The CAPA Workflow, Explained

Fixing the broken part is the easy half. The hard half — and the one that actually protects your shop — is figuring out why it broke and changing something so it stops breaking. That's what a CAPA (Corrective and Preventive Action) is for. Where an NCR records *what* went wrong, the CAPA captures *why* it happened, *what you did about it*, and *how you'll keep it from recurring*.

How a CAPA starts

A CAPA can be created automatically from an NCR — which keeps the problem and its investigation linked — or opened on its own. Either way it points back to its source so the full story stays connected and nothing floats free.

Working the workflow

1. 1 Root cause — investigate why the non-conformance really happened. Not 'the weld was bad' but the underlying reason: a procedure gap, a fixture issue, a training miss.
2. 2 Action plan — define the corrective action that addresses the root cause, plus any preventive action that stops it happening elsewhere.
3. 3 Implementation — carry out the plan and record exactly what was done, with evidence where it helps.
4. 4 Verification — confirm the action actually worked before you close it. An unverified CAPA is just a promise.

CAPA types

• Corrective, Preventive, or Both — the standard structured workflow for most issues.
• 8D Report — a guided, eight-discipline, customer-facing format for serious problems. Selecting this swaps in the full D0–D8 workflow (covered in its own article).

What happens next

When a CAPA's corrective action is verified effective, any linked NCR updates to reflect that the corrective action was implemented — so closing the CAPA properly also moves the NCR forward. The finished CAPA becomes part of your permanent quality record, which is exactly what a customer audit or a certification body wants to see: not just that you find problems, but that you close the loop on them.

Common questions

What's the difference between corrective and preventive? Corrective fixes the problem that already occurred. Preventive stops the same problem from occurring elsewhere or in the future. 'Both' covers issues that need each.

Do I have to use AI for root cause? No. AI-assisted root-cause suggestions are available on Business and higher to help you think it through, but they suggest — they don't decide. You own the analysis.