Qualification takes the reliability framework covered elsewhere on this hub and turns it into an actual test campaign: real samples, built and stressed under controlled conditions, measured, and formally reported against a target reliability grade before the part is allowed to release.
How many units get stressed under each test, and for how long, is itself a statistical decision. Too few samples and a marginal failure mode goes undetected; too many and qualification burns schedule and cost the program doesn't have. Sample plans are built against the specific grade the part is targeting. An automotive part typically demands a larger, more rigorous plan than a consumer part aimed at a milder environment.
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