Supplier quality context
PPAP sits in the Supplier Quality environment of ESS Hub, next to APQP, supplier complaints and 8D reports.
Supplier QualitySupplier Quality · Automotive
PPAP Supplier Collaboration
ESS Hub includes PPAP capabilities within its Supplier Quality environment, giving buyers and suppliers a structured place to manage PPAP information, documentation and status visibility as part of the wider supplier collaboration process.
Definition
Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) is used in the automotive industry to provide evidence that a supplier understands the customer's requirements and that the defined manufacturing process can consistently produce parts that meet them.
Process
PPAP in the supplier quality process
PPAP is not simply a file-upload process. The objective is to keep structured supplier quality information and its supporting evidence in a traceable buyer–supplier process: what the customer requires, what the supplier provides and what the current status is.
01Customer / BuyerDefines the PPAP requirement
02PPAP requirementStructured information for the supplier
03ESS HubSupplier Quality environment
04SupplierWorks on the requirement in its workspace
05PPAP information & documentationSupplier submission: information and supporting documents
06Review / statusBuyer review · visible status
07Traceable supplier quality recordA structured record of the process
Logical view of the PPAP collaboration processESS Hub in navy
Capabilities
Managing PPAP in ESS Hub
PPAP exists in ESS Hub as part of Supplier Quality. This section is limited to what ESS Hub provides for PPAP supplier collaboration at product level.
PPAP information
Structured PPAP information for the supplier relationship, held in ESS Hub instead of in scattered files.
Structured recordSupporting documentation
PPAP documentation is kept with the PPAP information it belongs to.
PPAP documentationStatus visibility
The current PPAP status is visible to the buyer and to the supplier.
PPAP statusBuyer/supplier collaboration
Buyer and supplier work on the same PPAP information: the supplier provides, the buyer reviews and follows up.
Buyer · supplierTraceability
A traceable record of the PPAP process rather than an e-mail history.
TraceabilityEvidence
PPAP documentation and evidence
In PPAP, documentation is the evidence. A production part approval rests on documents and records that show how the part and its manufacturing process meet the customer's requirements, and the customer reviews that evidence before series deliveries start.
Which elements a submission contains, and which are retained at the supplier, is defined by the customer's requirements and the agreed submission level. This page describes the environment for that exchange, not the content of a specific submission.
ESS Hub provides the PPAP environment within Supplier Quality. It keeps together, as one structured and traceable record:
- PPAP information for the supplier relationship
- supporting documents the supplier provides for the approval
- supplier submissions: what was provided and to which requirement it belongs
- status: where the PPAP stands, visible to both sides
- traceability: the record of the process instead of e-mail threads and shared folders
APQP · PPAP
APQP and PPAP
APQP and PPAP are related but different. APQP covers the broader planning and coordination of product and process quality, while PPAP provides the evidence used to demonstrate readiness for production-part approval.
ESS Hub brings APQP and PPAP into the same Supplier Quality environment so related supplier quality information can remain connected to the wider supplier relationship. APQP Supplier Collaboration describes the planning side; this page covers the production-part approval evidence.
Context
Connected supplier quality
PPAP sits within the Supplier Quality environment of ESS Hub together with APQP, supplier complaints (quality notifications) and 8D reports; supplier scorecards make supplier performance visible. The diagram shows product context, not an automatic process flow.
Supplier Quality
Supplier visibilityStatus and records visible to the buyer and to the supplier
Product context, not a process flowPPAP in navy
Supplier Quality in ESS HubPlatform
Connected to procurement and logistics
PPAP does not stand alone in ESS Hub. The same platform holds the procurement, logistics, quality and finance processes of the same supplier, so supplier quality information exists in the same context as the wider supplier relationship. Each area keeps its own process and records; what they share is the supplier context, the workspaces and one sign-in.
