Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC, the North American leader in the development and manufacture of leading-edge active safety and braking system technologies, is a recipient of the Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) 2013 Masters of Quality Award. The Bendix manufacturing campus in Huntington, IN, earned recognition by delivering consistently high-quality products.
The DTNA Masters of Quality Award, now in its 27th year, is the highest recognition that Daimler gives its suppliers. Each year, the OEM evaluates its more than 1,000 North American suppliers using its EBSC (External Balance Score Card). EBSC values, consisting of more than 100 criteria, score DTNA’s best-performing suppliers against four core categories: quality and warranty, supply, cost and technology.
“We are honored to be recognized by a respected and valued customer like Daimler Trucks North America,” says Mike Pogorelc, Plant Manager for Bendix at Huntington. “This recognition is an important reflection of our ongoing commitment to the highest quality performance – delivering the best possible products and services for our customers.”
The Bendix Huntington campus, consisting of four manufacturing facilities, opened in February 1980. Huntington’s quality program – based on the Knorr Production System (KPS) quality, productivity, and continuous improvement culture – engages each of the campus’ more than 400 employees in shaping the plant’s success. To establish Huntington’s KPS quality program, Pogorelc and his team anticipated every opportunity for a process to fail, and then implemented systems not only to eliminate the delivery of substandard material but also to prevent its initial creation. In the past year, the plant has implemented more than 1,600 process improvement ideas. Lori Mickley, Quality Assurance Manager for Bendix at Huntington, cites idea generation and employees’ initiative to personally address quality improvements as key to plant success. The manufacturing campus has consistently been recognized by customers, like DTNA and others, for its outstanding quality performance.
“Becoming a trusted supplier comes from constant dedication, open two-way communication with customers, and a no-tolerance attitude for deficiencies,” Mickley says. “Quality can’t be important to the leadership alone. It has to be important to everyone.”
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