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Located in Mishawaka, IN, Electronics Inc. (EI) supplies products and services for the shot peening and blast cleaning industries. Their product line includes media flow control valves (the MagnaValve®) for air and wheel blast machines, media flow monitors, certified Almen test strips, and Almen gages. These products are used in aerospace, automotive, medical, energy, and other manufacturing applications. EI recently celebrated its 50th anniversary.

Situation:

With a significant portion of its clients in the aerospace and medical device industries, EI was receiving pressure from its customers to obtain ISO 9001 certification in order to meet their requirements as a vendor. EI initiated ISO certification in the past, some items had been organized, however the certification process was never completed. Knowing the obstacles ahead, EI reached out to Purdue MEP for guidance and assistance.  

Solution:  

Purdue MEP was onsite with EI for 11 days of onsite training, development, and implementation of ISO 9001 standards and an additional two days of internal auditor training. Working with a team from EI, Purdue MEP spent time reviewing the ISO 9001 standard and discovering what current processes met the standard without requiring significant change. Quality measures were identified, and the reporting mechanisms were implemented. Five members of the EI team were also trained as internal auditors.

Results:

After earning ISO certification, EI has seen improvements in the quality of the metrics they are monitoring. Quality assurance of their products has always been at a high level, but now EI has the data to monitor for small deviations.

Impact metrics:

• ISO 9001 certified
• Better cross-departmental functions throughout the organization
• Documented quality plan
• Satisfied clients
• Established 2 new roles within the organization (quality manager and document control specialist)
• 5 members of EI team trained as internal auditors
• Quality metrics established and monitored on a regular basis

“Although some might argue we could have become ISO 9001 certified without the assistance of Purdue MEP, I’d say having the training and support of Ted Boehm and Purdue MEP was immeasurable. Ted has a well-organized system that is effective, and he spent time adapting it to our needs and processes and making it applicable to us. Having Purdue MEP alongside us for the journey gave us confidence in our pursuit. We can’t thank them enough.”

- Jack Champaigne, President, Electronics Incorporated