More Hickory Springs plants due ISO status
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, July 16, 2007
Hickory, N.C. — More Hickory Springs Mfg. plants will become ISO-9000 certified this year in a campaign that has led to big improvements for the components supplier, according to Lee Lunsford, senior vice president, operations.
"Implementation of the International Standards Organization's quality program has been one of the most meaningful programs that Hickory Springs has ever been involved with," said Lunsford.
ISO-9000 places a focus on quality management, including what an operation does to meet regulatory standards and the quality requirements of customers. The goal is to enhance customer satisfaction and achieve continual improvement in performance.
Hickory Springs first implemented an ISO program in December 2000 at its Conover, N.C., foam pouring operation. The experience spurred a company-wide focus on quality assurance and a dedication to be "proactive rather than reactive to problems," said Tim Schultz, quality management systems manager.
At three Hickory-area plants, the program now encompasses the production of mattress quilting, automotive and packaging foams and springs for furniture and autos.
This month, the company's foam plant in Commerce, Calif., will be registered under an ISO program. Its Fort Smith, Ark., tube mill will join the ISO fold in October, and three other facilities are scheduled for implementation in 2008: the Verona, Miss., foam plant, HS Wire Technology in Hickory, and Ultraflex, a webbing supplier in High Point.
Eventually, Hickory Springs plans to implement an ISO program in every facility where appropriate, or other quality programs where it isn't.
Jeff Lail, corporate manufacturing systems quality manager, who has been with the company more than 30 years, said the ISO program is "more than just a quick fix to problems. We address the true root cause, so problems do not reoccur."
Lail, who also directs the company's lean manufacturing and continuous improvement programs, said ISO-9000 helps a business by building strong teams and involving all employees in decision-making based on documented facts rather than emotion.
In addition to widespread involvement and a factual approach to decisions, the ISO program is based on quality management principals that pay attention to customer needs, leadership, a process approach, systematic management, continual improvement and the inclusion of suppliers as partners.
