• Death by Risk-Based Approach: The Practical Guide to the ISO 13485:2016 Practical Guide, Part 3

    8 March, 2018 by Michelle Lott, Principal and Founder, Lean RAQA Systems, LLC

    This is the third post in the series, “The Practical Guide to the ISO 13485:2016 Practical Guide” for medical devices. This post explores examples and application provided within Practical Guide for the implementation of a “risk-based approach.”

    Full story

  • Risk-Based Approach as Clear as Mud

    16 January, 2018 by Michelle Lott, Principal and Founder, Lean RAQA Systems

    This is the second post in the series “The Practical Guide to the ISO 13485:2016 Practical Guide.” If you missed the first installment, catch up by reading it here. This post explores how the Practical Guide defines “risk-based approach,” varying terminology, and which systems require it.

    Full story

  • The Migraine Known as the Supplier Audit — and Some Simple Remedies

    23 February, 2017 Ken Christie, COO, VTS Consultants

    The topic of supplier audits can cause severe anxiety and headaches for many biopharma companies. This pain stems from the combination of having to understand the applicable regulations, determine the elements of a supplier audit in terms of criticality, establish the frequency and type of audits to be performed based on this evaluation, and follow-up on any issues found. Sufficient time is needed to prepare for and execute such activities, and time is one thing few of us have enough of. However

    Full story

  • 5 Lessons I Learned from a Successful ISO 9001:2015 Certification Audit

    29 December, 2015 Lillian Erickson, Global Quality Manager, MasterControl Inc.

    The publication of ISO 9001:2015 in September generated much anxiety among companies fearing a bumpy transition to the new and significantly changed international standard. Admittedly, we at MasterControl were not immune to those worries.

    Full story

  • Preparing for ISO 13485:2016 Changes

    17 December, 2015 James Jardine, Marketing Communications, MasterControl

    As 2015 comes to a close, medical device manufacturers throughout the world share one collective concern: how will the ISO 13485:2016 revision compare with other versions of the standard? In a new three-part video series, Walt Murray, MasterControl’s director of Quality and Compliance Consulting (QCC) services, walks through what, why, when and how changes are coming to the standard.

    Full story

  • MFG DAY 2015: U.S. Manufacturing at a Glance

    30 September, 2015 David R. Butcher, Marketing Communications, MasterControl

    In recent years, a swing in public perception has led to widely held misconceptions of United States manufacturing – that modern manufacturing environments are dark, dangerous and antiquated factories designed for low-skilled workers.

    Full story

  • Four Reasons to Automate SOP Management in FDA and ISO Environments

    26 February, 2015 David R. Butcher, Marketing Communications, MasterControl

    To maximize efficiency and safety, successful companies across all industries employ effective standard operating procedures (SOPs). For companies doing business in regulatory environments, effective SOP management is imperative. An electronic SOP management system can dramatically improve SOP management in at least four key areas.

    Full story

  • Navigating the New FDA Draft Guidance on ISO 10993: Biological Evaluation of Medical Devices

    23 December, 2014 Cheryl Wagoner, Principal Consultant/Owner, Wagoner Consulting LLC

    As part of FDA’s efforts to harmonize their requirements with those around the world, it has issued a number of guidance documents to help explain the agency’s position, especially in cases where FDA has some variance with a given international standard.  The current FDA guidance regarding biological evaluation of medical devices,

    Full story

  • Surviving ISO 9001: 2015

    4 November, 2014 Christopher Paris, VP Operations, Oxebridge Quality Resources

    The next revision of ISO 9001 is due in 2015, and the standard is being anticipated with more controversy than any previous edition. The document, now in its Draft International Standard (DIS) stage, is nearly a done deal, with very few changes likely before it progresses to its final release.

    Full story

  • Medical Device Development: Thinking Globally, Acting Locally

    14 August, 2014 by Timothy Blair, Director, Global Business Development, NAMSA and Seth J. Goldenberg, PhD, Senior Principal Scientist, NAMSA

    The global healthcare and healthcare service market will maintain steady growth due in large part to an aging population that is living longer and to improved healthcare services in emerging markets that include China, Brazil, India, Japan, Israel, and South Korea, among others. It is interesting to note that countertrends seem to be developing in the medical device space; for example, hospital utilization of medical devices has slowed significantly, reimbursements continue to tighten, and there was a first-time global decrease (5%) in US premarket approvals (PMAs) in 2012, a trend that continued into 2013. There were also fluctuations in investor healthcare spending across 2012, drops in mergers & acquisitions deal value and deal counts, and a device tax that is adding to the squeeze.

    Full story

  • Are You Ensuring Supplier Quality?

    8 July, 2014 Christine Park, Quality Architech, Christine Park & Associates

    "Everyone cares about quality. Just ask them. However, unless someone actively measures quality performance, you must question the commitment to improvement."

    Full story

  • Be SMART: 5 Critical Factors in CAPA

    4 March, 2014 by Cindy Fazzi, Marketing Communications Specialist, MasterControl Inc.

    It’s not enough to come up with a corrective action for a quality event. It’s critical to have the right action that actually fixes the problem and prevents it from recurring.

    Full story