Free template
First article inspection (FAI) report template
A first article inspection (FAI) is a full inspection of one part from the first production run, checking every characteristic on the drawing before production goes ahead. It proves the process, tooling and materials can make the part as drawn. This template follows the common structure of an FAI report: part information and the reason for the FAI, then a table of every characteristic with its balloon number, nominal, tolerance, measured result, pass or fail and inspection method, then the material and special process certificates, functional tests and sign-off. The Excel version works out the limits from the nominal and tolerances, flags any value outside them as a fail, and gives an overall result. It is a general template; it does not claim to meet any particular FAI standard, so use your customer's format if they specify one.
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
When to use it
When to use a first article inspection report
- For a new part, before the first production run is released.
- After a drawing revision, for the characteristics that changed.
- When the part moves to a new supplier, site, machine or process, or the tooling changes.
- After a long gap in production, or when your customer asks for one.
How to fill it in
- 1
Balloon the drawing
Number every characteristic on a copy of the drawing: dimensions, tolerances, notes, finishes and materials.
- 2
Fill in the part information
Part number, name, revision, drawing number, supplier or process, the order and the serial or lot of the part inspected.
- 3
List each characteristic
One row per balloon: the characteristic, the nominal and the minus and plus tolerance.
- 4
Measure and record
Measure each characteristic and write the actual result, the method or gauge and the gauge ID. Circle pass or fail.
- 5
Check the certificates
List each material and special process with its certificate number and check it against the specification on the drawing.
- 6
Decide and sign
Accept, accept with a deviation, or reject and fix. A reject means a new FAI on a new part after the fix.
A filled-in example
Illustrative, not a benchmarkAn example: an FAI on a new aluminum housing with 42 ballooned characteristics (illustrative).
- Balloon 7: bore diameter 32.000 mm, tolerance −0.000/+0.025. Measured 32.018 on a bore gauge. Pass.
- Balloon 15: flatness 0.05 mm. Measured 0.07 on the CMM. Fail.
- Balloon 31: anodize, clear, to the finish specification on the drawing. Certificate checked against the specification. Pass.
- Result: 41 pass, 1 fail. Rejected: the fixture was clamping the part too hard.
The fixture clamping was changed, a second part was machined and inspected for all 42 characteristics, and that FAI was accepted.
Common mistakes
Skipping characteristics
An FAI covers every characteristic on the drawing, including notes and finishes, not only the dimensions that seem critical.
Measuring with the wrong gauge
The gauge must be able to measure to the tolerance. Record the gauge ID.
Not checking certificates
Material and special process certificates are part of the FAI. Check them against the drawing.
A part from a trial setup
Inspect a part made with the production process, tooling and materials, or the FAI proves nothing.
Download the template
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
Run this template in LeanSuite
In LeanSuite quality checks run as digital checklists with number limits, required photos and signatures, and an out-of-spec answer can raise a tag or start a CAPA automatically.
In the lean glossary
FAQ
First article inspection (FAI) report template: common questions
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