Quality management
APQP, Control Plan and PPAP
Learn the automotive launch discipline from APQP phases to a PPAP submission, with every worked number repeatable.
- Free
- Beginner
- 14 hours
- Self-paced
- Certificate optional
No card, no trial. The course is free for good. Certificate US$23.99, optional.
After this course you can
By the end you will be able to:
- Build a launch timing plan and find its critical path
- Align the process flow, PFMEA and control plan
- Write control plans with sampling and reaction plans
- Choose a PPAP level and list its 18 elements
- Calculate run-at-rate capacity and plan an interim approval
Who it is for, and what you need first
Who it is for
Quality, process, launch and supplier-quality engineers, technicians and students who prepare new parts for automotive customers.
Level: Beginner. Beginner to intermediate. For quality, process, launch and supplier-quality engineers, technicians and students entering automotive manufacturing. No statistics beyond averages is needed; the FMEA, SPC and MSA methods have their own courses and this one shows where they plug in.
What you need
Software: A spreadsheet (Excel or LibreOffice Calc) for the timing plan, control plan, PPAP checklist and the capacity and Ppk calculations. No paid software is needed..
Hardware: None. A drawing and a real or imagined machined or moulded part make the practice more concrete.. What to download, and how.
How this course works
Watch the lessons
Short video lessons, one module at a time, at your own pace.
Read the notes
Open the Reading tab for the written notes and diagrams of the module.
Check yourself
Answer the questions to see what stuck before you move on.
Final assessment
Pass the final once you have been through the modules.
Certificate, if you want oneOptional
Optional, with a page anyone can use to verify it.
What you learn
12 modules in order, at your own pace. 14 hours of video lessons, with written notes and a practice task in each module.
- 1Why APQP exists: the cost of late change and the five phases37m
- 2Planning the programme: team, timing plan, feasibility and gates1h 21m
- 3Voice of the customer, special characteristics and product design45m
- 4Process design: the flow diagram, PFMEA and the chain of documents44m
- 5The Control Plan: purpose, columns and how to fill them27m
- 6Control Plan types, Safe Launch and reaction plans32m
- 7Phase 4: validation, MSA and SPC as PPAP evidence32m
- 8PPAP: the 18 elements and five submission levels58m
Show the other 4 modules
- 9Part submission warrant, appearance approval, significant production run and run at rate37m
- 10When PPAP fails: rejection, interim approval, deviations and change notification29m
- 11Phase 5, supplier APQP and early production containment1h 32m
- 12Final Assessment15m
Software you need
What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.
Nothing to install
A spreadsheet such as Excel, or LibreOffice Calc which is free, is enough for every calculation. Your customer may require its own supplier portal for real submissions.
Show what to download (1 tool)
Optional
Useful, not needed to finish the course.
- 01Free
LibreOffice
The Document Foundation
- Runs on
- Windows 10 or 11, macOS 11 or newer (Intel or Apple silicon), Linux
- Account
- None needed
- Size
- up to 1.5 GB of disk space on Windows
LibreOffice is free, open-source software under the Mozilla Public License 2.0, for any use including business. Calc is its spreadsheet.
Steps
- 1.Open the LibreOffice download page.
- 2.Check the page has picked your operating system, then select Download.
- 3.Run the installer (administrator rights are needed on Windows).
- 4.Start LibreOffice Calc for spreadsheet work.
- 5.Save as .xlsx if you need to share files with Excel users.
- Choose the latest main version unless your organisation asks for the older, more conservative release.
Official download pagelibreoffice.org
Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.
What you practise
Course project, about 14 hours
Launch and PPAP pack for a machined gearbox housing
Act as the launch quality engineer who must take a new machined gearbox housing from award to a PPAP submission. You plan the launch, align the process documents, size the checks, judge the capability evidence and the run at rate, and write the submission pack with a recommendation.
- 4documents in the pack
- 9steps to follow
- 6things to hand in
- 14 hof work, at your pace
- RegisterPPAP element checklist, gearbox housing, Level 3
- PlanControl plan extract and reaction plan for the finish bore
- ReportInitial process study and run at rate summary
- ProcedureSafe Launch and interim containment procedure for the housing
The project is optional practice. The certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
After the course, your next step
Show what you can do, then keep going in the same field.
