WICHITA, Kan. (KAKE) - A New York Times report republished by Business Insider found that mechanics at Spirit AeroSystems were observed using unusual practices in a recent audit conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration.

FAA auditors saw Spirit mechanics using liquid Dawn soap as a lubricant for fitting a door seal, The New York Times reported. In addition, mechanics at Spirit, which builds the fuselage of Boeing's 737 Max, were observed using a hotel key card to check a door seal, as well as cleaning up using a wet cheesecloth.

The findings were part of a six-week audit documented in a set of FAA presentation slides. The audit found that Boeing had failed 33 of 89 product audits related to 737 Max production, while Spirit failed seven of 13 audits, per the Times.

One Spirit worker who assembles the 737 Max told KAKE News that he didn't want to be identified out of fear of retaliation, but says he wasn't surprised by the poor results.

He said the issues are due to upper management pushing everyone too hard and cutting corners, only caring about the bottom line and getting planes out the door.

He says workers feel like management has completely sucked the life out of them, saying he takes pride in his work, but employees are always so rushed that no one can ever focus on quality.

FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker says these are the types of potential problems the organization is determined to get to the bottom of.

"We've dramatically increased our oversight of the actual production of the aircraft," Whitaker said in a press conference.

In a statement, Spirit said:

“We have received preliminary findings from the FAA’s special audit of 737 production, on which we will work with our customer to address and incorporate lessons identified through the process. Meanwhile, we continue multiple efforts undertaken to improve our safety and quality programs. These improvements focus on human factors and other steps to minimize nonconformities.

We recognize there is more to do, and any findings from the FAA will serve as a guide as we pursue additional opportunities to increase our precision and reduce opportunities for error. In so doing, as we have stated, our goal is zero defects.”