MONROE - A new flag flies over Orchid International today in Monroe.
The Monroe facility was awarded its TS16949 certification in November, according to General Manager Tim Tabor, making it more competitive and eligible to quote new automotive parts and related work in 2014 and beyond.
The technical specification certification means the company has met international standards that define the quality management system requirements for the automotive supply chain - design and development, production, and installation and service of automotive-related products.
Orchid International's certification comes after a year-long endeavor and showing of its capabilities, shipping quality parts to General Motors for the automotive company's transmission assembly plant in Baltimore. Then, after being audited and verifying their system, Orchid International was granted its certification.
The certification is expected to bring growth to the company, "new and better jobs and better security for the business here," Tabor said.
The certification is a necessity to serve an automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM), such as GM, Ford or Chrysler, with standard parts or even a Tier 1 supplier of system products and services, such as Johnson Controls, Inc.
With the certification in its pocket - and the flag flying over its facility, Orchid International hopes to see more customers lining up to do business with them.
"Other industries may not be as critical as the automotive industry," Tabor say, "but they perceive the (TS16949) certified company as having good discipline, good capabilities and reliability."
"The first customer is the hardest," he said.
Orchid International is a world class supplier of engineered metal products, electric motor technology, and automotive assemblies. With more automobiles being produced with "a lot of little motors and electronic products," Tabor said, Orchid sees "more opportunities to provide the electrical components."
Orchid International had ISO 9001 certification for meeting quality management system standards. TS16949 is an "upgrade," Tabor noted.
The Monroe facility was awarded its TS16949 certification in November, according to General Manager Tim Tabor, making it more competitive and eligible to quote new automotive parts and related work in 2014 and beyond.
The technical specification certification means the company has met international standards that define the quality management system requirements for the automotive supply chain - design and development, production, and installation and service of automotive-related products.
Orchid International's certification comes after a year-long endeavor and showing of its capabilities, shipping quality parts to General Motors for the automotive company's transmission assembly plant in Baltimore. Then, after being audited and verifying their system, Orchid International was granted its certification.
The certification is expected to bring growth to the company, "new and better jobs and better security for the business here," Tabor said.
The certification is a necessity to serve an automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM), such as GM, Ford or Chrysler, with standard parts or even a Tier 1 supplier of system products and services, such as Johnson Controls, Inc.
With the certification in its pocket - and the flag flying over its facility, Orchid International hopes to see more customers lining up to do business with them.
"Other industries may not be as critical as the automotive industry," Tabor say, "but they perceive the (TS16949) certified company as having good discipline, good capabilities and reliability."
"The first customer is the hardest," he said.
Orchid International is a world class supplier of engineered metal products, electric motor technology, and automotive assemblies. With more automobiles being produced with "a lot of little motors and electronic products," Tabor said, Orchid sees "more opportunities to provide the electrical components."
Orchid International had ISO 9001 certification for meeting quality management system standards. TS16949 is an "upgrade," Tabor noted.