The walk gets skipped or pencil-whipped.
A 30-question sheet doesn't get finished on a busy shift. So it gets rushed, checked “yes” down the column, or not done at all, and nobody can tell which.
Layered process audit software for small and mid-size plants
Every layer walked. Every finding closed.
LPA software built for small and mid-size plants. Loop schedules your L1, L2, and L3 audits, runs them in the browser on any phone, tablet, or computer, and keeps every failed check open with an owner and a due date until it's closed. Published price: $250 per plant per month. Nothing to install, no implementation project.
Start your 30-day free trial
No credit card required.
Explore the demo plant
Look around Northshore Components, a sample plant with fictional data, fully set up with schedules, audits, findings, and dashboards. Click around and try things. Nothing you change is saved, and none of it is a real customer.
$250 per plant per month, or $2,500 per plant per year. Unlimited users and audits. No per-seat fees.
See how it works ↓The problem
Most LPA programs look fine on paper. That's the problem.
Your customer requires layered process audits, so you have them: a binder, a spreadsheet, a stack of signed sheets. But ask what failed last month, who owns it, and whether it's fixed, and the answer takes a day to find.
A “no” on paper goes nowhere.
The supervisor writes down a failed check. The sheet gets filed. The person who could fix it never hears about it.
Findings have no owner and no end date.
Finishing the audit isn't the same as fixing the problem. Without an owner, a due date, and a status, the same question fails again next week and nobody connects the two.
Proving the program works means digging.
When a customer or registrar asks which audits were done, which were missed, and what happened to the findings, someone spends a day pulling sheets together.
How it works
From question bank to closed finding, in four steps.
Build your question bank on the web.
Write the checks that protect your process (“Is the first-piece approval at the station and signed?” “Are gauges labeled and in calibration?”), and add the expected answer, so every auditor knows what “yes” looks like. Give each question a severity and choose which team gets alerted if it fails.
Loop schedules the layers.
L1 audits come due every shift, L2 weekly, and L3 monthly. Each auditor sees only the audits assigned to them, at the layers they're qualified for. Questions rotate by severity, so the high-risk checks come up more often. No question repeats within an audit, which keeps each walk short enough to get done. Loop also shows which resources and areas aren't being covered.
Auditors walk the floor with the phone or tablet they already carry.
Loop runs in the browser, so there's nothing to install. The auditor can record the part number and operator name at the start, answer one question at a time against its expected answer, and take a photo when something's wrong. Auditors need a Wi-Fi or cellular connection while they audit. Native Android and iPhone apps with offline audits are coming soon.
Failures go straight to the people who fix them.
A failed check alerts the team you assigned to that question, in their Loop inbox and by email, and opens a finding with an owner and a due date. The owner moves it from Open to Contained to Closed. Each step requires a note, and that note is stamped onto the finding. Managers see what's done, what's missed, and what keeps failing.
Features
What's in Loop
On the floor (any phone or tablet, in the browser)
- Nothing to install. Auditors open Loop in the browser on the phone or tablet they already carry. It needs a connection while auditing. Native Android and iPhone apps with offline audits are coming soon.
- One question at a time, with the expected answer. Built for a supervisor standing at a press, not sitting at a desk.
- Photo capture. Show what the auditor saw, attached to the answer.
- Part number and operator name. Optionally captured at the start of each audit, so every finding ties back to the job and the person running it.
Scheduling and questions (web)
- Layer scheduling. L1 every shift, L2 weekly, L3 monthly.
- Auditors qualified by layer. Each auditor sees only their assigned audits. A shift lead never gets handed a plant-level review.
- One question, every layer. Share a question across L1, L2, and L3, with its own code at each layer.
- Rotation by severity. Higher-severity questions come up more often. No question repeats within an audit.
- Failure alerts by question. Pick which team gets alerted when each question fails, in their Loop inbox and by email, so a safety miss and a gauge miss go to different people.
- Checklists kept separate. Run the safety walks and area checklists that ask every question every time, without mixing their results into your LPA numbers.
Corrective actions
- A closed loop on every failure. Each finding gets an owner, a due date, and a status: Open, Contained, or Closed.
- Notes required, and stamped. Containment and closure each require a note, and the note stays on the record. Finishing the audit doesn't close the finding. Only the owner does.
Dashboards
- Done vs. missed. See which scheduled audits happened and which didn't.
- Completion by layer. See whether L2 and L3 are keeping up with L1.
- Coverage gaps. See which resources and areas aren't getting audited.
- Fails over time. Track whether your process is getting better or worse.
- Findings by area. See where problems cluster on the floor.
- Recurring issues and question history. Open any question to see every answer and failure it has had, and spot the ones that keep failing after they were “fixed.”
Your brand
- Company logo. Loop carries your logo, so auditors know it's your plant's program.
Layers explained
Three layers, the same standard
A layered process audit checks that the process is being run the way the standard says, at several levels of the plant. Each layer checks the one below it.
L1 The shift
Team leads and supervisors confirm the process is running to standard, right at the station.
