Precision Hydraulic Cylinders: Dual ISO Helps Keep $7 Million Account

Precision Hydraulic Cylinders, Inc. (PHC) in Beulaville celebrated a dual certification, acquiring both ISO 14001 and ISO 9001 earlier this year. It also helped secure existing business to the tune of $7 million annually.

As an international manufacturer, PHC understands that global prospects bring global competition. While obtaining the ISO 9001 certification was an internal decision, ISO 14001 was a requirement made by a client in order for PHC to keep a $7 million account.

“We always had processes and procedures in place but they weren’t always updated and changes were made on the fly,” Kenneth Gore, corporate compliance manager. With ISO, changes and revisions now involve a careful thought process and input from all parties involved.

PHC is a privately held company that manufactures hydraulic cylinders primarily used in mobile equipment applications. Customers are typically makers of forklifts, earth moving vehicles and agricultural vehicles. They also supply a full range of castings, forgings and machined component parts.

The company employs 165 between their Wallace and Beulaville facilities. In five years, the Beulaville facility has grown annual revenue from $4.5 million to $35 million. They also have a facility in Cramlington, England, and are in the process of building a plant in Chennai, India.

ISO (International Organization of Standardization) provides quality management standardization with the goal of enhancing customer satisfaction and providing tools for continuous improvement. They are standards that are recognized worldwide.

The ISO 9001 standard helps companies develop training consistencies, document and data control, a quality policy and proper record documentation.

ISO 14001 assists in the building of an Environmental Management System (EMS). Both standards are based on the Plan-Do-Check-Act management model. Benefits include managing environmental issues as dictated by the facility’s needs, continual improvement in environmental performance, and better tracking of compliance issues.

Both management systems include an internal auditing system so improved performance is maintained long-term.

The ISO 14001 assistance was provided by IES environmental engineer Charlie Parrish, who initially conducted a gap analysis on the PHC system. “The results showed that PHC manager Kenneth Gore had done a good job with the initial development, allowing the finishing touches to be completed in a relatively short period of time,” said Parrish.

“To prepare and apply for these initiatives simultaneously takes a serious commitment,” said Barbara Williams, ISO extension specialist for North Carolina State University’s Industrial Extension Service (IES). Williams helped prepare PHC with the 9001 portion of their registration.

ISO certifications have helped reshape their customer interactions. “It (ISO) has improved our quoting process,” said Darin Sullivan, sales manager. “We now listen more intently prior to quoting, to make sure we’re producing exactly what the client needs.” This ultimately leads to fewer mistakes, lower costs and faster delivery.

Chris Barclay, president, gives much of the credit to his workforce. “It took a dedicated workforce committed to continuous improvement and ISO is another example of just that.”