- Supplier
- One supplier record with its users, roles and workspaces across all areas. Supplier Portal
- Procurement
- Sourcing and ordering context: RFQs, purchase orders, forecasts and scheduling agreements. Procurement in ESS Hub
- Logistics
- Operational collaboration: call-offs, ASN, packaging and labels. Logistics in ESS Hub
- Quality
- APQP, PPAP, supplier complaints and 8D reports in the Supplier Quality environment. Supplier Quality in ESS Hub
- Finance
- Supplier invoices and payment status. Invoicing in ESS Hub
- Enterprise systems
- Business documents from these processes are exchanged with SAP and other ERP systems through the integration layer. SAP Integration
Product evidence
PPAP in ESS Hub
Record
Traceability
PPAP information exchanged through e-mail and spreadsheets leaves no single record: what was sent, what the customer asked for in return and what the current status is have to be reconstructed from mailboxes.
In ESS Hub, PPAP information, its supporting documentation and its status are held in the Supplier Quality environment as a structured record that both sides can trace.
Platform-wide, enterprise administrators have an audit trail of actions in the portal, and business records carry their status instead of being reconstructed from mailboxes. ESS Hub keeps the record of the process; it does not by itself constitute production-part approval or regulatory compliance — the content of a submission and the approval decision remain with the customer and the supplier. Infrastructure-level logging and compliance topics are covered in the vendor assessment.
Automotive
PPAP for automotive supplier collaboration
PPAP is an automotive supplier quality method: production-part approval is required before series deliveries, and it is worked out between the customer's quality organisation and the supplier.
- Automotive supplier quality. PPAP is one of the standard supplier quality processes in the automotive supply chain, alongside APQP, complaints handling and 8D.
- Production-part approval. The customer decides on approval based on the evidence the supplier provides, per part and per manufacturing process.
- Buyer/supplier collaboration. In ESS Hub the buyer and the supplier work on the same PPAP information instead of exchanging attachments.
- Supplier documentation. The supplier's PPAP documentation is kept with the PPAP information it belongs to.
- Quality status. The current PPAP status is visible to both sides.
- Traceability. The process leaves a structured record that both sides can trace.
- Connected processes. The same ESS Hub environment covers the procurement and logistics processes of the same suppliers, with business documents connected to SAP and other ERP systems through the integration layer.
- Shipment readiness. Where configured, PPAP status can also be used as an operational readiness condition before ASN / shipment processing; the readiness conditions and status values are defined per implemented customer process.
- Not to be confused with PDS. The packaging data sheet (PDS) is a logistics record that defines how a part is packed; PPAP is production-part approval in supplier quality. Both can be required for shipment readiness in a customer's process, but they are different records in different areas of ESS Hub — see Packaging Data Sheet (PDS).
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is PPAP?
Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) is used in the automotive industry to provide evidence that a supplier understands the customer's requirements and that the defined manufacturing process can consistently produce parts that meet them.
Does ESS Hub support PPAP?
Yes. PPAP capabilities are included in ESS Hub Supplier Quality: buyers and suppliers manage PPAP information, supporting documentation and status visibility in one environment, with a traceable record of the process.
Is PPAP part of ESS Hub Supplier Quality?
Yes. PPAP sits in the Supplier Quality environment of ESS Hub together with APQP, supplier complaints (quality notifications) and 8D reports.
Can suppliers manage PPAP information in ESS Hub?
Yes. The supplier works on the PPAP information in its ESS Hub supplier workspace and provides the supporting documentation there; the buyer reviews and follows up on the enterprise side.
Can PPAP documentation be managed in ESS Hub?
Yes. Supporting PPAP documentation is kept with the PPAP information it belongs to in ESS Hub, instead of being exchanged as e-mail attachments.
Can buyers see PPAP status in ESS Hub?
Yes. The current PPAP status is visible in ESS Hub to the buyer and to the supplier.
How are APQP and PPAP related?
APQP covers the broader planning and coordination of product and process quality; PPAP provides the evidence used to demonstrate readiness for production-part approval. In ESS Hub both are available within the Supplier Quality environment, so the related supplier quality information stays connected. APQP Supplier Collaboration
Is ESS Hub PPAP designed for automotive supplier collaboration?
Yes. ESS Hub is built for automotive and manufacturing supplier collaboration. PPAP runs there alongside the procurement, logistics and quality processes of the same suppliers.
Can PPAP be connected with other supplier processes in ESS Hub?
Yes. PPAP is part of the same ESS Hub supplier collaboration environment as procurement, logistics, quality and finance, so it shares the supplier context with those processes. Business documents from those processes are connected to SAP and other ERP systems through the ESS Hub integration layer.