Document Consistency Critical to QS-9000 Certification

CBS BORING & MACHINE CORPORATION has been manufacturing engine components for the agricultural, military, and transportation industries since 1967. Their dedication to quality has resulted in moderate, but steady growth over the last 30 years. Today they have three production plants, all located within Michigan.

The Fraser, Mich., location northeast of Detroit manufactures engine components for the transportation industry, specifically heavy equipment and automotive. They are a manufacturing-only facility and produce products based on blueprint specifications provided by their customers.  CBS Boring & Machine is a Tier One supplier to major companies such as Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, and John Deere.  They also enjoy a relationship as a Tier Two supplier to the automotive industry including Ford Motor Company, DaimlerChrysler, and General Motors.

According to Project Director Bill Donaghy, CBS is actively working toward QS-9000 certification.  With 30 years of experience under their belt, they have successfully refined their processes and procedures to incorporate a high level of quality and are now in the process of formalizing them using the QS-9000 standards.  In the past eight months, they have put their policies in place and have completed the manual and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP).

With document consistency being critical to QS-9000, Donaghy works very closely with the Quality Department at CBS to set up and manage various projects.  Donaghy has worked in various quality management positions over the last 14 years, so he has a solid understanding of what it takes to ensure quality in products, as well as how that translates to the preparation for QS-9000 certification. When Bill came to CBS in 1998, they were maintaining their project data using Operator Verification Logs, which are handwritten documents. Although this system was working well, CBS felt that it could become more efficient if they were able to automate the process to avoid duplicating information at various stages of a project.

Before joining CBS, Bill had used a software package called MPACT (Manufacturing Planning And Control Tool) in other manufacturing environments and had seen a real improvement in production efficiency.  Just as Bill came on board, CBS had been awarded a contract to build a new fuel injected engine for Caterpillar.  The job seemed to be a perfect opportunity to introduce MPACT into the manufacturing process.  Because MPACT uses an integrated database, information only needs to be entered once and it carries across to all appropriate documents.  This significantly reduces paperwork, time and increases process efficiency.  Bill was able to get MPACT implemented and the staff trained and ready to go in three months.

According to Donaghy, "MPACT has made a significant difference in the overall manufacturing operation of the company.  Using MPACT has made it very simple to document processes in an organized and structured manner.  It's the choice of champions!"

Although it wasn't implemented specifically for the QS-9000 registration, it has been a useful tool while CBS has been working toward compliance.

CBS, like any other successful company, believes in providing quality products in the most timely and cost effective means possible.  They are always looking for opportunities to improve the processes they use, and finding software packages like MPACT is simply one way they have been able to achieve this.  Bill Donaghy says that using MPACT has significantly reduced the amount of time required to do the paperwork and, because the software is designed using an integrated database, information only needs to be input once and it transfers to all appropriate documentation, reducing opportunity for costly errors.