Colt Tech - ISO and AS Certifications
A Circuit Board Manufacturer Increases Client Counts With ISO And AS Certifications
THE MANUFACTURER
Colt Tech LLC was founded in 1983 to provide high-quality electronic design and manufacturing services with attention to detail and a high level of customer service. Their commitment to quality and exceptional service makes them a leader in their field. Their motto is “Excellence in Custom Electronic Design and Manufacturing Solutions” which is lived out daily. Colt Tech provides over three decades of circuit board design and manufacturing experience.
The primary objective at Colt Tech is to deliver a competitively priced product manufactured to the highest quality standards combined with consistent on-time delivery. They are a rare electronics design company that demonstrates an adaptive and multifaceted approach to service. Thanks to their extensive experience and expertise, Colt Tech serves a variety of industries.
THE SITUATION
Colt Tech’s customers are very satisfied with the products they receive. However, in their industry, Colt Tech’s clients continuously demanded higher standards and increasingly ask their suppliers to operate under a formal quality system. Colt Tech initiated ISO Certification in the past. However, those records, processes, and certifications were out of date. Without the updated certifications, Colt Tech noticed they were losing business opportunities, as well as limiting their access to potential new customers. They realized their quality management system needed to be upgraded to meet international standard. While already performing quality work, Colt Tech wanted to improve how their processes were documented, secure their client base through certification, and ensure the viability of the company with a proven quality management system.
THE SOLUTION
Kansas Manufacturing Solutions conducted a quality management system assessment, which provided Colt Tech a baseline for how it was performing compared to ISO and AS standards and what needed to be achieved or improved to meet the standards. ISO and AS Certifications provide access to significant business opportunities and will improve quality.
Following the assessment, KMS helped Colt Tech to learn how to operate the business using the ISO 9001:2015, AS9100D (Aerospace), and ISO13485 (Medical Devices) frameworks, and close the documentation and process gaps that were uncovered during the assessment. Training was conducted for management and key personnel supporting the certification process. By the end of the project, Colt Tech had created a quality management system that was simple and easy to use, and they passed their certification audits with no issues.
THE RESULTS
Colt Tech has experienced growth with a new client base they never would have had access to without the ISO and AS certifications provided by KMS. They also were able to retain their clients who wanted additional confidence around quality standards. Many manufacturers do not believe they need ISO certifications. They can be time consuming and may have a notable cost associated with them. However, with Colt Tech, the ROI from the retained and additional business acquired proved the value certifications of quality standards can provide.
THE CONCLUSION
"Colt Tech prides itself on the quality of the products we provide our clients. While we have always been known for our exceptional electronics, our ISO and AS certifications provides our current and new clients an increased level of confidence with our quality. KMS was valuable in helping us implement a cost-effective approach to realizing our certification process.”
Jeff Lynn, President