AS9102 Form 2: materials, processes, tests.

What is AS9102 Form 2 for?

AS9102 Form 2 proves what Form 3 can't measure: that the material, the special processes and the functional tests met their specifications. Form 3 proves the part's dimensions. It can't prove that the bar was really 6061-T6, that the anodize met its spec, or that the part passed its test. Form 2 does. It lists every material, special process and functional test the design calls for, and points to the objective evidence for each one. That evidence is usually a certificate of conformance (C of C), the supplier's signed statement that the material or process met the stated spec, or a mill cert (material test report) with the heat's chemistry and mechanical test results.

A reviewer reads Form 2 with the drawing notes open. Every material callout and every process note ("anodize per…", "passivate per…", "pressure test per…") should have a line. Every line should have a cert number. Every cert should say what the line says.

Field numbers follow AS9102 Rev C. Rev B used the same numbers for columns 5–13 and added a signature (14) and date (15) at the bottom. This is a working guide, not the standard. AS9102 is published by SAE International, and your customer's flow-downs decide what goes on their Form 2.

What goes in each column of Form 2?

AS9102 Rev C Form 2 has a four-field header and nine columns, 5 to 13. Fields 1–4 repeat the header from Form 1: part number, part name, serial number and FAIR identifier. Copy them exactly. The rest are one row per item:

Rev B had a signature and date at the bottom of Form 2 (fields 14 and 15). Rev C removed them, along with the one on Form 3. Some customer forms still add a preparer line; if they give you their form, use it.

What counts as a special process on Form 2?

A special process is one whose result you can't fully verify by inspecting the finished part. You can't measure your way to a good heat treat or a good anodize seal after the fact; you rely on a controlled process and its cert. Typical Form 2 items in a machine shop:

• Materials: bar, plate, forgings, castings, extrusions. For a casting or forging bought to a part number, that part number can go in the spec column.
• Chemical processes: anodize, chemical conversion coating (chem film), passivation, plating.
• Heat treat, including stress relief if the drawing calls for it.
• Welding, brazing, bonding.
• Non-destructive testing: penetrant, mag particle, X-ray.
• Functional tests: pressure or leak tests, proof load, push-out, electrical continuity, anything the drawing tells you to test rather than measure.

Ordinary machining, deburring and visual inspection aren't Form 2 items. They show up as characteristics on Form 3. Materials and processes buried in lower-level specs don't need their own line. If your customer defines extra processes as special, follow them.

What does a filled-in AS9102 Form 2 look like?

Here is AS9102 Form 2 for a machined bracket body from 6061-T6 bar per AMS4117. The drawing says anodize per MIL-A-8625, Type II, Class 1 (sulfuric acid anodize, not dyed), with a masked grounding pad chem filmed per MIL-DTL-5541, Type II, Class 3 (no hexavalent chromium; the class for low electrical resistance). Every company, code and certificate number below is invented. The shop is "Ridgeback Machine" and the customer is "Anvil Aero".

Columns 7, 11 and 12 are blank on these lines: no customer code required, and none of them is a functional test.

Two spec traps hide in a callout like this. First, MIL-A-8625 is now issued as MIL-PRF-8625 (Revision F, Amendment 2, 2020), but many drawings still say MIL-A-8625. Record the spec as the drawing calls it and check the processor's cert covers it. Second, older drawings often call 6061 bar to AMS-QQ-A-225/8, which SAE cancelled in December 2010. If your drawing calls a cancelled spec, ask the customer what to buy to and record the answer in column 13.

The bushing in this bracket is pressed in at assembly, so the functional test lives on the assembly's Form 2, not the body's:

If the part were a manifold rather than a bracket, the same pattern holds for a pressure test: the procedure in column 11, the test report with the pressure, hold time and result in column 12.

The stainless version. Make the same bracket in a corrosion-resistant steel and the anodize and chem film lines go away. A passivation line takes their place, to whichever spec the drawing calls. The common ones are AMS2700, which uses Method 1 (nitric acid) and Method 2 (citric acid) with types under them, and ASTM A967, which lists named nitric and citric treatments. Put the method, type or treatment in column 6 if the drawing or PO names one. The material line names the stainless alloy, its condition and its own spec, and the mill cert still needs a heat number.

How do you make each Form 2 line traceable to a cert?

Make each Form 2 line traceable by matching it to a cert that names the same spec, type and class, and that ties to this part through a heat number, lot number or PO. The test a reviewer runs is simple: pick a line, open the cert, and check that the two say the same thing. Build each line so it passes that test.

