A good handoff leaves nothing to guess

After a handoff, the receiving team can say which design reference is current, what changed since they last looked, which questions are still open, and who owns the next step. If any of those four is unclear, the handoff is not finished.

The owner of this page is Manufacturing Operations and Quality. If a step here does not match how your plant works, tell the owning team so the page can be corrected rather than working around it.

Run a handoff in five steps

  1. 1

    Prepare the reference set

    Confirm the drawing, BOM and work-instruction revisions that apply, and note what changed since the last handoff.

  2. 2

    Name the receiving roles

    List the production, quality and sourcing roles at each receiving plant, plus a backup role for each shift.

  3. 3

    Walk through the changes

    Hold a short working session on the changed features only. Engineering explains the intent; receiving roles say what it means for their line.

  4. 4

    Record questions and owners

    Write each open question as its own line with an owner role and a status of open, assigned or answered.

  5. 5

    Agree the next coordination point

    Name the forum where the open items will be revisited, and who posts the update if an answer changes.

Worked example: Atlas bracket B-214, Rev C

Fictional example of a handoff record. It shows how a question is routed, not how it is resolved.

What engineering explained

Rev C moves two mounting-hole locations on the Atlas motor bracket to clear a redesigned heat sink. Engineering shared the revision letter and the changed dimensions with the receiving Plant 2 line.

  • Reference: bracket B-214, Rev C, replacing Rev B.
  • Change scope: two hole locations; material and finish unchanged.

What production raised

The Plant 2 production engineer asked whether the existing drilling fixture can still locate the part with the new hole positions.

  • Question recorded as: does the current fixture locate Rev C parts without modification?
  • Status: assigned to the Plant 2 tooling role.

What happens next

The tooling role reviews the fixture against the Rev C drawing and reports back. Nothing is approved by this record; it only makes the question visible and owned.

  • Next coordination point: the pre-build review for trial build 2.
  • If the answer needs a design change, engineering is looped in through a new handoff entry.