L2 The area
Area and department managers walk the same checks to verify L1 is happening for real and that the standards still fit the work.
L3 The plant
Plant leadership confirms the whole system is holding, so problems get fixed at the source instead of one part at a time.
In Loop, one question can sit on every layer, with its own code at each, so you can compare how L1 and L3 answer the same check. You qualify each auditor for the layers they audit, and they see only their own assigned audits.
“Who does it” follows common LPA practice. You decide who audits at each layer.
Pricing
One flat price per plant. Unlimited users and audits.
Priced for small and mid-size plants, and published right here. No quote, no implementation fees. Per-seat pricing makes plants ration logins, and the people who get cut are the supervisors who should be walking. Loop charges one flat rate per plant, however many people audit and however many audits you run.
Monthly
$250per plant / month
Pay month to month. Cancel anytime, and it runs to the end of the month you've paid for.
Annual
$2,500per plant / year
Billed yearly. Save $500.
Everything is included in both plans:
- Unlimited users. No per-seat fees. Add every supervisor, manager, and auditor.
- Unlimited audits across L1, L2, and L3
- Works in the browser on any phone, tablet, or computer (native Android and iPhone apps with offline audits coming soon)
- L1 / L2 / L3 scheduling, auditor qualification by layer, and severity-based rotation
- Expected answers on every question, and per-question history
- Failure alerts by question, in the Loop inbox and by email
- Corrective actions with owner, due date, and Open / Contained / Closed status
- Photo capture
- Separate checklists that stay out of your LPA numbers
- Dashboards: done vs. missed, completion by layer, coverage gaps, fails over time, findings by area, recurring issues
- Your company logo
Start your 30-day free trial
Explore the demo plantNo credit card required.
Pricing is per plant. Each plant is its own subscription.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free trial?
Yes. Every plan starts with a 30-day free trial, and no credit card is required. The 30 days are your evaluation period: build your question bank, add your auditors, and run real walks on your own floor. After 30 days, your account locks unless you choose a plan. Nothing is deleted when it locks. Your data stays saved for a year, so if you subscribe later you pick up where you left off. After that year, it's deleted. We never charge you automatically, because we never had your card. Want to look first? The demo opens Northshore Components, a sample plant with fictional data, already set up.
What devices does it run on, and do auditors need Wi-Fi?
Loop runs in the web browser on any phone, tablet, or computer, so there's nothing to install. That covers audits on the floor, plus scheduling, the question bank, and dashboards. Auditors need a connection (Wi-Fi or cellular) while they audit. Native Android and iPhone apps with offline audits are coming soon.
How much does it cost if 40 people do audits?
The same as if 4 do: $250 per plant per month, or $2,500 per plant per year. Users and audits are unlimited, and there are no per-seat fees.
We have more than one plant. How does pricing work?
Each plant is its own subscription at $250 a month or $2,500 a year. Two plants means two subscriptions. Within each plant, users and audits are unlimited.
Can I cancel?
Yes. A monthly plan can be cancelled anytime. It stays on through the end of the month you've paid for, and nothing more is billed. An annual plan can be cancelled anytime too. It stays on through the end of the year you've paid for and doesn't renew.
Do you give refunds?
Annual plans aren't refundable, including partway through the year. That's why every plan starts with a free 30-day trial, so you can try Loop on your own floor first. Monthly plans can be cancelled anytime.
What happens to our data if we cancel?
Loop stays on until the end of the period you've paid for. After that we keep your data for a year, so if you come back you pick up right where you left off. We'll email your admins about 30 days before anything is deleted.
Can I use the LPA questions we already have?
Yes. You enter your questions into Loop's question bank on the web, with the expected answer for each. You also give each one a severity and an alert team. If a question belongs on more than one layer, you add it once and give it a code for each layer.
What happens when a check fails?
The team you assigned to that question gets an alert in their Loop inbox and by email, and Loop opens a finding with an owner and a due date. The owner records containment and closure. Both require a note, and both are stamped on the record. The finding stays open until it's closed, even after the audit is done.
Does Loop replace our CAPA or 8D system?
No. Loop handles the corrective action for an LPA finding: owner, due date, containment, closure. If a finding needs a full 8D or a formal CAPA, run that in your existing system. Loop's recurring-issues view and question history help you spot which findings need one.
What will I be able to show a customer or registrar?
Which audits were scheduled and done at each layer, which were missed, which areas weren't covered, what failed, and what happened to each finding, with notes. Loop gives you the record. Whether it meets a specific customer's requirements is up to you and your customer.
Get your LPA program off paper and onto the floor.
Try it free for 30 days. Set up your plant, build your question bank, add your auditors, and run your first walks. Then it's one flat price per plant, $250 a month or $2,500 a year, with unlimited users and audits. Monthly plans can be cancelled anytime.
Start your 30-day free trial
No credit card required.
Explore the demo plant
Look around Northshore Components, a sample plant with fictional data.
Already using Loop? Log in