1. Start from the drawing notes and the PO, not from the certs in the folder. Every material and process callout gets a line. Note which drawing note each line answers.
2. Match the spec exactly. Same spec number, same type, class, grade or temper. If the drawing or PO names a spec revision, the cert must show it.
3. Raw material: heat or lot number on the cert, and the same heat or lot written on your traveler or job record. That's the link from the bar to this serial number.
4. Processor certs: your part number, PO and quantity on the cert, so it can only belong to this lot of parts.
5. Check the processor against the customer's approved list before the parts go out, not when you fill in column 9.
6. Keep the certs with the FAI, or in a place the FAI points to. A cert number nobody can find doesn't count.

Not sure which document proves what? See certificate of conformance vs material cert.

What does customer approval verification mean?

Customer approval verification, column 9, records whether you checked the supplier against your customer's approved-source list. Many aerospace customers only accept special processes from sources they've approved, and primes publish approved-processor lists; Boeing's D1-4426, Approved Process Sources, is the best-known example. Nadcap is the industry accreditation program for special processes, run by the Performance Review Institute. A source with Nadcap accreditation for a process isn't automatically approved by your customer for it. The customer's list decides.

Column 9 is where you say you checked. "Yes" means approval is required and the source is on the list for that process and spec. "No" means approval is required and the source isn't approved, which is a problem to solve before you ship, not a box to fill. "N/A" means the customer doesn't require approval for that item. Keep evidence of the check: a dated printout or screenshot of the list entry is enough for most auditors.

AS9102 Rev C also spells out that the special processor itself can meet the standard either with its own FAI or with a detailed certificate of conformance that documents the characteristics and results. If your anodizer sends a thin cert with no spec, type or class, ask for the detailed one.

Which Form 2 gaps get FAIs rejected?

Form 2 lines get rejected when the cert doesn't match the line, doesn't trace to the part, or comes from a source the customer hasn't approved. The common gaps:

More rejection causes, across all three forms, in why FAI reports get rejected.

What about Form 2 on a partial FAI?

On a partial FAI, Form 2 only needs the lines the change affected. If the change touched a material, a special process or its source, those lines are back in scope. A new heat treat house means a new line with new certs and a fresh approval check, plus the Form 3 characteristics the process can affect. If the change was a hole tolerance and nothing else, Form 2 may not change at all; say so in the comments. More in full vs partial FAI.

AS9102 Form 2 questions

What goes on AS9102 Form 2?

AS9102 Form 2, Product Accountability, lists every raw material, special process and functional test the drawing or purchase order calls for, one line each. Each line gives the specification with its type and class, who supplied it, whether the source is customer approved, and the number of the certificate or test report that proves it.

Is machining or deburring a special process on Form 2?

Normally no. Form 2 is for materials, special processes such as heat treat, plating, anodize, chemical conversion coating, passivation, welding and non-destructive testing, and functional tests. Ordinary machining and deburring are verified through characteristics on Form 3. Your customer can define more processes as special, so check their requirements.

Does Form 2 need a signature in Rev C?

No. AS9102 Rev C removed the signature and date from Form 2, which were fields 14 and 15 in Rev B, and removed the signature from Form 3 as well. The report is signed once, on Form 1, in fields 20 and 22. Some customer-specific forms still add a preparer line, so follow the form your customer gives you.

What does Yes, No or N/A mean in Form 2 column 9?

Column 9 is customer approval verification. Yes means the customer requires an approved source and this supplier is approved for that process and spec. No means approval is required and the source is not approved, which must be resolved before shipping. N/A means the customer does not require an approved source for that item.

What if the drawing doesn't call out a material spec, only an alloy?

List the material as the drawing states it and record the mill certificate that shows the alloy, temper and heat or lot number. If the drawing is ambiguous, or calls a cancelled spec, ask the customer before you buy material, and record their answer in the comments column.

Where software helps

Form 2 is mostly a matching job: drawing notes against certs. Deburr reads the notes when it balloons the drawing, so material and process callouts are in front of you when you build Form 2, and the header carries over from Form 1. It follows the AS9102 Rev C layout and field numbering. It doesn't judge a cert for you; a person still checks each one and signs. Try the first step free with the AI ballooner.

Related: AS9102 Form 1 explained · AS9102 Form 3 explained · First article inspection checklist · DFARS compliant material

Sources

1. AS9102C, Aerospace First Article Inspection Requirement, SAE International
2. AS9102C Form 2 details, Paradygm training
3. AS9102 First Article Inspection Report: Rev B vs Rev C, Net-Inspect
4. AS9102B FAIR form QF 4.1.302, Kaman (shows Rev B Form 2 columns 5–15)
5. AMS-QQ-A-225/8B, aluminum alloy 6061 bar, rod, wire and special shapes (cancelled December 2010), SAE International
6. AMS4117M, 6061-T6 and -T651 rolled or cold-finished bars, rods and wire, SAE International
7. MIL-A-8625F, anodic coatings for aluminum and aluminum alloys, EverySpec
8. Supplier quality requirements, including D1-4426 Approved Process Sources, Boeing Suppliers