Gaining a Competitive Advantage With ISO 9001:2015
The Center’s training was a tremendous help. I have heard many stories of companies trying to get ISO certified and the task seemed unachievable. The Center broke down the large task of getting DeWitts™ ready for ISO certification into seven easy sessions with a combination of group learning time and hands-on functions. Training at our facility, instead of trying to learn from a book, helped the group understand what we actually needed to do. If we had never talked to The Center, we never would have tried to get ISO certified. Now that we are finished, we can use the new processes and information to attract new business, better streamline production and keep up with quality issues as they happen, and better prevent them from happening in the future.
-- John Dingman, Sales Engineer
DeWitts™ Radiator (www.dewitts.com) began building Direct Fit® Corvette radiators more than 15 years ago and has since expanded their line to many other makes and models. Now, with 100% of the manufacturing process completed in-house, DeWitts™ has the flexibility to build custom radiators in several tube widths and fin designs. Under the direction of the DeWitt family, DeWitts™ employs 14 at their Howell, Mich., facility.
Challenge
At a recent trade show, a prospective client went in a different direction because DeWitts™ did not have an ISO 9001:2015 certification. Although not currently a customer requirement, DeWitts™ identified an opportunity to achieve ISO certification in order to obtain more controlled processes, higher product yield, more consistent results, increased margins and, importantly, a competitive advantage. The goal was to complete this certification process in time for several major trade shows so they could display their new ISO certification to prospective customers.
Solution
To assist with the certification process, the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center (The Center) conducted an ISO 9001:2015 Organizational Implementation with DeWitts™. During this process, The Center’s experts reviewed the requirements of the ISO standard with the DeWitts™ team and helped them to develop the relevant documentation. The team also learned tools for gathering and analyzing data, which will support improvements in productivity in the future.
Following this mentoring, DeWitts™ was able to achieve their certification in time for the trade shows. This certification will continue to provide value to their organization both from a process and quality perspective, as well as by allowing them to grow into new markets where ISO is a requirement.
Results
- Jobs Created: 2
- New Sales: $200,000
- New Investment: $10,000
- Jobs Retained: 12
- Retained Sales: $4,000,000