A certificate you can verify
Finish the modules and pass the final assessment (15 questions, pass mark 60%) and you can add a certificate with a public verification page. One-off, US$23.99 for you. It is not a vendor credential.
Want a free certificate? Do the matching Free internship: 4 weeks, nothing to buy, with a free certificate of completion.
Project work you can show
Weekly briefs and a work record, online. Pick the internship that fits you. Finish the 4 weeks and get a free Internship Completion Certificate, with a QR code anyone can scan to verify it. Training, not employment.
Find an internshipPart of a learning path
Courses in a planned order, so each one builds on the last.
More free courses
Roles that use this skill
- Quality engineer
- Process improvement analyst
- Quality auditor
- Operations manager
These are the kinds of roles where the skill is used. We make no promise of a job or an interview.
Plain notes
- Free: the whole course, the notes, the practice tasks, the final assessment and support from practising engineers.
- Paid, and optional: the course certificate, and the Premium internship (the Free internship costs nothing).
- No job promise: the course teaches a skill. It does not place you in a job.
- Lessons by: Young Business Professionals International, Bhavya Mangla, Excedify , Dhawal Thakkar, THORS eLearning Solutions, LEARN & APPLY : Lean and Six Sigma, We Improve Consulting, Quality Inspection, suppliersplatform, Digital E-Learning, ASK Mechnology, CAD Tutorials For Beginners To Advanced, PMC Videos, Thota Krishna Hema, High Skills. Independent creators; the lessons stream from their own channels. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, practice tasks and assessments.
Young Business Professionals International · Bhavya Mangla · Excedify · Dhawal Thakkar · THORS eLearning Solutions · LEARN & APPLY : Lean and Six Sigma · We Improve Consulting · Quality Inspection · suppliersplatform · Digital E-Learning · ASK Mechnology · CAD Tutorials For Beginners To Advanced · PMC Videos · Thota Krishna Hema · High Skills. If you are one of these creators and want a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@wartens.com.
Why learn with EDWartens
What you get with this course, and what comes after it.
- Free from the first lesson to the final assessment.
- Video lessons with written notes and a project.
- An optional certificate that anyone can verify online.
- Free internships to keep practising afterwards.
Common questions
What is the APQP, Control Plan and PPAP course?
It is a free-to-learn course on the automotive launch discipline. You learn the five APQP phases and gates, how the process flow, PFMEA and control plan fit together, and what a PPAP submission contains. Every worked number comes from data printed in the notes, so you can repeat it in a spreadsheet.
Who is the APQP and PPAP course for?
It is for quality, process, launch and supplier-quality engineers, technicians and students entering automotive manufacturing. You do not need statistics beyond averages. The FMEA, SPC and MSA methods have their own courses and this one shows where they plug in.
Which AIAG manuals and editions does the course follow?
It teaches the ideas in the APQP third edition, the stand-alone Control Plan first edition and the PPAP fourth edition, in its own words. The AIAG pages checked on 1 November 2026 name these as the current editions. No form or table from the manuals is copied, and your customer's own requirements take precedence.
Is this course an AIAG, IATF or customer approval?
No. The course gives you the knowledge used in launch and PPAP work, but its certificate is a verifiable certificate of completion from EDWartens. It is not an AIAG, IATF or customer qualification, and third-party IATF auditors are qualified through IATF-approved bodies.
Do I need special software for the APQP and PPAP course?
No. A spreadsheet such as Excel or LibreOffice Calc is enough for the timing plan, checklists, Ppk and capacity calculations. No paid software is needed. Your customer may require its own portal or forms for real submissions.
How does this course relate to the FMEA and SPC courses?
The FMEA course teaches how to rate risks and choose actions, and the SPC and MSA course teaches control charts, capability and gauge studies. This course takes their outputs and shows where they sit in APQP, the control plan and PPAP. Taking them in any order works.
How long is the course and is it free?
It has about 8.8 hours of video and around 14 hours in total with the notes, worked problems and practice. The modules, notes, practice and the optional project are free to learn. You learn at your own pace.
What certificate does the APQP, Control Plan and PPAP course give?
You get a verifiable certificate of completion once you finish the modules and pass the 15-question final at 60 percent. It carries a unique certificate number, a QR code and a public verification page that shows the course, the modules and the final score.
Start free today
APQP, Control Plan and PPAP, at your own pace. Add the certificate only if you want one.