. Talking to staff involved in production.
2. Observing actual processes in action.
3. Validating the correctness of records and paperwork.
4. Checking the quality management systems.
5. Scrutinizing inventory management and monitoring methods.
6. Ensuring compliance with applicable regulations or standard manufacturing SOPS.

Layered Process Audit Schedule and Frequency

The frequency of LPA checks depends on the hierarchical level of personnel conducting the audits. A typical LPA audit plan includes 3 layers that total up to a relatively high number of regularly scheduled audits:

• Layer 1: Daily – supervisors or team leads who conduct audits at every shift.
• Layer 2: Weekly – middle management who performs weekly or bi-weekly audits.
• Layer 3: Monthly or Quarterly – plant managers or upper management/executives.

Layered Process Audit (LPA) Example: Efficient Daily Quality Assurance on the Plant Floor

Many manufacturers have implemented a layered process audit solution for their layered audits, including daily production line checks, good manufacturing practice checks, plant walk-throughs, and more.

For example, Miniclipper Logistics relied on Excel sheets, fetching them basic results and no real follow-up or resulting action plans. Also, the team could perform audits only once every few months.

After switching to GoAudits, the audit responsiveness went from 65% to 97% through self-audits. The auditing time was drastically reduced, enabling the team to perform monthly inspections in more areas.

After trialing GoAudits in tandem with our selected audit system, we found rather quickly that GoAudits provided a far better system in terms of ease-of-use, template design options, layout, flow, functionality, actions, reporting, and excellent customer support.

Steve Blaydon, Business Process Manager, Miniclipper

FAQs