ISO 9001:2015 Changes Business Perspective
About
Valley Packaging Corp started in 1984 as a small corrugated converting plant in Pulaski, Tennessee. It has since grown to one the best converting plants in the Southeast. Valley’s core principles have led the way in the company’s success. Their focus has been and always will be in the relationships that they have with customers, employees, and the community in which we work and grow. Their primary business markets are in the automotive aftermarket part suppliers, health and beauty, secondary packaging for food distribution, and home and commercial sales. They also have a supply division that provides support packaging such as tape, corner board and various specialty products to support their customers. Their growth and desire to be the best has led to building a new state of the art facility to ensure that they meet their customer’s expectations and provide a stable work environment for their valued employees.
The Challenge
Valley Packaging Corp implemented their ISO 9001 certification in the late 1990s. It initially was used to standardize their procedures and policies and help them be more competitive in the industry. The certification allowed the company to gain market share in the automotive sector and grow their business in many other areas. However, their Quality Management System remained the same for several years and the time came to consider updating to the newest standard.
MEP's Role
In 2017, Tennessee Manufacturing Extension Partnership (TMEP), a NIST MEP affiliate, consultants visited Valley Packaging to discuss their QMS and its importance to their future. The management team wanted a system that would provide true benefit to the company. Through turtle diagrams, workshops, and ISO 9001:2015 standard training, they began to change their opinion of the importance of the QMS.
With assistance from TMEP resources, Valley Packaging updated their QMS system, achieved certification to the 2015 standard, established tracking tools for verification and validation on their performance and changed some of the most skeptical minds into believing that a quality management system and production can exist together. Their business continues to grow and there is more transparency and ownership between core operations than ever before.
RESULTS
- $500,000 in increased or retained sales
- 186 new or retained jobs
- $287,300 in new investment