For XMA Corporation it Produced a Solid Company Culture
Company Background:
Founded in 2002, Fred Goodrich and Bruce Coopell started XMA Corporation by acquiring the Omni Spectra product line from M/A Com, Inc. Located in a 5,000 square foot facility in Manchester, New Hampshire, XMA grew quickly and expanded their facility to 8,000 square feet. XMA continued to grow rapidly and realized they would need a much larger facility. Then in 2016 XMA moved into a new 15,000 square foot facility in Manchester. Today with 2 locations; 1 in the U.S. and 1 in China, XMA employs just under 100.
XMA Corporation is a global leader serving the RF and Microwave industry. They manufacture proprietary Thin Film and Thick Film resistive elements as well as HiRel space and quantum RF Products. The markets they serve are telecommunications, quantum computing, aerospace, military/defense, commercial, medical, and high-end test and measurement equipment.
Situation:
“I started at XMA in 2013,” said Marc Smith, President and CEO of XMA Corporation. “Because my background was in aerospace, I understood the value of a Quality Management System. We needed a robust QMS because it would strengthen our company culture. The employees would create it, follow it, be accountable for it and own it. This leads to a solid company culture where together every employee benefits.”
XMA’s customers were also pushing back on them to have a QMS. “At the time not much of our work was in aerospace,” said Smith. “But by having a QMS it would allow us to enter new markets and lead to sustainability and continued growth of the company.”
Marc eventually heard about NH MEP’s AS9100D On-Site Registration Upgrade training and enrolled XMA.
Solution:
In 2016, XMA began the AS9100D On-Site Registration Upgrade training. XMA wanted to establish a quality management system based on AS9100D that included a process improvement component. XMA’s pursuit for AS9100D certification was based on the company’s strategy to train its employees on best quality management practices and position the company to compete globally. The training covered these 4 areas:
1) The development of a Manual and applicable Procedures
– Training in the development of the context of the organization to create documented information for a Quality System required by AS9100D using the context of the organization and Risk Based approach. Existing documentation will be used where possible. Documents and procedures will be in a natural business system flow in Microsoft Visio or documented in Microsoft Word.
2) The development of Work Instructions and other General Documented Information
– Training on how to review system documents, work instructions, and understand what needs to be edited.
3) AS9100D Presentation/Training
– An overview on AS9100D and the documented system will be conducted to educate employees/process owners on the standard and the system as created for use.
4) Internal Audit
– Following the creation and implementation of the system, an internal audit of AS9100D will be performed to assess successful implementation of the system. Select internal auditors will participate and learn how to perform an effective audit. The audit results will be provided for internal action where necessary.
At the end of the training, XMA was audited and awarded their AS9100D On-Site Registration Upgrade certification.
Results:
“The NH MEP AS9100D On-Site Registration Upgrade certification changed our company culture,” said Smith. “With the buy in from employees we now have more accountability. Employees on the production floor have controlled documentation to know how a product is made correctly and how to identify when and where mistakes were made. Because of this our employees have developed a new level of professionalism.”
The following results for XMA Corporation can be credited to having gone through the AS9100D On-Site Registration Upgrade training:
- $1,000,000 increase in sales over the last 12 months
- Retained sales of $500,000 over the last 12 months that otherwise would have been lost
- Retained 10 jobs over the last 12 months
- Increased investment of $50,000 in workforce practices or employee skills over the last 12 months
- $500,000 cost savings in labor, materials energy, overhead or other areas over the last 12 months
- Increased investment of $150,000 in new products or processes over the last 12 months
- Increased investment of $425,000 in plant or equipment over the last 12 months
- Increased investment of $300,000 in information systems and software over the last 12 months
Upcoming Quality Workshops
Wednesday, June 2nd & Thursday, June 3rd, 9 am – 4 pm – ISO 9001:2015 Internal Auditor Training
Monday, July 12th & Tuesday, July 13th, 8:30 am – 4 pm – AS 9100 Internal Auditor Training
Friday, July 30th, 9:30 am – 4 pm – Root Cause Analysis & Corrective Action Training
Monday, August 2nd, 9:00 am – 4 pm – Fundamentals of ISO 9001:2015
Learn more about NHMEP’s Quality Management Services
“The efforts of NHMEP and the guidance from NIST were extremely helpful in moving XMA Corporation to the next level in our business growth. The professional level of support and guidance was unsurpassed and my team learned a great deal from everyone at NHMEP. Our QMS is certified to AS9100D standards and we continue to benefit from the educational experience presented by NHMEP. They are a team of true professionals and XMA welcomes the next opportunity collaborate!”