Valley Etching Passes Aerospace Certification with Flying Colors
By Karen Myhaver, Outreach Specialist, MassMEP
"We have seen a large increase in orders and have been able to increase our business with other aerospace companies." Lori Dorgan, General Manager
Though Valley Etching already had a successful quality system in place, they were not yet fully ISO 9001-2000 compliant when an important client, Boeing, mandated that they become AS9100B certified. AS9100B builds upon the ISO 9001-2000 Quality Management System requirements to include approximately 20% additional standards required by the aerospace industry. In order to continue manufacturing circuit breaker control panels for some of Boeing’s helicopters, Valley Etching had to get this certification.
Ready for Audit in Four Months
While searching for resources to help her company with this task, General Manager Lori Dorgan found the Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP) and Lead Project Manager Susan Janus. In Sept 2006, Susan met Lori to learn more about the training needs of Valley Etching, Engraving and Design, Inc., discuss grant funding options, and determine what they needed to achieve AS9100B certification. Susan then went to work helping the small company obtain grant funds ($8,500).
"Without the funding, a company the size of ours would have had a hard time justifying the time and labor involved in this process," Lori stated. Due to the aerospace-specific requirements, Susan brought in Mike Reeve, a MassMEP resource who has experience in AS9100B and auditing.
The project began in February 2007 with the bulk being done between February and April. According to Mike Reeve, even though Valley Etching did not have a full ISO 9001 – 2000 Quality Management System in place, they were already being audited by Boeing and had a good quality system, so the concepts were not foreign. He was able to work with the system they had, add to it, streamline some areas, and include more record keeping to make it work more effectively. Mike developed a plan for what needed to be done and left Lori and the Valley Etching staff to familiarize themselves with the processes and incorporate the changes into their day-to-day procedures. Susan Janus kept in contact with Lori and Mike throughout the project to make sure everything went smoothly.
"Lori took a lot of the work on herself," said Mike. "She was able to see what needed to be done and adapt it to their system so it made sense for their company."
In May, Mike returned to see what had been accomplished and to help with some finishing touches. Everything was in place and they were ready for their AS9100B audit.
Sales Increased 11%
In June 2007, Valley Etching, Engraving and Design, Inc., passed their AS9100B audit with flying colors! In fact, the auditors did not find one thing out of place and commented on how well prepared they were for a company of their size!
"We could not have accomplished this without the help of Mike Reeve and the support from Mass MEP," stated Lori. "Since the certification, compared to the same period pre-certification, our bottom line profit is up considerably and sales have increased 11%! This is due to having better systems in place and working more efficiently with very little waste."
Lori attributes these results to the training assistance Valley Etching received and from the Lean manufacturing concepts they are learning and implementing. The employees at Valley Etching, Engraving and Design see the benefits and are making it a personal challenge to run their company as efficiently as possible.
"The quality system at Valley Etching is much more streamlined and waste has decreased dramatically. The process has made us more efficient and we got more than we expected. Susan Janus was great to work with and Mike Reeve is excellent at what he does. We have seen a large increase in orders and have been able to increase our business with other aerospace companies." — Lori Dorgan, General Manager
About Valley Etching, Engraving and Design Valley Etching, Engraving and Design, Inc., is a small business in Holyoke, Massachusetts that has been manufacturing custom photo etched embossing and foil stamping printing dies for over 75 years. In the late 1990’s, new owners, the C.A. Parent Group, expanded Valley’s offerings to include custom computerized engraving systems, photopolymer printing plates, anodized aluminum control panels, ID tags, scales and dials used in the aerospace industry, large format printing, and complete creative and graphic pre-press services. The company President, Chris Parent, has always focused on providing the highest quality products and services to his clientele. Valley’s excellent reputation has resulted in government contract awards for military aircraft.
